Top 5 Doctors in Dubai
If you wish to keep on top of your health care needs and limit unexpected hospital visits, it’s best to find a good general practitioner you can rely on.
Aside from diagnosing common medical issues, these doctors can also coordinate all your healthcare requirements and refer you to the right specialists.
At any rate, to help you with your search, we’re reviewing some of the best doctors in Dubai! We’ll cover what they’re known for, why we think they’re great, and more!
How much do doctors in Dubai charge?
Before we delve into our top picks, let us first see the usual rates for the common services by general practitioners.
Note that the fees can vary depending on the doctor or clinic you have chosen, so we suggest that you visit the official website of our entries.
1. Dr. Barbara Karin Vela

Dr. Barbara Karin Vela is a popular general practitioner in the Health Bay Clinic with over two decades of clinical experience.Â
Although her services are mostly centered on family medicine, she provides primary care for patients with chronic diseases, including hypercholesterolemia and hypertension.
In addition to that, she offers preventive checkups and treatments concerning women’s health, such as cervical screening and pap smears.
Also, you don’t have to worry a lot about the fees for these services because Dr. Vela accepts more than 90 in-network insurance plans.
Should this not be enough, Health Bay Clinic also offers various promotions and health packages. That is why if you wish to save more, we suggest that you visit their official website to learn more about the discounted rates they are currently offering.Â
Aside from her being a licensed medical practitioner, another impressive accomplishment of Dr. Vela is that she is also a diving physician. This means that she can perform initial consultations and other assessments for recreational divers or compressed air workers and manage diving accidents.
Overall, Dr. Barbara Karin Vela has the qualifications, and credibility patients look for in a general practitioner. Our only complaint about her is that the branch she is working at is open 24 hours every day, but as we observed on her personal website, her schedule can be a bit erratic.
Pros
- Offers consultation in English, Serbian, CroatianÂ
- Has extensive experience in the fieldÂ
- Accepts a variety of in-network insurancesÂ
Cons
- Erratic operating hoursÂ
- Medical services fees are not stated on the website
2. Dr. Meerim Cholponbaeva

Next on our list is Dr. Meerim Cholponbaeva. She is part of GMC Clinics, a privately held entity in Dubai.
She finished her medical degree and specializations in Kyrgyzstan. Her solid medical background speaks volumes about her expertise in diagnosing and treating cardiovascular diseases, abdominal diseases, endocrine diseases, respiratory diseases, and more.
Besides that, she can also perform emergency care for patients suffering from injuries, lesions, and poisoning.
We also like that she is an on-call doctor, which means that aside from onsite consultations and treatments, she also offers home healthcare services and in-house clinic services. This is a great point of convenience, especially for people who can’t travel far because of an illness or injury.
Booking an appointment with Dr. Cholponbaeva is easy because GMC Clinics provide several ways to do so. To conveniently check her availability, we suggest that you visit the clinic’s official website and fill out the online appointment form.
The clinic and its general practitioners’ goal is to provide comprehensive primary and continuing medical care to all their patients, so they also offer teleconsultations on top of their onsite services. This supports their GMCClinics Process, which also aims to follow a holistic and patient-centric approach.
Just note that compared to other entries on the list, GMC Clinics accepts only a few insurance plans, and we also noticed some negative reviews about the expensive rates of their services. That is why if you are looking for budget-friendly healthcare services, Dr. Meerim Cholponbaeva might not be the best option for you.
Pros
- Clinic offers teleconsultation
- Provides home healthcare services and inhouse clinic services
- Features holistic and patient-centric approach
- Can easily book an appointment onlineÂ
Cons
- Offers limited in-network insurance plans
- May be on the pricey side
3. Dr. Ahmed Ghalayini

Dr. Ahmed Ghalayini is one of the eight general practitioners of Emirates Hospital, and he is currently working at its Business Bay Clinic and Sharjah clinics.
He is affiliated with the Emirates Medical Association and a former member of the Arab Medical Association in Gaza.
Dr. Ghalayini is one of the renowned doctors in Dubai. In fact, before he started working at Emirates Hospital, he was the former primary care chief at Al Zahra Hospital in Sharjah and senior primary care physician at Al Zahra Medical Centre in Dubai.
He provides primary healthcare and treatment for people with acute medical cases. Besides that, Dr. Ghalayini also offers primary care services for chronic illnesses, including diabetes, hypertension, asthma, and general medical complaints.
What we like about Emirates Hospital is that they offer a range of healthcare packages for people of all ages. You see, you can save more money and time with these choices because each one features a variety of healthcare services.
For example, if you plan to bring your kid for a full body checkup and laboratory tests, you’ll only have to pay 1,000 AED. On the other hand, if you wish to avail of their family checkup package, it will be 8,000 AED for men and 8,600 AED for women.
In our opinion, these are pretty good deals since you can already avail of general medical services, extensive laboratory tests, and consultations with both general practitioners and specialists.
However, if you think you only need routine checkups at least once a year, then these packages might not be worth it.
Pros
- Offers comprehensive healthcare packages
- Extensive experience as a general practitioner
- Offers services on two clinicsÂ
Cons
- Operating hours for each clinic aren’t publicly specified
- Rates can be expensive for some
4. Dr. Asma Kossentini

