<p>Dodmerb is requesting birth-present med records. Then in same paragraph it states, “A signed statement indicating these are all available records without exception must be submitted with the package.” My question is: is the signed statement by the clinic (office manager or doctor) or by a parent?</p>
<p>Thank heavens for this forum and all the support, help you all provide.</p>
<p>To be sure, why don't you get both signatures?</p>
<p>If you changed physicians, your signature would be important (that you went to everybody for records). If with only 1 medical practice, then their signature would be important.</p>
<p>In either case, keep a copy of everything you send, just in case it gets lost in transit.
CM</p>
<p>"keep a copy of everything you send, just in case it gets lost in transit."</p>
<p>Definitely do this, regardless of how trivial it may seem. It could save a lot of time, and a possible appointment, if anything happens to get lost. On that same note, I'd recommend applicants keep in touch with some other applicants to ensure they're getting all the necessary paperwork; stuff gets lost in transit that way too.</p>
<p>My son had to do this also. Definitely keep copies. If you have access to a copy machine, make 2 copies. We have only lived in one town, so it was simpler than it might have been. We made a sheet for the records clerk of each practice/facility to sign stating that these were all the records they had on my son. There were lots of duplicates because the specialist would copy our family doctor and also the hospital where he was seen as an outpatient. But we sent copies of EVERYTHING!</p>
<p>It was helpful for us to make copies of each group as they came in and then separate them with a plain sheet of colored paper. Definitely not necessary, but helpful when we had to dig through the records ourselves to find what they were referring to.</p>
<p>We also just spent some time brainstorming to think if we had all the possible places/people to contact. We called to get records from the emergency room we visited on vacation to see if he needed stitches from a fall (he didn't).</p>
<p>Start early on this because HIPPA has complicated this process.</p>
<p>Expect some costs because this kind of quantity copying doesn't come free. We ended up with a file about 2 inches thick.</p>
<p>Have fun! Yeah, right! :)</p>
<p>fm</p>
<p>On another, but related Dodmerb topic:</p>
<p>If you are asked (by DodMerb) to have new X-rays taken for any reason, ask your x-ray tech to have a duplicate set made at the time. Maybe ask for a third set if you think you can! It is far simpler to ask for them up front than to ask to have a copy made later. Cheaper too!</p>
<p>We did this and then were able to send one set to Dodmerb directly along with the orthopedic specialists letter as part of a rebuttal request (successful!). You'll never see these again, which is why the hospital or is reluctant to part with them.</p>
<p>We had no trouble getting X-ray copies.</p>
<p>In fact, there were about 4 different sets sent as part of a rebuttal (successful) process, accompanied by "official" letters from the orthopaedist. We kept copies of everything sent, and a sticky note indicating when they were sent and where. We increased our expenses by sending EVERYthing return receipt certified mail. The signed receipt was then attached to the stack of material that had been sent (just in case). Nothing gets returned, so we had an extra copy of each set of X-rays made "just in case".</p>
<p>Good Luck
CM</p>
<p>I have had four broken bones, all simple breaks, all sports injuries, no complications. Flyingmom and candidatemom, were the injuries and accompanying specialists' letters for injuries such as mine or were yours more complicated? Just asking because they were all done in different places, different hospitals, and different doctors. ugg!!!</p>
<p>My son had a couple of different things going on. Most were sports injuries. He broke a bone in his foot in football, re-broke it 5 months later shooting hoops. Then orthopedic dr decided to pin it. The pin remains, but hasn't bothered him. So that was an issue that required a wiaver. But he had no complications--just spent a lot of a year on crutches.</p>
<p>The other injury was a shoulder injury during summer wrestling. The same orthopedic specialist was his treating doctor and was able to write letters for both. We did ask him to write two separate letters--one for each issue--but I'm not sure that we would have had to. I think we could have submitted the same letter for the 2nd issue. However, this is how we chose to do it and it seemed to work OK.</p>
<p>When I talked to someone in the medical offices (at either USNA or USAFA) about how to handle it, I was told to just give them what they are asking for at the time. Don't give them more than they are asking for because you may not need to get it at all. I was told that DodMerb just goes through your file/record and when they find something that is disqualifying, they label your records as such and don't go any further. The theory being that there is no use spending further time on a candidate that has a disqualifying medical condition.</p>
<p>You may initially receive a letter with several "remedials" which are requests for more information. Each one will have a distinct code. You can go on the DodMerb website and print out these codes.</p>
<p>Then when you have either recieved a waiver or successfully rebutted that disqualification, you may receive another letter with a different reason for disqualification. That happened to ds. When we had sent in all the remedials/waiver requests/rebuttals that were for issues that we anticipated (foot, shoulder, etc.), he received a letter with a disqualification for something else. It seems that then they really go through your file! That is just one more reason for starting this whole process as early as possible.</p>
<p>My best advice: be up front and honest. You don't want to go through all this wondering if they are going to find something that you have chosen not to disclose. (And we did hear advice from some people to just not mention certain things!) If you have problems with this, then a service academy may not be the place for you.</p>
<p>Start in plenty of time and supply the information they request. Simple, right?</p>
<p>Good Luck!
