Page 4 - Volume 16 Number 3

editor’sbriefingEvery so often, I’m forced to respond to a bureaucracy even though the matter is, to my point of view, utterly pointless. I’m sure your lives have been similarly abraded by these brushes with protectors of the public interest, in whatever fields of endeavor you participate. As I write this opinion piece, I’m undera time constraint that could terminate my flying career.As a holder of a Special Issuance medical certificate, I’ve had a generally smooth relationship with the good folks at the FAA’s Aerospace Medical Certification Division...once I got in touch with the right people several years ago. I send them documentation of my no-longer-existent cancer and they let an AME issue me a certificate. I’m healthy and they’re happy.But...it never pays to send too much information. On my birthday, I received greetings from Oke City in the mail, and it wasn’t a good-wishes card. It read “unable to establish your eligibility at this time; if no reply is received within 30 days, we will...deny your application.” The letter further explained that “due to your history of elevated thyroid stimulating hormone, you must provide...a current status report from your treating physician and the results of a current thyroid function studies...” What made it particularly galling is that I had just finished my usual five-mile run when I got the mail and I’d never felt better.Okay. Where did this come from? I’ve never had symptoms or reason to worry about my little thyroid gland. But, I do have to furnish a yearly PSA (prostate specific antigen) test, to prove I’m clean, and last year I went to a free (as in no charge) screening offered by the local hospital, where one draw of blood gets checked for lots of things. I call it the “hypochondriac’s health fair.” The PSA was included, so I submitted that printout as part of my application. HOWEVER, the sheet also had a TSH result on it, and it was high that day. Bingo.Lesson learned: Never send more than is asked for. Fortunately, a retest showed a number well within tolerance and I’ve had the best Senior AME in the world, Dr. Allen J. Parmet, taking care of me for quite some time (you’ll see his articles in T&T occasionally). We should be able to put this to rest before the deadline.Be prepared to go on-lineHard on the heels of the above indignity came an announcement from the FAA that we’ll no longer be able to fill out a paper 8500-8 form when applying for the medical certificate. As of October 1, 2012, CAMI will only accept applications using their Medxpress system, which must be completed on-line, and it’s not just a simple visit to a web site. For privacy, or security, or whatever, there’s an account to be established and password to remember, and then a “confirmation number” to keep track of, that allows your AME to access it when you go the office. Keep notes, and don’t make the computer mad.The FAA is proud of its system, claiming savings of $150,000 per year in the cost of handling the paper forms, which strikes me as chump change. Never mind that a whole bunch of people who would like to fly lack computer-savvy skills, or can’t afford a $1,000 IT setup or a $100 per month internet connection, or who have security concerns. No accommodation will be made for the lower classes.The real reason behind this move may be Federal Air Surgeon Dr. Fred Tilton’s statement that “future enhancements could allow for centralized access to medical documents and physician notes.” When every medical action is in a central database, it will be easier to track suspicious non-conformists in the system.Mortality CheckFly safe and stay healthy.LeRoy Cook, Editor2 • TWIN & TURBINE MARCH 2012