Call to ensure health of incoming expats

MUSCAT: The 22nd Meeting of the Gulf Central Committee for the Expatriates Health Check-up Programme of the GCC Health Council commenced on Sunday at the City Seasons Hotel Muscat.

The meeting is hosted by the Sultanate, represented by the Ministry of Health (MoH) and attended by Dr. Saif Al Abri, Director General of Diseases Surveillance & Control along with Dr. Harib Al Lamki, Director General of Primary Healthcare and Member of the Executive Body of the Health Council.

The two-day meeting reviews maintaining the health security of the GCC member states. A delegation from the General Secretariat participated in the meeting to address the latest developments of the programme and to provide the necessary facilities in order the GCC countries implement the decision made during the 37th GCC Supreme Council Session of the GCC leaders held in Bahrain 2016. The decision stressed that the GCC embassies, consulates and relevant authorities should ensure the health of the incoming expatriates through the e-link of the Expatriates Health Check-up Programme before issuing visas to enter the GCC countries.

The health check-up programme is one of the most important preventive programmes in the public health, as it authorises examination centres in labour-exporting countries, which in turn perform the medical check-ups scheduled in the Health Council Examination lists before issuing visas in order to limit the entry of inappropriate health cases to the GCC countries.