Another renowned general practitioner we included in this list is Dr. Asma Kossentini. She is currently working at a popular multi-specialty clinic in Dubai, La Familia Medical Center.
A noteworthy feature of this clinic is that they accept major local and international insurance plans in the region as well as other insurance providers for reimbursement.
That is why for as long as you have a good insurance plan by your side, you don’t have to agonize over your medical expenses.
Dr. Kossentini finished her Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS), Doctor of Medicine degree (MD), and Doctor of Philosophy degree (Ph.D.) at the University of Tunis in Tunisia. These accomplishments speak volumes of her expertise in the field, so we decide to include her on our list.
She is a general practitioner in family medicine, and focuses on managing acute and chronic diseases, including diabetes, asthma, hypertension, and more.
Furthermore, she is experienced in diagnosing, managing, and providing preventive treatments for rhinitis, dermatitis, and other allergic and immunologic conditions.
Overall, Dr. Kossentini is a good pick because, aside from her expertise, her consultations are also available in Arabic, English, and French. We think this is a good advantage because it means that she can cater to a wider scope of patients with ease.
Sadly though, we think La Familia Medical Center’s website could do more justice to their doctors’ profiles. Besides that, they also need to update their online booking section.
You see, there is no online booking form on the website, so the best way to schedule an appointment with their doctors would be through a call or email.
Pros
- Supports a variety of insurance plans
- Offers consultation in Arabic, English, and French
- Accepts all major local and international insurance plans in the regionÂ
Cons
- No online booking form
- Website needs an update
5. Dr. Randa El-Tawil

Like Dr. Ghayalini, Dr. Randa El-Tawil is also a general practitioner at Emirates Hospital. However, she is currently working at its clinic in Dubai Marina.
Her clinical expertise includes performing comprehensive checkups and vaccinations for all age groups. She also offers screening, preventive treatments, and management for acute and chronic diseases.
If you’re looking for a doctor with a well-established reputation, you can consider her because Dr. El-Tawil has over 25 years of relevant experience as a general practitioner. In addition to that, for the past 14 years, she has been working as one of the reputed doctors at Dubai Marina Clinic.
However, we noticed that there are a few negative reviews from clients experiencing difficulty booking and rescheduling an appointment with Dr. El-Tawil. Well, this might be because she’s one of the only two general practitioners in this clinic.
But, once you successfully set an appointment with her, there can be more to appreciate about her services and the clinic’s facilities.
Emirate Hospital’s branch in Dubai Marina offers video consultations aside from the usual in-person consultations to ensure that their goal to address the healthcare concerns of all their patients is met no matter the time of day.
On top of everything else, since it is an extension of Emirates Hospital, this clinic also has access to the modern and well-equipped facilities in its main branch in Jumeirah.
Pros
- Extensive clinical expertise
- Offers video consultations
- Clinic has access to the main branch’s facilitiesÂ
Cons
- Occasionally hard to book or reschedule appointmentsÂ
How to Choose the Best General Practitioner in Dubai
Are you overwhelmed by the long lists of doctors on websites and in directories? Here are the steps you can follow in choosing the right doctor for your primary health care needs.
1. Consult your insurance provider.
Since obtaining health insurance is considered mandatory in Dubai, we recommend starting your search with a list of doctors that support the insurance plan you have.
Choosing a doctor in-network with your current health plan is more advantageous because they can offer direct billing or negotiated discounted rates to you.
Review your health insurance plan or visit the provider’s website to know the list of doctors near you who support the health plan you have.
2. Look into the credentials of your top picks.
Once you have your top picks, you can check their credentials and qualifications through the official website of their clinic or the hospital where they are working. You can also see online reviews about their services.
Note that doing a brief background check on your top choices’ certifications and track record is essential to guarantee that they have a clean record and are free of malpractice issues or other complications.
3. Consider the doctor’s hospital affiliation.
If you are still undecided on whom to select, we suggest that you also look into their hospital affiliations. This is important in case you have to be taken to a hospital at some point now or in the future.
Nevertheless, if you have a strong preference for a particular hospital, you may want to check with your chosen hospital first and then select a general practitioner affiliated with them to make the process more efficient.
4. See where they are working.
Choosing a general practitioner near you is also an excellent point of convenience. Aside from saving you from tiring and expensive transportation, it is also ideal in case of emergencies.
On top of that, you also have to check the healthcare facilities and equipment in the hospital or clinic.
FAQ about Doctors in Dubai
If you would like to recommend other doctors, message us, and we’ll check them out as soon as we can.
Also, if you need more resources on other medical specialists in Dubai, you can check out other listicles we published.