My encounter with MMC

11th December 2009

Today I had my first encounter with a Malaysian Government Agency; I went to visit MMC (Malaysian Medical Council) with my dad. It was nice to be treated with respect and be called 'Doctor'; never felt respected before in UK as a doctor. Even my dad got confused when they started calling me “doctor” and he was saying, “Which doctor?”; I guess it never occurred to him that his little daughter is now somebody respectable. It was quite funny actually.

I kept asking her questions about my application and after every question, she would say...”nanti, saya tanya pegawai (hold on, let me ask the officer in charge)” and I'm thinking to myself, if you can't answer any of my questions without speaking to the pegawai (officer) then, why don't I just speak to the officer myself; but apparently that is how things are done here. At least, she was very polite and nice.

I quickly realised that when it comes to government applications, I must take documents, photocopying, dates and endorsement very seriously. Even if you get one thing 'wrong', like the wrong colour form or undated documents, things will become 10 times more difficult. Every photocopy document has to be stamped and endorsed by a lawyer or some government official.

My advice to anyone considering to register with MMC:


1.Download the application form from MMC website and fill everything in. They will give you a list of all documentations that is required.

2.Make sure you get a testimonial from your consultant after every job that you have completed. If you can't get one from your consultant then, get one from the Medical personnel or in my case, from my VTS co-ordinator. The testimonial is very simple; it just needs to say something like....
“This is to confirm that Dr so and so was working at so and so hospital as a (grade) in (what specialty) from what date to what date”. If you want to give more information for e.g. On your performance or duties then you can add those things.

MMC requires testomony from all jobs you did within the last 3 years. However, I would recommend that you get testimonial from all jobs you ever did because you will need that if you are applying for job at Kementerian Kesihatan or some University Hospital application. If you are a GP trained in UK (like me) then it is easier to get a testimony from your VTS co-ordinator stating all the jobs you did during your VTS rotation. That means you do not need to approach all of your ex-consultants which could be tricky if they had retired, on prolonged leave or on holiday.

2.Make sure all your documents are photocopied and that the photocopies are endorsed by a lawyer or medical officer (like the GMC or equivalent) or Malaysian Hicom.

3.If your certificate is for some reason (like mine!!!) undated then, make sure you get them dated by your medical school/hospital. Otherwise MMC might have to call them to confirm that you did qualify from that Medical school.

4.It is better to send your application by hand (even if it is via someone else like family member or trusted friend) rather than post – as it has been known to get lost (not by the post-office) and make sure that you get a notice of receipt. You can make your application whilst still in the UK, post it to your family member and get them to take it for you to MMC. They will still need to see your original copies but you can do that later when you have arrived in Malaysia.

5.A top tip is if you are more than 45 years old, you are exempted from compulsory service so, you can go straight into private work (I believe – unless they change this man made law again).

So, that is the boring bit I'm afraid but pretty useful information I hope for those who are now in my position. When I decided to write down my experiences, it was also with the intention of helping those like me. Alhamdulillah I did get some useful tips from people but most of the time I was in the dark, groping for some light or rope or whatever to guide me to where I wanted to go. Most people who were in my position had established their lives and moved on. Many have forgotten all the details of their plight and little annoyances that they went through to get to where they are. I don't blame them. Nobody wants to remember details of their dealings with government officials. Even for me, it all seems a long time ago but I wanted to put this down in my blog for the benefit of anyone out there considering to return to Malaysia. I just hope that it will prepare them for some of the difficulties ahead.

Link to MMC website for information
http://www.mmc.gov.my/v1/