Hayfever worries

Well i'm off for my filter interview on the 12th December! After a chat with the RAF careers advisor, and already knowing about the problem involved in applying with Hayfever, im a bit confused. Put simply, i had hayfever when i was very young. I told him this, that i havn't suffered in a long time, and he said just to lie about it. He said if one were to self medicate, there is nothing to distinguish it from a common cold or the like, and of course it wouldn't be effecting my job.

However, i have had medication from the doctor a couple of times. I prefer to keep it as a precaution, but never need to use it. Will the medical examiner find out about this? Will they be checking records, or would that only be if there was a suspicion of asthma or the like. I am fit, healthy, have perfect eye sight and hearing, well within the height/weight range etc etc.

I am only down as wanting to go for Officer Pilot as it stands, that is all i want to do. All or nothing. I couldn't cope being on the ground knowing i'd missed out on what i want to do. It would always feel like second best for me.

Any help would be appreciated, everything else is going well, aircraft, weapons, OASC, IOT, info about myself, ambitions etc etc... currently reading up on current affairs as i'm way behind on things going on in the world!

Thanks,
Patrick

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Reply 1

BlackHawk

hat i havn't suffered in a long time, and he said just to lie about it.

WHAT!?

Reply 2

LouE3D

Marginally concerning isn't it?! Don't lie - at OASC you have to fill out Med form prior to attendance and sign consent form saying that you are willing for RAF to obtain your med records from doctor - being dishonest can jepordise your application. If it was long time ago and you don't suffer now, perhaps it won't be an issue, can't confirm... check with others. Do not lie!

Reply 3

BlackHawk

hat i havn't suffered in a long time, and he said just to lie about it.

WHAT!?

However, i have had medication from the doctor a couple of times.

If you lie on your forms, you will be found out. The RAF as well as any of the forces do a full background check into your medical and personal history. Things like hayfever are a major no no for some branches. Do not lie on your forms if you have had a doctor look at you as it will have gone down on your records and it will look very bad if it is found out that you lied. The best thing to do is write on your forms what you have written here. That it was when you were young and you only saw a doctor a few times to check it out. Let OASC decide if it is acceptable or not as they are the people who know what they want and exactly what standards are required.

They will not just check records for people with problems, they check every single record. They aren't about to invest millions of pounds in training without knowing who they are investing in.

The only thing you can do is be honest and hope for the best. There have been cases where people have been accepted even if they've had slight problems. If you do lie, then you will be discounted outright when they find out. Someone who lies on their forms is not someone the RAF want in service.

As another point, many people don't realise why the rules are there. Flying does a lot of things to your body. For instance, it is very uncomfortable to fly with a cold in a grob tutor, it's downright impossible in a Tucano and if your cold is bad enough you can rupture your sinuses. Now, if you have hayfever then you will be affected in the spring and summer, and some people are affected throughout the year. You simply cannot fly if you have a hayfever attack. Flying training nowadays is very face paced, and with the current budget cuts and restreaming, there is no room to take a few days/weeks off from training.

so anyway, theres my advice. I hope it helps somewhat, and good luck with your application. Remember honesty is the best policy.

Reply 4

Rizza Razzu

DO NOT LIE.

If you lie and get found out, you won't look very trustworthy, will you ?

I repeat... DO NOT LIE.

I'm the same as you, i used to suffer from hay fever as a kid - i declared it and explained the RAF stance on hay fever to my doctor. He looked at my records and as i hadn't been to visit him about it since 1993 or 1994, then it stood to reason that i could be classed as no longer having it. Which is true, i don't suffer from it at all, now i've grown up.

I think the hay fever attitude is similair to that of,say, asthma, where if you've been symptom free for a certain amount of years (usually 4) then you should get away with it.

There are ways around this - you could ask your Doctor not to highlight it on his report, but he will only do so if he feels that your condition is not going to endanger anyone. Leave it to the pro's to decide, but don't do your application any harm by lying - that could be far more damaging.

for the record, your actual health records do not get sent to OASC - your doctor is sent a questionnairre form to complete which covers all health conditions.

