Its Like Processing Cattle!!

Translated this means - I went for my medical today. Yes for some strange backward reason they do the medical once you get here be it some months later. So you have given up your job, home, car and life to come here - and if you fail its see you later quick get out before you pass on your terrible diseases that you western people have that nobody here has!!!!

They test you for HIV, HEP and TB.

I was lucky enough to have a lovely driver from BMW drive me today to get this horrible thing over with his name is Benny... the nicest man, he opened the car door everywhere we went, I felt bad as I could of done this myself but he insisted.  I had been told that I would be there for at least 3hrs if not longer - so I had the latest gossip mag with me...HELLO!!!!

Well there were literally hundreds of people there waiting to have medicals done. Mens section and womens section of course.  The place was full of young asian girls obviously being bought here to be maids ... pick the odd one out.....ME (blond & old)!!!  Despite the masses it was quite well organised by a couple of very stern looking/speaking women.

First I was asked if I was married or single - not quite sure what difference this makes.  When was my LMP (period) not quite sure why they wanted to know this either. Maybe they were worried I may be pregnant - at my age I don't think so lady!!!

I then sat with the masses to wait to pay my money and have my photo taken which I did not know they were taking - I happened to look down and here she was putting the camera down - so on the screen there is a very unattractive picture of me looking up to the heavens.

Then it was time to literally be stabbed to have my blood drawn, no such thing as a nice tourniquet but a brutal piece of latex wrenched around your arm and then bang I was stabbed for my blood....ouch!!! 

Next it was everybody's turn to be xrayed  (line up like cattle).  I had been advised to wear a white tshirt so then I would not have to wear one of the used gowns. You walk into the xray room and there is trolleys of used gowns that you put on - thankfully I just had to take off the bra...and yes in front of everyone else...no privacy (but no men) then you just wait until its your turn to be xrayed but this is while everyone else is having theirs' done in the same room.  So everyone is exposed to radiation while waiting, just what the Dr ordered!!! You get shoved up against the xray board and as I had my hair down she grabbed this hair clip that was hanging on a piece of string from the ceiling and yanked my hair up in this clip. So now that I had been exposed to multiple doses of radiation it was time to leave for the next stage. But first the bra had to go back on .... in front of everyone again.  They are not big on privacy here.

And again for some strange backward reason you have to go to yet another facility to have your blood taken yet again for blood grouping.  So we pull up to this very very very dirty dirty  dodgy looking medical centre - god I really hope that I don't get sick here. (at least if I know what is wrong with me I can just go to the pharmacy and get whatever I need off the shelf without needing a prescription) This stage only involved a finger prick to get my blood group so no big deal.

Thankfully and it may well have been done in record time in under 1.5hrs - it was finished. Now next step is the fingerprinting - yes I have to be fingerprinted!!!! Not sure when this will be.  Then I will be issued with at last my Residents Permit ... al hamdu lillah!!!!