2 Medical Officers At Queen Elizabeth Hospital Sabah Accused Of Bullying & Racism
The two medical officers allegedly made derogatory remarks about a junior's skin colour on WhatsApp.
The Health Ministry is investigating allegations of racism and workplace bullying involving two medical officers (MOs) at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Sabah
The probe was launched after alleged conversations between two MOs showed them bragging about pressuring sick junior colleagues to keep working, even to the point of tears.
Screenshots of the conversations, which have been uploaded to multiple Instagram accounts, also show the duo using a dark-skinned man with a turban emoji to make derogatory remarks about a junior's skin colour.
The allegations first surfaced online on 25 January through images that appeared to be photographed from a computer screen displaying the WhatsApp Web desktop application.
The screenshots were originally shared by @mydoctortoday, which no longer exists. However, another account, @anonymousdoctors, uploaded three screenshots of the conversations.
In the first two screenshots, the two MOs are seen discussing medical students or junior colleagues, questioning their perceived lack of common sense and experience.
The conversation includes specific names, which have been redacted by the uploader.
At one point, the male MO makes a remark about a person's skin colour, using a dark-skinned man with a turban emoji. The female MO responds: "Yes, same colour."
The exchange appears to criticise certain juniors, with the female MO suggesting that individuals of this particular race are "terrible" and asking if they could "get rid" of these people. This prompted a friendly warning from the male MO not to speak openly in the chat, as they might get screenshotted.
In the third screenshot, the male MO mentions that he made a house officer work until she cried.
"After that, [the house officer] still sucks. So same only. [Name redacted] treated them very good, also no use haha. So, might as well treat them bad [sic]. Same only," the male MO said in the chat.
Image via IG
The two MOs were named, but SAYS is withholding their identities pending the Health Ministry's probe into the allegations
According to the ministry, the issue has been referred to the Integrity Unit for investigation.
"Affected parties are also encouraged to file official reports through the MyHelp system to facilitate the investigation," the ministry said in a statement, as reported by FMT.
It stressed that bullying, in any form, has no place in public healthcare.
Last year, an specialist doctor was found dead in Sabah, with her brother alleging that workplace bullying led to her suicide:
Prior to this, the Malaysian Medical Association was accused of downplaying bullying within the medical fraternity:
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