Govt to send doctors to remote areas

Govt to send doctors to remote areas

SUBANG, West Java: The government plans to reactivate an old
program that requires fresh graduates to work in remote areas for
a certain period before obtaining a license to practice medicine.

Speaking at a ceremony to mark National Health Day, Minister
of Health Siti Fadilah Supari said on Thursday that the move,
expected to start next year, was needed amid a severe shortage of
doctors in health clinics in remote areas.

But Siti also said that the government would provide an
incentive package for doctors willing to work in remote areas
including a relatively handsome monthly salary of around Rp 5
million (about US$500).

She added that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was expected
to issue a presidential decree as the legal basis for the
reactivation of the program. -- Antara