The initiative, organised by the Malaysian Medical Association’s (MMA) Section for House Officers, Medical Officers and Specialists (Schomos), encouraged people to change their social media profile pictures to monochrome from July 1 to today.
On the final day, also known as Black Monday, people are asked to go to work dressed in black.
A houseman from a public hospital in the Klang Valley said support had been good although many were discouraged by their heads of department from taking part in the campaign, with warnings of possible disciplinary action.
“However, some non-contract doctors are dressed in black as they feel it does not affect their daily duties in the hospital,” he told FMT, adding that some even wore black scrubs to show their support.
“We are struggling by doing the same job, but are paid less compared to our counterparts. Treat us fairly, please,” the houseman said.
Another houseman in the Klang Valley said most of his colleagues were wearing black in conjunction with the campaign, although he was unable to join them at the hospital today as he was recovering from Covid-19.
While there was strong support within the medical fraternity, the contract doctor noted that there was still a lack of awareness among the public as the pandemic kept most of them preoccupied.
“There are allowances for those in the Covid-19 teams, but what we are hoping for is a guarantee of our future. Right now, there is nothing at the end of the tunnel and we do not know where to go after our two years are up,” he said.
The houseman also said he and his peers were hoping to specialise, but the current contract system did not allow them to do so.
Over at a Sabah hospital, a house officer said the support from medical officers (MOs) and specialists had been “tremendous”, with all of them dressed in black to stand in solidarity.
“I did not expect so many non-contract medical staff to be with us at this important hour.
“For these busy MOs and specialists to find time to do so, despite the heavy and challenging workload, is something the fraternity ought to be proud of,” said the junior doctor.
Meanwhile, a Schomos spokesman says the response from doctors throughout the nation had been very encouraging.
The spokesman also emphasised that they were only wearing black to show solidarity with doctors under the contract system, without affecting their daily duties.
“We thank all the doctors, especially those non-contract medical officers and specialists, who are standing by us to bring about better working conditions for the junior doctors who are all working extremely hard during this pandemic,” he said.