Free health screening in Taipei draws over 200 migrant workers

Taipei, Aug. 16 (CNA) More than 200 migrant workers attended a free health check event staffed by medical personnel and volunteers from the Tzu Chi International Medical Association at Taipei Main Station on Sunday.

The event offered preliminary health checks, including ultrasound and dental examinations, as well as consultations in specialties such as orthopedics and gynecology, according to Ho Fang-tsun (何芳純), a Taipei City government official who helped organize the event.

Surya Dewi, an Indonesian domestic worker who has lived in Taiwan for 14 years, said the event was "very helpful because sometimes we don't have time to go to a clinic."

The 51-year-old said she had her heart, teeth and eyes checked. It was her first time attending the event.

Istiyani, an Indonesian caregiver, said she received acupuncture after seeking help for lower back and hand pain caused by lifting the elderly person in her care.

"It doesn't hurt anymore," said the Taoyuan-based worker, who has lived in Taiwan for eight years.

Ho said the office began cooperating with Tzu Chi in 2004, primarily because many of Taipei's roughly 50,000 migrant workers are live-in family caregivers with only one day off a month, making it difficult to seek medical treatment.

"Family caregivers look after the health of our people, and we also hope to look after the health of migrant workers," Ho said.

With more than 20,000 visits recorded since the program began and each event this year drawing more than 200 participants, Ho said the service does not end with the initial screening.

"At our previous session [in June], we found that one migrant worker had about eight or nine uterine fibroids," Ho said. "We followed up with her and helped her go to a major hospital for further examinations."

Sunday's event was the third of four planned for 2026, with the final one set for Oct. 4, also at Taipei Main Station.

The service is open to migrant workers legally residing in Taiwan, including those employed outside Taipei, as long as they bring their Alien Resident Certificates (ARCs).