fm</p>
<p>flyingmom,</p>
<p>You said that DoDMERB stops when they come to the first disqualifying item. Does this mean, in your son's case, that they first dq'd him for the foot issue, which you had to resolve before they got to the shoulder? Or did they go far enough in the file to identify both issues, so they could be dealt with at the same time?</p>
<p>Did your son's shoulder injury require surgery? If so, what type of assurance were they looking for from the orthopedic specialist?</p>
<p>Did DoDMERB request the additional information, or did you have to request a waiver from USAFA first?</p>
<p>Grappler,</p>
<p>His initial exam submission resulted in a letter with 5 different remedial items, the foot and maybe the shoulder (I don't remember for sure, but I'm thinking not). One of the items was the request for "all medical records from birth to the present time" like was referred to above.</p>
<p>He submitted information for all five items at once. He then received a DQ for "instability of the shoulder". For this we took him to his treating orthopedic doctor, who said we had used a phrase, which was fine for a lay person to understand, was not precisely correct. I'll leave it at that to protect my son's privacy. The doctor wrote a letter to correct any misunderstanding. We also included letters from his coaches detailing his participation and lack of hindrance from this injury as a part of this rebuttal package. This is not required, but I don't think it hurts either.</p>
<p>It is my understanding that it is always preferable to rebut a disqualification if that is possible; rather than request a waiver. If the item is successfully rebutted, it basically goes away. Some items may not be rebuttable, but they will let you know that.</p>
<p>The best advice we got in the process was from his ALO, who said to not give up until there were no avenues left to pursue. Don't take an initial "no" the same as a "final no". Ask and find out what can be done. However, at the same time, the ALO seemed to kind of "withdraw", but there may have been other things going on in his life. But I also wonder if it was maybe his way of guaging how determined ds actually was.</p>
<p>I do think one of the major things ds learned through this process is that perserverance is important.</p>
<p>Keep moving forward, one step at a time!</p>
<p>fm</p>
<p>When I told my mom about this thread, she got a little concerned. She says my medical records from birth to about age 2 vanished after a move. A new record was started. Sad because healthwise, I was pretty uneventful.
Any ideas as to what DODMERB would say to that if they asked me for birth to now records??</p>
<p>e766,</p>
<p>Interesting... Really, I have no idea. However, you might try to contact the hospital where you were born and contact the doctor (or his successor organization) who was your pediatrician during that time. My gut feeling is to make the effort. If you have to submit the other information before you get that information back, I'd put a letter in to that effect along with the names, addresses, etc that you are contacting in the effort. </p>
<p>And I think it may be worth a call to DodMerb itself. Explain the situation and be upfront and open about it. Then go from there. Maybe they have a specific protocol for cases like that. We didn't have that kind of challenge. Keep trying--I don't think you've hit the dead end yet!
fm</p>
<p>e766
I doubt that in this day of massive data collection, that your records "vanished". Your personal copies may have been misplaced, but they are still on file with some medical or insurance organization. The trick will be to track them down. If you have an idea that you will be initially disqualified, then you should start the detective work now. Contact your doctor(s) and see what you can find. (Be sure to explain why you want them). DoDMERB is notoriously slow, and you do not want to add to the delay.</p>
<p>My son had a serious sports injury, which according to the Academy catalog, was an automatic disqulaification. He continued to send the information requested by DoDMERB, and simultaneously requested a waiver, following the instructions on the DoDMERB form. He was granted the waiver, and finally was classified as medically "qualified" for ROTC. </p>
<p>CM</p>