The General Authority for Health Services (GAHS) in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi today announced that had signed an agreement with IntegraScreen, the leading international document verification and screening company, to outsource the verification of the credentials of health care workers who apply to be licensed. This forms part of a major new initiative to enhance its background checking process for health professionals.
Eng. Zaid Al Siksek, director of Health Policy and Regulation, General Authority of Health Services, Abu Dhabi, said that “the new initiative will ensure that the process is completed as accurately and efficiently as possible. The GAHS background check program helps to ensure that the public is protected from unqualified and fraudulent health care workers, in line with best international standards and practices”. Mr. Al Siksek also added that the programme would not introduce delays into the licensing process.
Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Al Siksek said “This contract is part of GAHS’ vision for the future of health care in Abu Dhabi in which an efficiently regulated, predominantly private sector delivers world class health care.”
In response, IntegraScreen’s local Director, Paul Kane, said that the company was delighted to have been selected to administer the important programme. “Fraudulent medical qualifications pose a serious threat to public health in many parts of the world, with unqualified and inexperienced doctors and nurses causing a huge amount of damage to patients and to confidence in the system. By outsourcing and enhancing the process, Abu Dhabi proves once again that it is one of the most forward thinking health authorities in the world”.
Under the scheme, when a health professional applies for a license the applicant’s medical qualification, license and work experience will be checked and verified by IntegraScreen. In the majority of cases, these credentials will be verified within 30 days, thereby allowing a swift processing of the license application.
IntegraScreen is a leading provider of document verification and screening services. It currently runs the UAE Ministry of Labour’s highly successful degree verification programme. This programme authenticates the educational qualifications of international job applicants and has uncovered over 500 fake qualifications in the past year in addition to over 350 qualifications from bogus universities. It seeks to protect all sectors of society by exposing fraudsters and ensuring that all professionals, including construction engineers and architects, are properly qualified for the positions they hold.
According to Mr. Al Siksek, IntegraScreen was selected as a partner because “it’s an established and respected UAE government contractor providing a similar service to the Ministry of Labour. IntegraScreen’s UAE experience and international network of researchers gives them the unique ability to meet GAHS’ exacting requirements within a streamlined time frame.”
