Health Ministry faces shortage of 1,176 drivers, including ambulance personnel

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 — The Health Ministry (MoH) is reportedly facing a nationwide shortage of 1,176 vehicle drivers, including those assigned to ambulances, with the vacancies expected to persist until at least April next year.

Berita Harian reported that the ministry attributed the shortage to delays in recruiting General Service Assistants (Driving) after the Public Service Department temporarily suspended recruitment through the Public Services Commission (PSC) in 2024 to facilitate implementation of the new Public Service Remuneration System (SSPA).

Under the SSPA, the former vehicle driver scheme was merged into the new General Service Assistant scheme, requiring recruitment requirements to be reviewed, particularly for personnel tasked with driving ambulances.

According to the report, MoH said it expects the vacant driving posts at public health facilities to be filled in stages from April 2027, subject to the completion of the PSC recruitment process.

As of September 30, the ministry had 8,863 General Service Assistant (Driving) positions, of which 7,687 were filled, according to figures provided by MoH to Berita Harian.

Peninsular Malaysia accounted for 1,003 of the vacancies, followed by Sarawak with 92, Sabah with 73 and Labuan with eight.

The ministry reportedly said recruitment projections would also have to account for existing vacancies, retirements, staff attrition and the operational requirements of individual facilities.

It added that applications were still being processed by the PSC, while the driving competency test for candidates was completed on October 27.

The shortage comes as the government plans to procure 400 new ambulances for MoH hospitals under Budget 2027, a measure intended to improve emergency response times.

Berita Harian had earlier reported concerns from PEMATA-KKM president Reostam Dzahar that the shortage was increasing the workload of existing drivers, with some allegedly working beyond stipulated hours and experiencing burnout.