St Lukes in Manila

[rsosa72 0]

So my wife went to her medical exam and everything was going well up until the point the doctor starts asking about medical history. So my wife was asked if she has ever had any respitory infections in the past. She did reply that she did in 2008, but she has been cleared and even brought with her current xrays and test results showing negative results. Well the medical staff took her xrays, and then she was told to come back in the afternoon along woth several others who were there getting their exams. When she went back she was told that she would have to undergoe a sputum test because there was suspicion. They did not let her see the xray they took to show her where this suspicion was, and she once again showed the xrays she brought with her and the negative test results. She asked several times to see her xray and see where this suspicion was but they never showed her. She was only told to come back on 20-22 May for 3 days in a row to take the sputum test. So now apparently these results take 2 months to get back, and if negative (which they will be because there is nothing wrong) then she will get her interview.. If the test is positive for some reason it will take 6 months from the test results day to do treatment and then an interview will be shceduled.

My issue is this.. I know St Lukes does their own medical exams and will not allow any test or xray but their own when making these decisions. But who screens St Lukes to ensure they are doing their job correctly. It has been almost 10 months now since I first submitted her I130, and now instead of her interview being June 3, 2013, she will have to wait another 2 months for some test results that you can get here in the USA in a week. You would think that maybe the USCIS and NVC would make the medical process towards the beginning of all of this so that way the visa recepient is medically cleared by the time the interview is shceduled. So you wait this whole time only to find out that your loved one has to take a test, which she brought in results for already showing negative, and you are forced to wait longer. So why does St Lukes even ask you to bring medical documents, xrays, shot records if they are not going to use them to compare.

I am just positng this to inform others of the possibility of more waiting time added to your already long seperation.

[Ryan H 3,840]

Moved from IR-1/CR-1 Process & Procedures to Philippines regional forum.

[Tahoma 2,292]

But who screens St Lukes to ensure they are doing their job correctly?

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

[Hank_ 9,174]

St. Luke's follows procedure dictated by the embassy, if they are saying sputum testing that is the way it has to been. As for why waiting to do the medical... the visa validity date is tied to the medical date if the medical were done months before that would give a very limited time to use the visa and arrive in the USA.

The sputum test is a well known delay many have to deal with in the Philippines as TB is a serious problem there.

Normally SLEC will reschedule the interview... but not always so stay aware.