Applying for sick leave in Dubai? It's not easy now!

April 30, 2017

Dubai, Apr 30: Work staff will no longer be able to present predated sick leave certificates to employers. The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) announced on Saturday that predated sick leave for three consecutive days or more will no longer be issued.sickl

This means sick leaves can only be given on the same day the patient visits the medical facilities and not for previous days.

The DHA urged physicians and those concerned in public and private medical facilities to abide by this new decision and refrain from giving patients predated sick leaves.

Marwan Al Mulla, the Director of the Health Planning Department at DHA said that this procedure has been implemented starting April 29, 2016 in all public and private health facilities to achieve transparency.

Al Mulla added that the electronic system 'Sharian' has been reprogrammed and no longer accepts predated sick-leaves.

Al Mulla said the authority is now working on developing system standards and guidelines of medical facilities and physicians in Dubai.

He said the Health Planning Department is working on a smart integrated electronic system that is connected to all external bodies responsible for licensing medical facilities and physicians. It is also working on developing the Dubai Health Registry project and is working on developing the licensing standards for health professionals and facilities.

Al Mulla said that the results of recent evaluations have confirmed the need to update and develop some regulations, develop electronic systems, and expand the time scale of inspections of health facilities.

As for evaluation policies and examination exemptions, he explained that currently the authority's examination is valid for one year and the examination exemptions do not include dentists as well as specialists and consultants who have certain European certificates.

Al Mulla pointed out that the authority is planning to update this policy by extending the validity of these examinations to five years instead of one year. It will also exempt dentists from the authority's assessment based on certain requirements. As part of the updated policies specialists and consultants who obtained European certificates from certain countries that include Germany, France, Sweden and Italy will also be exempted.

By updating these policies, the authority aims to facilitate the licensing procedures for doctors from developed countries and attract more professionals to work in Dubai.

Regarding the policy of licensing health professionals, currently, applications of new professionals that do not conform to the UAE State Professional Licensing Manual are rejected. The DHA is now updating this policy so that there are clear mechanisms that will allow the licensing of rare professional qualifications that are required in the emirate of Dubai to attract professionals from around the world, meet the needs of the labor market and raise the level of medical services in the Emirate.

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Agencies
May 22,2020

Riyadh, May 22: The family of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Friday said that they forgave his killers. Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who had written columns critical of Saudi Arabia, was brutally killed in October 2018, allegedly at the behest of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.

“In this blessed night of the blessed month [of Ramadan] we remember God’s saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah,” Jamal Khashoggi’s son Salah Khashoggi said in a tweet. “Therefore, we the sons of the Martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce that we pardon those who killed our father, seeking reward [from] God almighty.”

The legal outcome of this announcement is not yet clear. Earlier, Salah Khashoggi said he had “full confidence” in the judicial system, and that the accused were trying to exploit the case.

Jamal Khashoggi’s body was said to have been dismembered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and disposed of elsewhere, but his remains were never found.

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News Network
April 23,2020

Riyadh, Apr 22: In an extraordinary initiative, the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has decided to facilitate the travel of expatriates who have an exit and reentry visa or final exit visa to return to their countries.

This is in line with the order of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

According to the initiative, called “Auda” (return), expatriates can apply seeking permission for travel to their countries through the Absher portal of the ministry.

Announcing this, Saudi's Ministry of Interior said that the initiative will be implemented in cooperation with a number of relevant government agencies.

Requests for travel from expatriates will be received and approved in coordination with the relevant authorities to complete their travel procedures on board international flights.

As per the initiative, a text message will be sent to the beneficiary stating the travel date, ticket number and reservation details, and by which the beneficiary can obtain his travel ticket and complete the travel procedures.

Clarifying the procedures for the travel, the ministry said that the applicant shall select the icon (Auda) after visiting the Absher portal and fill the following fields: iqama (residency permit) number, date of birth, mobile number, departure city and airport of arrival.

It is not mandatory for the expatriate to have his own Absher account for availing of the service, the ministry said, adding that this facility is to enable expatriates to benefit from this initiative.

The departure will be through the following airports: King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Prince Muhammad International Airport in Madinah, and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam.

Those expatriates who are outside these cities can benefit from the service through entering airport of departure after completion of their travel procedures in sufficient period of time.

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Agencies
April 8,2020

Riyadh, Apr 8: Saudi Arabia's health minister has warned the number of COVID-19 cases in the country could reach 200,000 in coming weeks.

As of Tuesday, the kingdom registered a total of 2,795 coronavirus infections, including 41 deaths.

"Within the next few weeks, studies predict the number of infections will range from a minimum of 10,000 to a maximum of 200,000," health minister Tawfiq al-Rabiah was cited as saying by the official Saudi Press Agency on Tuesday.

On Monday, Saudi Arabia extended the duration of daily curfews in four governorates and five cities to 24 hours.

The kingdom imposed round-the-clock lockdowns in the capital Riyadh, Tabuk, Dammam, Dhahran and Hofuf, the interior ministry said on Twitter.

The same measures were also imposed on the governorates of Jeddah, Taif, Qatif and Khobar, the ministry added.

Authorities had already sealed off the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, barring people from entering and exiting as well as prohibiting movement between all provinces.

Last month, Saudi Arabia suspended the year-round "Umrah" pilgrimage over fears of the coronavirus pandemic spreading to Islam's holiest cities.

Authorities are yet to announce whether they will proceed with this year's Hajj, scheduled for the end of July. Last week, authorities urged Muslims to temporarily defer preparations for the annual pilgrimage.

Last year, about 2.5 million people travelled to Saudi Arabia to take part in the Hajj, which all Muslims must perform at least once in their lives if able.

The Arab world's biggest economy has also closed down cinemas, malls and restaurants and halted flights as it steps up efforts to contain the virus.

King Salman has warned of a "more difficult" fight ahead against the virus, as the kingdom faces the economic double blow of virus-led shutdowns and crashing oil prices

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