Another UK medical question

[hjones 1]

Hi guys,

My husband and I were going through his medical record that he obtained from his GP, which includes his immunization history. We were trying to compare it with the list of required shots and we started getting a bit confused. Honestly, the names of these shots are like alphabet soup! There are so many variations of Td, Dtap, some with big P's some with little P's... blah blah blah.

So without getting too technical or nitty-gritty my question is, if the nurse at Knightsbridge thinks he is missing one or more of the required immunizations, does he have to get it then and there or can he go back and get it at his GP in Scotland and then they can forward the details to the folks at Knightsbridge with enough time for them to send his medical results to the embassy? There will be approx 3.5 weeks between his medical and his interview.

As a total side note - does anyone else think it's a bit silly that there is only one medical practice in the whole of the UK that is approved by the US embassy? I know there are at least 3 that are approved by the Canadian embassy, one of which is in Glasgow which would have been MUCH more handy for us! Ok, sorry, rant over...

[tob187 11]

Only way to find out is to go the doctor , I took mines in and did not get any shots I got the tb test and the blood test and that was it they waived all my other shots

[photomile 101]

The medical examiners will give you three options

1: Get the vaccination there and then at a cost

2: Go back to your GP and get the vaccinations, then send confirmation to Kinghtsbridge doctors

3: (and this only applies I think to the MMR) but they can do a blood test for immunity which will then determine if you need another shot or not.

[hjones 1]

Brilliant, thanks for your help guys!

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Hi guys,

My husband and I were going through his medical record that he obtained from his GP, which includes his immunization history. We were trying to compare it with the list of required shots and we started getting a bit confused. Honestly, the names of these shots are like alphabet soup! There are so many variations of Td, Dtap, some with big P's some with little P's... blah blah blah.

So without getting too technical or nitty-gritty my question is, if the nurse at Knightsbridge thinks he is missing one or more of the required immunizations, does he have to get it then and there or can he go back and get it at his GP in Scotland and then they can forward the details to the folks at Knightsbridge with enough time for them to send his medical results to the embassy? There will be approx 3.5 weeks between his medical and his interview.

As a total side note - does anyone else think it's a bit silly that there is only one medical practice in the whole of the UK that is approved by the US embassy? I know there are at least 3 that are approved by the Canadian embassy, one of which is in Glasgow which would have been MUCH more handy for us! Ok, sorry, rant over...

Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis are the d, t, and p. A capital letter means big dose, and lower case means smaller dose. Babies take DTP but adults/teens had some issues so a different mix was developed for them Tdap with lower dosage of diphtheria and acellular pertussis. If you had a dose of pertussis before, then you can get just Td. Immigration will accept any version DTP, Tdap, Td, TdaP etc. My husband got DTP with the babies at his GP (free too). You need the last dose within the last 10 years.

The other shot you need is MMR (mumps, measles, rubella) A full series is two shots 4 weeks apart. But if you got the first one less than 4 weeks from the medical, then it is not medically appropriate to have dose 2 yet. Immigration says you don't have to hold up your process waiting for the time interval. So you get a waiver and never have to get shot 2 unless you want to for health reasons.

If you need a shot and want to get it at your GP, then tell Knightsbridge to hold your results until your doctor faxes the proof to them. We did that. They will finalize your immunization sheet before sending the result pages to the embassy. It takes a few days for the bloodwork tocome back from the lab anyway.