More recruits for Supplementary Medicine service

Nadira Gunatilleke

COLOMBO: Health Care and Nutrition Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva has made arrangements to recruit 5000 people into the Professional Supplementary to Medicine Service (PSM) and train them this year to meet the high demand for PSMs, a Health Care and Nutrition Ministry spokesman said.

He said there is a severe shortage of PSMs (Physicians, Pharmacists, Medical Laboratory Technicians (MLTs), Occupational Therapists and Radiologists) in Sri Lanka at the moment.

Minister de Silva recently handed over appointment letters to 89 MLTs who passed the relevant examination and recruited another 61 for the training under the condition of getting through the examination in due course.

Another 100 applicants who have passed the Advanced Level Examination in the Science stream were recruited for PSM training.

The Minister has also made arrangements to send 500 PSMs abroad to serve in foreign hospitals this year and send 50 PSMs abroad annually.

The Minister will hold discussions with the Australian Health Care Minister and the Health Secretary to get assistance to train the trainers of PSMs.

At the moment there is a shortage of trainers (lecturers etc.) to train PSMs. The newly recruited PSMs are now being trained at seven training centres at Peradeniya, Kalutara and Colombo. After the training they will be attached to hospitals including hospitals in the North and East.