London Medical Review, November 2016.

[nifiance 7]

Just thought I'd share my medical experience on here, in case anyone (like I did), spent ages googling it before the big day.

I flew from Belfast to London Luton on the 7.00am flight, and then boarded a Greenline Bus that took me right down to Baker Street, from where it was a ten minute walk to Bentinck Street. I'd advise taking the Greenline, it's pretty cheap at only £17 for a return journey, although be aware it doesn't pick you up at the same place for the return journey. It's not even Baker Street, it's outside the Allsop Arms on Gloucester Square but it's not a long walk. Also be aware the drivers are kind of unpleasant, if you don't get on the bus immediately the like to yell at you. It gives them a sense of purpose.

So it's a pretty ordinary looking building, white brick, steps leading up to a big brown door with golden handles. As my flight and bus got me there for about 9am and my appointment wasn't til 13:50, I had a lot of time to kill. Oxford Street and Soho aren't far away, so it was nice to do a little Christmas recon in the city. Although to be honest I was too nervous to really enjoy it. Got a pretty sub par scone in Debenhams, so I wasn't happy about that. Could have used a glass of wine to be honest, but didn't want my blood test to read of anything alcoholic, but since I'm northern Irish, my blood's probably about 47% whiskey anyway.

After much walking, I arrived back at Bentinck Street at about 12, knowing I was super early. I pressed the buzzer for apartment 4 and the door opened. When I went in and spoke to the receptionist, she was a bit wary at letting me wait there as I was so early, but I explained how I'd flown from Belfast and had already wandered as much as I wanted to and really would like to just sit and wait, where I could read my book. My feet were sore, not to mention I've been on night shift all week and was bloody shattered.

So wait I did. Chatted with a nice couple moving to Texas, and a girl moving to Rhode Island. At about 13:30 I went to check in. The receptionist was very pleasant, and I handed over all my documentation (police certificate, vaccination records, questionnaire, passport and photos). She sorted it all out. They gave me a pot for a urine sample and a questionnaire not unlike the one I filled in that was downloaded off the embassy website. The questionnaire comes on a clipboard, with one of your photos stapled to it. You only have to fill out the first two pages. The first page is only a half page about your vaccinations and whether you've had chicken pox (as that vaccine isn't ordinarily available in the U.K.). The main questionnaire, as I've said, is very similar to the one you've already filled out, it's just a little more extensive, particularly around the mental health (one question was 'Have you ever had thoughts about harming yourself?' And then 'Have you ever acted on these thoughts'). I remember reading somewhere before about there being a question that says "does the subject look as if they are lying". Not there. The only thing of similarity was a statement saying something along the lines of "do they appear to be giving reliable information". So I filled out the questionnaire, at the very bottom there's a bit that says to list any medication you're currently on. I'm taking antibiotics at the moment for a kidney infection so I included this. Better to err on the side of caution, in case anything comes up in the blood or urine sample. And with that, I handed everything in.

A few moments later a nurse called my name. I'd seen this happen with the other couple from Texas, and it had taken a while, so I gathered up my bag and coat only for the nurse to stop me just outside the door and tell me that all my vaccinations were up to date and I needed none (I'm super organised- also everything on the NHS is free, so I'm also kind of frugal).

After another ten minute wait, the X ray technician called me in. He was a lovely gentleman, putting you at ease right away. In the corner of the room is a little chair and you take off your top half clothes, bra and all, and are given a gown to wear. Then you get your chest x ray. And oh no, it isn't enough to just stand in front of the black plate, you have to properly smoosh your boobs right up against it, put your hands on your hips like you're Wonder Woman about to perform the Time Warp. Then he draws the curtain around you again and tells you to put your bra back on, and then the gown over it. He was a lovely, chatty man and definitely made me feel much more at ease. When I came out after getting as redressed as I could, he was looking at my X ray on a computer screen. I asked him did everything look okay and he said from as far as he could see yes. Then I asked what the big blob was on the right side of my rib cage.

Yeah Linda, that'd be your heart, genius. At least it gave him a chuckle. No home schooling for your kids.

Then he shows you into this tiny waiting room with a big window that looks right on to a couple of barber shops. Thank god I had the gown sufficiently closed or someone could have got an ear lobbed off.

