Joining as a Private Dentist

Time flies! I’ve spent three months in the private sector already, working at mydentist® in KL. We have two branches right now – the main branch is in Jalan Ipoh, and the new branch just opened last year in Bangsar. So far I’m based mainly at the Jalan Ipoh branch, slowly learning my way around things.

When we got the lions to bless the Bangsar branch. CNY 2019.

At mydentist® we do a wide range of treatments, ranging from simple restorations to orthodontics, invisalign and implants, minor oral surgeries and periodontal surgeries. At the moment I’m looking into learning MOS, hopefully that would come to fruition soon!

The Jalan Ipoh branch, looks like a spa.

I’m really enjoying my time here so far. A dental career is all about nonstop learning, and I’m constantly improving myself by the everyday challenges I’ve come to expect. And finally I can do more than just filling, scaling, and extractions!

To find out more about us, visit mydentist® website to find out more!

Anyway I’m here to write about the steps on how to resign from the government service and join as a private dentist.

How to resign from the government and become a private dentist

So you’ve completed your khidmat wajib in the govt and want to venture out into the big bad world of private dentistry. This is the TL;DR version:

1. Find a job
2. Submit resignation letter
3. Apply for APC with MDC
4. Start work

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STEP 1 –  FIND A JOB

Let’s get down to the truth. It’s getting difficult out here. Malaysia’s 11 dental schools + all the international universities are pumping out thousands of new dental grads each year. If not for the contract employment system in place for NDOPs, many new grads may have to wait years to even get a govt posting. For a population of 32 million, we are going to hit that sweet spot of dentist-to-population ratio of 1:2000 soon.

Same goes with the private sector. As more and more dentists are being produced, more will resign from the govt and spillover into the private sector. Dare I say that Klang Valley is now saturated with private dentists. The area of Bangsar alone (from Jalan Bangsar to Bangsar Shopping Centre) is home to some 20 dental clinics, at least! Saturation is bad because we will compete for the same market, and cannibalise the business.

Finding a job is difficult. So if you’re keen to take the leap from the govt and join private, you have to stand out. Be passionate about dentistry, or a specific type of dentistry. Brand yourself. You may like aesthetic dentistry, or surgery. Find a niche where you excel and sell yourself to the employer. Also play up how good you are in a team. Teamwork is very important to dentistry and leadership skills do stand out. At the same time, be humble, and show that you are willing to learn.

There’s no hard & fast rule to how to get a job. Find a clinic/boss that you like or admire or even just for the location. Email them your CV. Call them to make an appointment to see the boss. Or even just walk in and meet them. I know based on experience that some bosses like ballsy moves like walking in for an interview.

If you have connections, get them to recommend you. Nothing is better than a personal recommendation.

Once you’re close to landing yourself an offer, sit down with the management/employer and negotiate terms. As far as I know, most private dentists are considered self-employed associates. Meaning that we are independent contractors paid for our expertise in the clinic, so we are not considered a staff per se, and we don’t get EPF/KWSP. Most of the offers come in the form of basic salary + 40% profit sharing, whichever is higher, which encourages you to actively attract patients & work hard. Some clinics give you a flat salary, subject to increments over time. Talk out these terms, as well as annual leave and working hours, before you make a decision and sign your contract. Most of us work 6 days a week (!), and don’t get much leave to start with. So when you join the private sector, be prepared to hustle!

STEP 2 – SUBMIT RESIGNATION DOCUMENTS TO SDO

There are 3 items you need to submit by hardcopy to the SDO. Usually you must submit this at least one month in advance of your resignation. My SDO wanted 6 weeks (1.5 months). You can ask if your KP has a softcopy of this in the PC, or message your PT and ask for resignation documents. Fill in your details, print them out, sign and dispatch.

1. Resignation letter – should look something like this:

2. Lampiran C

3.  Perakuan hutang

These are just for references and I’ve redacted the personal details. It’s better to get an actual softcopy version to edit.

After dispatching, check with your PT to make sure they have received it. They will check the details and make sure there are no mistakes. Paperwork bureaucracy is strict in the govt.

STEP 3 – RECEIVE SURAT PENAMATAN/PENGESAHAN LETAK JAWATAN FROM JKN

This can sometimes take a few weeks to process. This is because your SDO will need to submit somemore documents to your state JKN to inform them of your resignation. The JKN will then check that you have successfully completed 1 year of service, and issue a letter which will then be forwarded to your KP. This letter is important and you NEED it to apply for an APC.

I’ve spoken to other people from other states who have resigned and apparently theirs are a bit different, but the idea is the same. This is mine from JKN Selangor.

There are many names for this abovementioned letter. For simplicity I’ll just call it surat penamatan.

STEP 4 – APPLY APC

You’ll be dealing with MDC again. For this step you need 4 things:

1. Borang 8 – get from MDC website
2. Existing APC
3. Surat penamatan
4. Bank draft/postal order (RM 50 per clinic)

For the surat penamatan, do make photocopies of it and submit it to MDC. Keep the original for yourself in case you need it in the future.

You can submit the above documents by post to MDC. However I submitted mine by hand to Cyberjaya. Thankfully I did, because I brought a personal cheque, and they pointed out that they only accept bank drafts/postal orders. So I had to go the nearby post office to get a postal order of RM50 per clinic to pay them.

MDC usually takes about a week or so to send the hardcopy APC to your new clinic. But their online DPIMS system is much faster. As soon as that gets approved, you can start practising at your new clinic!

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The timing of these sequences must be right. Because without an APC, you cannot practise, even if you’re supposed to start work. My advice is this: plan way ahead of time. Give yourself two months to do all the above before committing to start work in private.

So there you go, you are a private dentist! It’s a much more rewarding and satisfying sector of dentistry, but it comes with many more challenges, stress and responsibilities. You’ll have to work hard.

Good luck comrades!