This is in regards to several recent posts on various threads stating that it is necessary to do a health check in your own country prior to arrival in China as well as then doing a health check once you arrive in china.

For the sake of assisting others who are going through the process or thinking about working in china perhaps it would be best to state a few more details regarding personal experience of applying for the z visa and subsequent residence permit.

From my own personal experience I have never been required to do a health check in my own country. I have undertaken the process of applying for a z-visa within the UK twice in 2008 and then again in 2010. Both times I was applying for jobs with schools in zhejiang province.
While working in zhejiang I was only aware of one of my colleagues being asked to undertake a medical prior to arrival. She was a young German.

While I have no doubt that some people are being told to get a medical prior to arriving in China it certainly doesn't seem to be a nationwide policy. In fact the same can be said of the z-visa / RP process in general. Different institutions within different cities and provinces have different and ever changing requirements, therefore take any absolute or unconditional statements you might read with a pinch of salt.

My advice therefore would be to find a reputable employer who has experience of attaining the essential paper work for the z-visa and RP and ask them explicitly whether it is necessary to do the health check prior to arrival. Furthermore if people are finding that they need to do the health check before they come to china when applying for jobs in specific provinces please state which province you are in and when you applied. This should ensure a little more clarity on the situation.