Medical tests for professional Dubai drivers from end of May

Dubai: A new regulation will ensure that those with serious medical conditions don’t endanger their lives and the lives of others by working as professional drivers.

All would-be professional drivers will now have to undergo a medical test before obtaining a driving licence as the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) implements a new federal law later this month

According to the new regulations, people with a history of cardiovascular ailments, epilepsy, certain cases of diabetes and neurological disorders among other conditions, will not be allowed to work as professional drivers, a senior RTA official told Gulf News.

“As a professional driver, a person spends eight to nine hours on the road daily and is also responsible for his passengers and in that case it is very risky to allow people with certain health conditions to work as a driver,” said Ahmad Hashim Behroozian, CEO of the RTA’s Licensing Agency.

The RTA has assigned six private clinics in Dubai to conduct the tests and the new law will be implemented on a gradual basis.

“We are starting with the new drivers for now and by next year will be covering all those who are working as drivers. By the end of this month we will start asking new applicants with a driver’s visa to get the medical tests done and if they fail the test, they won’t get the licence,” said Behroozian.

In the next phase the tests will be conducted on all RTA bus and taxi drivers.

“We currently have some kind of medical tests for bus and taxi drivers, which will be scrapped and all the drivers including those working for taxi franchises will have to undergo the new tests,” added Behroozian.

After a driver undergoes the test, the results will be sent by the clinics directly to the RTA, and the authority will issue a permit which needs to be renewed annually.

Behroozian said the authority will try to be lenient initially, to allow firms and drivers to get accustomed to the new standards.

“In the first year we will not take any severe action. We will only inform the company that the certain driver is not entirely fit to work as a driver and next year if the conditions remain the same he will not be allowed to work as a driver. However, if the condition is severe we will immediately revoke the licence,” said Behroozian.

The law is being implemented in association with the Dubai Health Authority and the health standards imposed are drawn from those implemented in the UK.

“This is an entirely different test than the one conducted before issuing work permits. In this test what we are looking at are conditions that would affect road users. All the doctors conducting these tests are already authorised and firms can refer to the standards on our website before they hire drivers,” said Behroozian.

“The most common medical condition that impacts the transport industry across the world is diabetes. However, one of the most dangerous conditions is epilepsy. In a serious episode involving a diabetic, a driver may have blurred vision, loss of balance and may pass out. In the case of epilepsy the driver loses control of their movements. Both events usually result in a road crash.”

The Dubai medical test will include a: GP consultation, blood pressure test, blood sugar test and vision test. The drivers will also be required to answer questions about their medical health.

The doctor will assess the client’s health to determine if the person has a serious medical condition.