KUALA LUMPUR: Traditional and complementary medicine (TCM) practitioners will soon be able to register online with the Health Ministry through e-Pengamal, a free voluntary registration system.
Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai said the system would be available from next month ahead of the mandatory registration of TCM practitioners under the Traditional and Complementary Healthcare Practices Act.
The Act aims to regulate TCM practitioners such as sinseh and dukun by validating their qualifications, enforcing their compulsory registration with the ministry and managing the issuance of practising certificates.
He said a roadshow would be held soon to demonstrate how TCM practitioners can use e-Pengamal, which was developed by the ministry’s TCM division.
Speaking after launching the Golden Horses Health Sanctuary TCM Wellness Centre in Seri Kembangan near here yesterday, Liow said as of May, there were 7,578 TCM practitioners registered under seven umbrella bodies.
They are the Federation of Chinese Physicians and Medicine Dealers Associations of Malaysia, Federation of Chinese Physicians and Acupuncturists Associations of Malaysia, Federation of Malay Traditional Medicine Practitioners, Federation of Indian Traditional Medicine Malaysia, Malaysian Homeopathic Medical Council, Malaysian Society of Complementary Therapies and Chinese Physician’s Association of Malaysia.
Liow said three more hospitals, in Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak, would offer TCM services.
“The three pilot projects which offered traditional complementary medicine have received overwhelming response.”
The three hospitals currently offering TCM are the Kepala Batas Hospital, Putrajaya Hospital and Hospital Sultan Ismail in Johor.
“In Hospital Putrajaya, appointments have been made up to three months in advance.
“The TCM unit in hospital Kepala Batas has recorded almost 4,000 cases, collectively, for traditional Malay massage, acupuncture and adjunct herbal treatment for cancer patients on chemotherapy,” he said.
Also present at yesterday’s ceremony was Country Heights Holdings founder and deputy chairman Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew.
(c) 2008 New Straits Times. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.
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