Remember back in 2014 when the FMCSA instituted a rule that all DOT medical examiners had to be added to a National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners managed by the DOT? And then they scrambled to get enough medical examiners to actually sign up to be able to provide coverage for all drivers nationwide? Well now the American Transportation Research Institute is partnering with the Mayo Clinic to see not only how that change effected truckers, but also get their feedback on the medical certification system in general.
The new program made it so only those medical examiners who were certified by the DOT were allowed to conduct DOT physicals. Doctors had to take a course and pass an exam to make sure that they were qualified.
“Driver health and wellness continues to be a top industry issue and area of research for ATRI. The joint research with Mayo Clinic will shed light on how the medical exam process is working since the advent of the national registry,” said ATRI President Rebecca Brewster.
The research will help to determine if the FMCSA’s Registry program has been effective and how it and the medical certification system in general could be improved.
Drivers can take the ATRI survey here which takes about 3-5 minutes to complete.
Source: atri, overdrive, truckinginfo
To start with medical exams are bad when it can effect weather or not you can work or have a job.. if you have a medical problem you shouldn’t be afraid to see a doctor but most truck drivers are medically Ok til around age 40 by then we aren’t qualified to do anything else that pays enough to live although trucking doesn’t pay much it is still better than any job I might be able to get outside of trucking, however we don’t go see the Doc til we just can’t do anything else but die.. anyway my point is we as drivers would go see a doctor earlier like start at age 30 and be way more healthy as we age if three things happen, 1 don’t tie illness to are ability to work unless of course we have something that makes you pass out, 2 get the government out of health care so we could afford insurance, 3 stop this stupid hos rules cause you ain’t done anything but cause accidents do to tired drivers as for hos the original change January 2004 was good because we could take a brake and still finish our day to make money which we cannot do now.
Yeah that ruling was a joke these dot certified doctors dont even look at you now they just sign off as long as your BP is good, we probably have more people who shouldn’t be driving now than ever
id like to know where the hell you got that info
Where is Thomas Paine when you need him? I beseech thee, please rise!
A survey. Well, that’s great. I love it when people claim that they asked for my opinion, but then create tight little boxes into which my opinion must fit, in order for me to give it.
Let me guess… 10 multiple choice questions? Stuff like, “how would you like to see examiners credentialed in the future? a) required to complete a class 2) required to pass a test? 3) required to meet a minimum level of training? (PhD, etc.)” Asking questions that affirm the program, by only asking how we would affirm it, rather than listening to what we really think?
Here it is… and yes, it’s mostly multiple choice, with one freeform response option at the end, responding to an open-ended question that affirms the program, by asking how we would improve it, rather than what we think of it:
In what segment of the trucking industry do you primarily operate?
(Check one.)
Which of the following best describes your employment?
(Check one.)
What is the primary vehicle configuration that you typically operate?
(Check one.)
What is your average length of haul?
(Check one.)
How long have you held a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL)?
What chronic condition(s) do you have or have been diagnosed by your physician or other health care provider?
(Check all that apply.)
Where did you obtain your DOT/FMCSA medical certificate?
At the completion of your DOT physical, were you given a standard 2-year medical certificate?
Did you bring additional medical records to your medical application visit or did the Medical Examiner request specific additional medical records be obtained in order to become certified?
Are you required to hold a medical exemption (or waiver) for insulin-dependent diabetes, monocular vision or other impairments?
How did you identify where to go to obtain your DOT/FMCSA medical exam?
Approximately how long did it take for you to complete your DOT/ FMCSA medical application form?
Did you find the medical application difficult to complete or understand?
In what format was the medical application form completed?
Were you given the opportunity to ask questions to the medical examiner or supporting staff regarding how to answer questions that you may have had on the medical application form?
Who performed the physical examination portion of your certification examination?
(NOTE: the examiner’s title is listed on your medical card.)
Were you forced to change medical examiners after the new DOT/FMCSA rules went into effect in 2014?
During the DOT/FMCSA medical examination, did the provider…
How long (approximately) did you spend with the examiner in total (completing paperwork, undergoing the exam, etc.)?
Please rate how dissatisfied or satisfied you were with the examination and certification process.
Have you noticed a difference in the quality of the examination and certification process since the new medical requirements were established in 2014 to see a medical examiner listed on the national registry (NRCME)?
How much did you pay out-of-pocket for your DOT medical exam/physical?
If you paid out-of-pocket for the exam, is the cost different now compared to prior to the FMCSA changes?
Since the National Registry for Certified Medical Examiners came into effect, have you done anything different to prepare or look up information on who you would see for the exam?
Have you changed any habits such as exercise regularly, quit smoking, or lose weight because of new medical regulations?
What can be done to improve the quality of the medical certification process?
It’s about 30 questions. The first third are mostly asking about the driver who is taking the survey. The next third are mostly about the exam paperwork, and the rest are about what you thought of it, or how it affected your health/wallet. I find the one about whether you quit smoking or lost weight, particularly slanted, since it doesn’t leave room to indicate whether you gained weight, or started smoking. “Have you changed any habits?” gets a yes answer, either way, but the obvious inference that will be drawn from the “yes” to this question, is that your health has improved. The change in health habits is not quantified, at all, but you can bet that it will be used to support continuing the program, even if drivers are now fatter, less fit, and smoke more.
You can create statistics to say anything that you want, if you just ask survey questions that start out by supporting the desired outcome.
With this rule, the DOT basically recruited a medical gestapo that is totally exempt from HIIPA or any other medical privacy laws, to the extent that they are required to fax negative results to State DOT Medical review program before even sharing those results with you….. Companies are also now required to get HIIPA waivers from you for your DOT file, so there is absolutely NO MEDICAL PRIVACY for anybody with a CDL….
Drivers who establish ANY medical history can find themselves “medically disqualified” to hold a CDL , Yet not “disabled” enough to get SSDI…..
Got a fat neck? The DOT medical gestapo may only extend your cert by six weeks until you have had a sleep apnea study…….No need for trucking companies to perpetrate age discrimination, the DOT does it for them!
Amen to the “fat neck” sleep apnea thing! My husband had that a few years back—and like you said…everything is put on hold until you go to YOUR primary Dr., get evaluated (again), get a referral for a sleep Dr, go to the sleep Dr., get re-evaluated, get a referral for a sleep study, go to the sleep study, go back to the sleep Dr., get re-re-evaluated, get a rx for the cpap machine, get the cpap, get fitted for a mask. Now if you’re lucky during all this, you can get the DOT Dr. to give you a temporary med card so you can WORK while all the cpap trials are going on. And don’t forget all the time dealing w/insurance to get approval for the sleep Dr., the sleep study, the cpap (and accessories), the follow-ups w/the sleep Dr., primary Dr.. Even if the Drs do the insurance thing, you’re in limbo waiting on them to get back to you with the thumbs up or down.
“Driver health and wellness continues to be a top industry issue and area of research for ATRI.” HORSE NUTS!!! If anyone really cared about driver health and wellness we’d have places to park where we could actually shutdown and get a good night’s SLEEP as opposed to rest areas and truck stops with trucks going in and out at all hours (and the number of times backing results in a collision with a sleeping driver), reefers starting and shutting down, and all the other things that prevent sleep. I have to use one of those machines to breathe when I sleep now because some DOT approved quack who never saw me before said I have sleep apnea based on my neck size. A great gig if you’re getting kickbacks from the machine manufacturer.