Commission IX of the DPR encourages the formation of an investigation team for the death of 4 interns due to exhaustion

JAKARTA - Member of Commission IX of the House of Representatives Netty Prasetiyani Aher encourages the formation of an investigation team for four internship doctors who died allegedly due to exhaustion. He assessed that this series of events should be an alarm to conduct a thorough evaluation of the internship system in Indonesia.

"This is not just a disaster, but can be interpreted as a signal of systemic problems that must be immediately corrected. Young doctors should not be victims of a less than perfect system," said Netty Prasetiyani Aher, Tuesday, May 5.

Netty also highlighted the unclear status of internship participants who are in between the positions as learners and health service personnel.

"This condition has an impact on the weak protection of rights, including related to working hours, health insurance, and certainty of welfare," he said.

Netty also emphasized the importance of evaluating the supervision and mentoring system in the field. He said, the internship program should be a learning process to build competence and independence, not to replace the role of full-fledged medical personnel without adequate supervision.

"Many reports show high workloads, even exceeding the limit, and minimal support. This is risky not only for young doctors, but also for patient safety," said Netty.

The member of the DPR Health Commission also highlighted the weak supervision and reporting system for the condition of interns. Netty said that there were still many internship participants who were reluctant to report the ideal working conditions because they were afraid it would affect their assessment and graduation.

"For this reason, we urge the government, especially the Ministry of Health, to immediately take concrete steps. Among others, by conducting a national evaluation of all internship vehicles, strengthening the supervision system, and ensuring a safe and independent complaint mechanism," he said.

The PKS legislator from the West Java VIII Dapil Dapil also encouraged the formation of a transparent and accountable investigation team to uncover the exact cause of the series of deaths of the intern doctor, as well as formulate policy improvements in the future.

"The safety of doctors is part of patient safety. We must not turn a blind eye. This is a momentum to make a total improvement," concluded Netty.

For information, a doctor who participated in the internship program named dr. Myta Aprilia Azmi died allegedly due to workload. Myta is a graduate of the Faculty of Medicine, Sriwijaya University (FK UNSRI) who is undergoing an internship program at the KH. Daud Arif Hospital, Kuala Tungkal, Jambi.

The death of dr. Myta adds to the long list of incidents that have also been in the spotlight in the media, especially related to high work pressure and the lack of protection for young doctors. The death of these young doctors has become the concern of the wider community.

Previously, three internship doctors died in the last three months, namely doctors in Cianjur Regency, West Java, due to complications from measles; a doctor on duty in Rembang, Central Java, with suspected anemia; and a doctor in Denpasar, Bali, due to complications from dengue fever.