ABSTRACT The commercialisation of Malaysia's private healthcare sector has intensified conflicts between doctor's professional autonomy and financial pressures, raising ethical and legal concerns. Private practitioners increasingly face incentives to prioritise revenue‐generating treatments, leading to defensive medicine, excessive testing and escalating healthcare costs. These financial and legal pressures undermine clinical independence, shifting the doctor‐patient relationship toward a transactional model. This study employs a qualitative analytical approach to examine how financial imperatives shape medical decision‐making and defensive practices in Malaysia's private healthcare sector. By assessing revenue‐driven policies, litigation risks and their impact on professional autonomy, the analysis highlights the need for standardised guidelines, interdisciplinary collaboration and transparency in decision‐making. Strengthening regulatory safeguards is crucial to preserving medical ethics while ensuring financial sustainability in private healthcare.
Hassan et al. (2026) studied this question.