This was the place I got most nervous. You're on your own and it's a very small room, I started feeling kind of claustrophobic the longer I was waiting. The first young woman I'd been talking to (Rhode Island) was waiting there too, so it wasn't so bad until she got called off by the doctor. That was when the nerves really kicked in. I waited maybe half an hour staring at that barber shop window, until the doctor came in and called my name.

She's very formal, all business. No joking around with this one. Not even a smile once you get into her office. She sits behind her desk and you sit in front of her like an errant child, while you get the questions about heart and kidney disease, diabetes, drugs and alcohol, and STD's. I said no to everything, but mentioned thrush (let's be honest girls, who hasn't had it) but she said it was irrelevant. Then I mentioned the antibiotics for my kidney infection, but it was irrelevant too. She measured my height and weight (which was exciting as I'd lost 2kg since I'd filled in my paperwork), and eyesight. I wear glasses some of the time, so she got me to put them on and put one hand over my eye and read a line... same again for other eye... all fine.

Okay, now if you would just sit up on the bed.... this is the bit where you stare forward while she checks your eyes, ears and throat. I have a tiny skin tag on my ear that she queried, but I just said it had always been there. I'd be kinda prone to skin tags. So that's all good. Then you gotta take off your jeans/skirt/whatever and lie on the bed. Thankfully the gown is pretty long. I was also grateful I'd had the presence of mine to put on matching underwear that morning.

When you're lying there, she checks the glands in your neck. Then she listens to you breathe, putting the stethoscope on your chest, under your bust, actually fully on your ####### at one stage which I thought was weird but I'm not a doctor, so hey. Then you sit up and she gets you to breathe in etc while she checks your breathing again, then lie back down so she can have a squeeze round your tummy. Her bedside manner is brusque, but she's good. She does a blood test after she checks your arms.

As she was doing all that, she asked me if I had ever been diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). I said I had, to which she replied "Oh, did I miss that in the paperwork?" Cue me, horribly embarrassed: "No, I don't take any medication for it, but I actually brought a letter if you want to see it?" She said she would, and then she left me lying there to go and write something down. I'm assuming it was just the PCOS stuff. Then when she came back, she just lifted the band of my panties and looked down, literally a second, then I could get dressed again. Thank the goddesses. I was worried it would be a whole "just give me a minute while I put on a hat with a light on it and have a good look down there".

So I got dressed, sat back down and showed her the diagnosis letter about my PCOS. She said in her opinion I should be on medication, but she could see as per the letter that I was maintaining the condition through diet and exercise. But it's okay, not to worry, everything is in order. I can go back into the main waiting room.

Phew. After all the tiny waiting rooms and examination rooms, I felt like I'd just walked out on to the top of Everest. After a few minutes, the receptionist calls you over. You get all your documentation back. You pay the bill. They staple the receipt to a page of FAQs (questions like 'When will my results be back?', and vaccination based questions). I'd strongly advise you to get the vaccinations before you have your medical. I also got a vaccination documentation worksheet. It lists all the vaccinations, dates the ones I've had and any reasons for waiver (not age appropriate, not routinely available). Then on remarks it reads "This K-non immigrant applicant did receive the required vaccines and the US vaccination requirements are complete for this applicant".

Like I said, get your vaccines. It's free til you leave the UK, and we've enough to pay for with this whole process.

Then they just tell you if there's anything else they need, they'll be in touch. It takes 4-5 days for your results to come in, and if everything's okay they just courier it to the embassy. So basically if I hear nothing by next Wednesday I'm good to go.

So now, £290 lighter and my dignity mainly intact, I get to leave Bentinck Street, run for the bus and narrowly make my flight back to Northern Ireland, where my car awaits me, frozen solid.

I hope this helps anyone else out there doing the same thing. If ever you need someone to talk to, advice or simply how to pose correctly like Wonder Woman, give me a shout.

[yunnipie 6]

That is helpful, and rather entertaining as well

My husband goes in tomorrow, and I'm wondering should we keep copies of the visa letter and police certificate? The medical office wants the originals, right?

[nifiance 7]

That is helpful, and rather entertaining as well

My husband goes in tomorrow, and I'm wondering should we keep copies of the visa letter and police certificate? The medical office wants the originals, right?

I got mine back, but I took copies of them just to be safe.

[yunnipie 6]

I got mine back, but I took copies of them just to be safe.

Perfect, thank you

[JFH 12,189]

They will make copies if you take originals. I took copies of everything to keep my originals safe at home.

