THEY live with you and are privy to your family's most intimate secrets. Why not care for your domestic helper as you would a sister or a best friend?

This was the message Dr Susan Lim wished to convey to Singaporeans in conjunction with International Women's Day on Saturday.

To walk the talk, the renowned surgeon has tied up with Parkway Health Group and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (Unifem) Singapore to offer free health check-ups and breast examinations for all domestic workers this Sunday (9pm to 3am) at Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre.

More than 200 domestic workers have already signed up.

"It'll be an all-girls day," said Dr Lim, who has roped in nurses from her two clinics at Mount Elizabeth and Gleneagles hospitals, as well as volunteers from the Singapore American School and Unifem.

Besides getting their blood pressure and body mass index (BMI) checked, domestic workers can undergo breast examinations and attend talks by gynaecologist Dr Ann Tan and dermatologist Dr Cheong Lai Leng on female health issues.

"Behind every working mum is a domestic helper. Many have made huge sacrifices to be here.

"As a mother and a doctor, I thought this would be the best way to give back," said Dr Lim, whose Filipino maid of 15 years helped her raise her three teenage children.

International Women's Day is a perennial highlight on her calendar.

Last year, she gave a keynote speech at the International Women's Day conference in Singapore.

In 2006, a division of her clinic took part in the US-Middle East Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness & Research to conduct breast examinations for women in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

Dr Lim added that the aim of the event is to educate and empower domestic workers with health awareness and knowledge that they can take with them anywhere.

Miss Jenette Baguinang, 26, from the Philippines, agreed.

Though her employer sends her for regular six-monthly health checks, she encouraged her two sisters and five friends to sign up.

She said: "I am hoping to learn about how to prevent breast cancer and skin problems."