I forgot to mention the TB issue.
We have noticed a breakdown in communication between Immigration and the
Public Health department within our area. Often the letters requesting new
arrivals to the Country to report to the Public Health services for
screening are not received as the individuals are not aware of their full
postal address as they go through customs.
We have made arrangements with Public Health to provide all international
students with an invitation letter from Public Health on their arrival so
that they can screen them as required by their guidelines. This is a Public
Health responsibility, not a Occupational Health one. Do contact your CCDC
to see if you can help to improve the communication problems if there is
one, but be wary about becoming involved in TB testing on their behalf - if
nothing else it will cost you a fortune !
Amanda Dowson
Health Services Manager
Bradford College.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Catherine Paget [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: 15 November 2001 13:18
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Screening of nursing and midwifery students
>
> I am responsible for the health screening of all prospective nursing and
> midwifery students within Anglia Polytechnic University and would be very
> interested to hear from others involved in screening this group and of
> your
> screening procedures.
> At APU all students are seen individually by our OH Screening nurse who
> after reviewing their questionnaire performs basic screening tests ie BP,
> Pulse, Ht, Wt, Keystone vision screening & Urinalysis. Not only is this
> costly but is also very time consuming and I see little relevance in it.I
> am anxious to streamline this process and believe we should just be
> reviewing their questionnaires and vaccination history.
> We request all prospective students provide us with HBsAg & Rubella blood
> test results, and VZV in the absence of a history of chickenpox.
> I have recently been told that we should now be referring all students
> arriving from countries where there is a high prevalence of TB for chest
> X-
> rays. We currently follow BTS guidelines and refer those with Heaf Grades
> 3 & 4 for further assessment.
> I would be very grateful if you could spare the time to tell me your
> screening procedures and of your opinions as to what we should be
> screening
> these students for.
> Thank you.
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