SCHOOL PHYSICAL

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know where I can get a physical for my children before school starts? Our pediatrician's office is unable to schedule us until the end of September.

[Anonymous]

I know that "camp physicals" can be done by the nurse practioners at CVS minute clinics.

[Anonymous]

A physician at an urgent care clinic can also do it. You'll need to get a copy of the vaccination records from your regular physician, though.

[Anonymous]

I've recently been in this situation for an employment physical for my teenager. Wherever you go, call first and ask about "school physicals," you'd think a physical is a physical but CVS wouldn't do ours because the paper they had to sign didn't say "camp." We ended up at Potomac Prompt Medical Care. They were really nice there and we were in and out in less than a half hour.

[Anonymous]

OP, have you asked your pediatrician (or former pediatrician) to fill out the forms anyway?

Your children's school might accept the health form if their last physicals were within one year of the start of school. Otherwise, children with fall birthdays are put at a real disadvantage.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the previous poster. My children's birthdays are in the fall and I always just drop the forms off and have the pediatrican fill them out. It usually takes a few days and the ped office charges $10 or $20.

[Anonymous]

PP, as for just having your pediatrician fill out the forms: it depends on the school. My DS is a fall baby, and his preschool allowed me to give them a form that was filled out based on the last year's physical, and then file a new one when the next annual physical was performed in the fall. His new school (private) very specifically requires that the physical be performed within a certain period before school starts (that is less than a year). Kind of a bummer, since insurance wouldn't pay for it (since it had been less than a year since his last physical). However, now we're "on schedule," they will pay for the one next summer. Of course, I guess you could be suggesting that the ped will lie for you, but that's a whole different issue....

[Anonymous]

I think that local clinics will do a physical for you. I know that Arlington has an Immunization clinic, and I believe that they do physicals as well. If you aren't in Arlington I would check your local government website.