"President Prabowo has instructed that efforts to increase the number of medical specialists must be accelerated to complement the more evenly distributed medical equipment across hospitals in Indonesia," Sadikin said here on Tuesday.
The seven essential medical specializations include pediatrics, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, surgery, anesthesiology, radiology, and clinical pathology.
The minister emphasized the urgent need to expand hospital-based education, noting that at the current rate of specialist training in Indonesia, national demand cannot be met even within the next 20 years.
By increasing the number of teaching hospitals, Sadikin hopes that more specialists will be evenly distributed across 514 cities and districts, helping reduce regional disparities in healthcare.
To achieve this goal, he and Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin agreed to designate the hospital as a training center for National Defense Force (TNI) doctors, allowing them to gain internationally recognized qualifications and serve throughout the country.
In its initial phase, specialist training at Soedirman Hospital will focus on the seven essential fields for TNI-owned hospitals, he added.
"I would also like to request permission, if the Defense Minister allows, to include non-TNI doctors (in the specialist training program at Soedirman Hospital)," he said.
On the same occasion, Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said that Soedirman National Defense Central Hospital is an A-class hospital equipped with extensive facilities, including a 28-story building, 1,000 beds, and around 100 intensive care units (ICUs).
Sjamsoeddin noted that such a high-quality medical center must also be supported by equally high-quality specialists as part of its human resources.
The Health Ministry launched hospital-based specialist education on September 8, 2025. The program currently involves 58 doctors from various regions that have long faced shortages of medical specialists.
The specialist training is being conducted at several ministry-owned hospitals, including the National Brain Center Hospital (RSPON), Harapan Kita Cardiovascular Hospital, Dharmais Cancer Hospital, and Cicendo Eye Hospital.
Upon completing their specialist education, the doctors will return to their respective regions to serve the public and strengthen local healthcare services.
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Translator: Mecca Yumna Ning Prisie
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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