Saturday, July 23, 2016

Cambodia - Hun Sen Defends Local Doctors

Not every Cambodian doctor is incompetent, Prime Minister Hun Sen said yesterday, in a rebuff to critics of the Kingdom’s healthcare sector.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of a new University of Health Sciences building and to celebrate the university’s 70th anniversary, the premier claimed that most doctors in the country help people and that the mistakes made by some doctors should not reflect poorly on Cambodia’s larger healthcare sector.

“I do not agree with someone who said that 90 percent of medical doctors are bad. Only 10 percent of doctors are good, so can the doctors accept this accusation? It seems it is looking down on doctors,” Mr. Hun Sen said, adding that he and other Cambodians received quality care from in-country doctors.

This statement comes despite having Mr. Hun Sen’s in February traveled to Singapore earlier this year for his annual health check-up. Defending the visit, the prime minister said his seeking routine medical treatment outside Cambodia did not mean medical treatment inside Cambodia was poor.

“If 90 percent of doctors are bad, how many patients would be dead because of those bad doctors?” Mr. Hun Sen asked yesterday, before launching into a speech about the reform of the health sector and adding it would require cross-ministry cooperation. Even the Ministry of Transport would be required to reform the health sector, he said.

Mr. Hun Sen’s comments are in reference to those made previously by Dr. Mengly Quach, the America-trained president of his eponymous medical school, which has three branches across the Kingdom. Dr. Quach said in February that nine of 10 doctors in Cambodia are “bad,” “arrogant” and lack “professionalism, compassion, morals, and gentleness.”

Mom Kunthear



You can find older posts regarding ASEAN politics and economics news at SBC blog, and older posts regarding health and healthcare at IIMS blog. I thank you.

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