[Amiss5572 2]

My fiance is having trouble getting immunizations from his doctor. We are scheduling his medical hopefully next week. I did read you could get them at the medical though, is that not a good idea then?

[JFH 12,189]

My fiance is having trouble getting immunizations from his doctor. We are scheduling his medical hopefully next week. I did read you could get them at the medical though, is that not a good idea then?

Some GP practices are reluctant to give vaccinations on the NHS to people who are wanting them to emigrate. I had a bit of a struggle to get the MMR (I am of an age where MMR vaccines didn't exist when I was a child). You can get them at the medical but you will need to pay for them.

Which vaccines is he missing? If he needs pertussis he is unlikely to get that because the entire UK NHS stock is reserved for pregnant women. It is possible to get it privately but if you're going to do that you may as well just get it done at Knightsbridge. He will need the flu vaccine. Unless he is in one of the qualifying groups for an NHS-funded flu vaccine then he will have to pay hit tjis. Larger branches of Boots do flu vaccines. Or the GP may do it for a fee.

[Amiss5572 2]

Some GP practices are reluctant to give vaccinations on the NHS to people who are wanting them to emigrate. I had a bit of a struggle to get the MMR (I am of an age where MMR vaccines didn't exist when I was a child). You can get them at the medical but you will need to pay for them.

Which vaccines is he missing? If he needs pertussis he is unlikely to get that because the entire UK NHS stock is reserved for pregnant women. It is possible to get it privately but if you're going to do that you may as well just get it done at Knightsbridge. He will need the flu vaccine. Unless he is in one of the qualifying groups for an NHS-funded flu vaccine then he will have to pay hit tjis. Larger branches of Boots do flu vaccines. Or the GP may do it for a fee.

He apparently has had zero vaccinations. I am not sure if that is unheard of or not? Or maybe he just has no record of them? I guess it would be wise to try to get as many from him doctor to save money.

[JFH 12,189]

He apparently has had zero vaccinations. I am not sure if that is unheard of or not? Or maybe he just has no record of them? I guess it would be wise to try to get as many from him doctor to save money.

How old is he? The doctor should have records of them.

I'm almost 43 and the GP said my original medical records are on paper and were in the loft at the GP practice. He actually went up into the loft to get them and found which vaccines I had had. Now my early childhood vaccines were not recorded because I haven't lived in the UK all my life. But he found medical records from when I was a teenager. There will be records somewhere, even if he was born before computer records were kept.

It is possible he never had any vaccines - some parents (like my husband's parents) refuse to have their children vaccinated. This was California in the 1960s. Although vaccines are strongly recommended in the UK, there is no law that requires parents to have their children vaccinated.

[yuna628 9,530]

He apparently has had zero vaccinations. I am not sure if that is unheard of or not? Or maybe he just has no record of them? I guess it would be wise to try to get as many from him doctor to save money.

If he can't find his 'red book' (perhaps kept by his parents?) it is suggested to have the doctor look into his records and give him a printout of any vaccinations received as a child. They have to exist somewhere.

1) Your options are get them from your GP or at a Boots. Keep proof of receiving them.

2) Get them at Knightsbridge - but keep in mind the following: At least one of the required shot (MMR) is a 2 dose vaccine that needs at least 4-6 weeks spacing time. If you get just the first dose you'll be waived for insufficient time, but if you'd like to complete the series you'll need to get it from somewhere else spaced out before Knightsbridge. Knightsbridge also has a habit of fobbing people off regarding vaccinations, so if you want them and you have the money to pay their very high cost you may have to insist to them you want them. Also remember that the chickenpox vaccination isn't really offered in the UK. You will be waived if your guy has had chickenpox as a child. They will take his word for it.

3) Don't get any shots and get them stateside. High cost again. You'll need to get them either at a US Civil Surgeon or anywhere that you can get them (I actually saw Walmart offers pretty much all of the required vaccinations the other day), keep the proof and then have the US Civil Surgeon complete a I-693 and send this with your AOS when it's time.

Edited November 27, 2016 by yuna628

[Amiss5572 2]

Thank you! Will share this info with him, helps out a lot.

[millrbrit 45]

Aren't they urine testing only for gonorrhea? Or have they changed it to be a test that covers drugs now too? I don't remember this from my medical.

[Zoe_Doodah 4]

Just for gonhorrea. If you admit to any drug use in the past then they may do an additional drugs test but as standard it's just gonhorrea