Migrant Health Matters (MHM): An Insight into the Public Health of Migrant Workers through Health Screenings

Abstract

Migrant workers struggle to access healthcare in Singapore. While paths are in place for them to seek medical support, barriers remain such as the high costs of treatment and their employers’ lack of flexibility in allowing them to seek help. There is a pressing need for more preventive health measures to be implemented in the local migrant health scene, focused on education and self-management. This study aims to evaluate a structured screening programme in place for the workers through statistics of attendance and participation, thus illustrating the efficacy of these screenings at health empowerment, and how they should be better organised to meet the workers’ needs. The results obtained reflect steady, regular attendance and participation by the migrant workers across all screening venues, citing that there is high demand for a free screening programme which is conveniently accessible near their suburban places of residence. There is room for a greater focus on preventive health for the migrant worker population, and the organisation of more regular, widespread health screenings to enable more workers to prioritise their own health.