Prabowo: Indonesia still short 268,073 doctors
The biggest gap is in dentists, at 127,580, followed by 84,781 general doctors and 55,712 specialists.
President Prabowo Subianto said Indonesia is still short 268,073 doctors, including general practitioners, dentists and specialists. At the Annual Session of the MPR and the Joint Session of the DPR-DPD in Jakarta on Friday (14/8), he cited Health Ministry data showing 474 regencies/cities still need 84,781 general doctors, 505 regencies/cities need 127,580 dentists, and 481 regencies/cities lack 55,712 specialists. According to Prabowo, the shortage is largely in areas far from provincial capitals, especially in eastern Indonesia. The government, he said, has opened nine new medical schools and 170 specialist and subspecialist programs based at universities and hospitals to catch up with demand for medical workers.