By Adam Turteltaub

Robin Singh isn’t that much different from most healthcare compliance professionals.  He works for a healthy system with 12 hospitals, 20,000 employees and over 60 clinics.  What’s different, at least for most of the readers and podcasts listeners, is he does all this Abu Dhabi.  Although the healthcare system in the United Arab Emirates is far different than the one in the US, compliance officers are still needed and appreciated.

They also face a number of challenges.  His advice for navigating compliance issues in the Gulf Cooperation Council region includes:

* Recognize that risks are country-specific, but there are many commonalities

* Be aware of the political situation: the countries are stable, but they are also young and the regulatory environment is still developing

* Watch the microeconomic factors that can have a macro effect, specifically oil & gas price volatility

* Accept the cultural nuances, including that the optics of how you do things: reputation and honor are very important.

* Conflicts of interest are an ongoing issue because of the gift-giving culture.

Listen in to learn more about navigating compliance risks in the Gulf.