My interview is Feb 8, but as I've been recovering from COVID (lovely Xmas gift from my visiting husband! 😓), I needed to delay my medical a little longer, fully accepting that it might not arrive at the consulate in time.
I spoke with Dr. Mascarenhas ahead of time, explaining the situation to him, and he let me know that if it wasn't ready in time, he'd give me a deferral letter to bring with me. They allowed me to submit my passport photo electronically ahead of time, so they didn't need a hard copy.
My appointment was at 1:30pm today. It was very busy, but I was seen within 5 minutes. COVID safety protocol was decent. I filled out paperwork asking for medical history, surgeries, medications, any history of alcohol or drugs abuse (no questions about use itself or any questions about cannabis, for any Canadians who might wonder), and any history or psychological or psychiatric issues such a schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or Major Depressive Disorder. I stated I have depression and ADHD, which I'm medicated for, but not Major Depressive Disorder. No questions were asked on this or anything else.
He was nice, though very quick and to the point. He looked over everything, said it looked fine and was satisfied with my titre test results as proof of immunization (MMR, varicella immunity from chicken pox) and a letter from my GP for Tetanus and Flu shots.
I explained to him that there was a spot of COVID pneumonia on my lower right lobe as detected in my CT scan a few weeks ago, so they may see something there when looking at my x-ray. He said thank you for the heads up on that. The lab will be faxing my results to my doctor, since I already needed a Post-COVID follow-up x-ray and we wanted to save on radiation exposure.
He explained very clearly how things would go - go pay at the counter, then down to the basement for the x-ray, then across the street for the urine and bloodwork (which are both only for STD detection). I am to email him on Thursday evening and find out whether or not the results came back in time. If so, he will email them to the consulate ASAP on Friday. If not, I have to pop back over to his office and pick up my deferral letter.
Super quick, super nice, and surprisingly hassle-free. Not even a physical exam or blood pressure taken. Height & weight was verbally recorded and the only thing he asked about was why I had a particular surgery (was an accident that required nerve repair). He was satisfied with a simple answer.
The x-ray tech was super nice, as was the tech who took my blood. All in all a decent experience.