Reply 5

Wzz

Everyone's right.

You've got two options. If you don't lie, and declare on your form that you used to suffer from hayfever, then the PMB will consider it on an individual basis. He'll have a good look at all your details when your medical forms arrive. You may find you leave OASC "TMU" for aircrew branches (temporarily medically unfit) pending examination of your records.

If he decides that you've been symptom free for long enough, and the detail recorded by your doc at the time leads him to believe it was mild enough anyway, then it may not be a problem.

If you've suffered recently, then you're probably out of luck.

If you choose option 2 and lie, all that'll happen is your medical records, when examined, will be peppered with references to hayfever. The PMB will realise you've been lying, and rather than having your individual problem reviewed on merit, you'll have your application binned for having a lack of honesty and integrity.

The only potential problem you face is if you've been prescribed anti-hayfever medication recently. It makes it trickier to prove you don't need and haven't suffered if you've been to doctor and said "I have hayfever, give me piriton" or whatever.

Your best course by far is to be completely open an honest. Use the "other comments" box on your medical form to detail when you were prescribed recently, why, all the details you can. In your debrief with the PMB, talk to him at length about it; mention how long it's been since you suffered, and be utterly honest. Talk to him, as you have here, about how you've taken prescriptions as a precaution but honestly haven't suffered. If the doc looked at you at the time, then your records will reveal whether or not you genuinely have a problem.

Every time I reply to a medical thread, I try to make these points:

1. Officers are meant to demonstrate character, integrity, and honesty. Anything involving a lack of these in your application is likely to doom it before it starts.

2. All of the medical conditions which bar you from some form of service or another do so for a very, very good reason. Rushed out for a Tucano flight when suffering from hayfever, and haven't had time to pop some pills? = burst eardrums/knackered sinuses. First solo in high wind when "dulled" by medication? Doesn't bear thinking about!

Also, who on earth was your careers advisor? Find out who his boss is and drop him a line saying you were advised to lie on an application for a commission. I think he misunderstands a little about the selection procedure, which surprises me!

Reply 6

LouE3D

Rizza Razzu

I think the hay fever attitude is similair to that of,say, asthma, where if you've been symptom free for a certain amount of years (usually 4) then you should get away with it.

For pilot/aircrew you can't of suffered asthma (not entirely sure about hayfever) ever - even if it was very mild and only for a very short time about 10 years ago!

Reply 7

BlackHawk

Heres an example;

I wore glasses for two years when I was 16. I applied for pilot when I was 20 and declared on my forms that I had wore glasses for two years. I had a phone call a couple of weeks later and I was simply asked if I currently wore glasses. I said no, and that I hadn't for some time. They accepted my application and I went to OASC, and have since passed the medical.

Reply 8

Raptor

If you lie, you WILL be found out. If it's on your Medical Records then it's aboslutely, 100% guaranteed to be highlighted by your GP on the Medical Questionaire that is sent out after OASC if your given a provisional offer.

"Hayfever" for the medically un-diagnosed is difficult to identify. However, be sensible. Just because it's not on your records doesn't mean you're OK. If you spend 6 months of the year with a runny nose and puffy eyes, sneezing etc then flying is not a realistic option - especially if you're responsible for keeping GlaxoSmithKline in business!

However, the only reason a "Cold" any such other ailement would stop you flying is when you can't clear your ears. If you can clear your ears then you can generally fly - any attempt otherwise is extremely painful. There was one DE on a UAS who got to trip 59, one before EFT, then complained that his ears were blocked, felt rough etc. It transpired that he'd never been able to clear his ears at all and had lived with the discomfort under the impression it was normal. It wasn't.

Reply 9

Rizza Razzu

LouE3D

For pilot/aircrew you can't of suffered asthma (not entirely sure about hayfever) ever - even if it was very mild and only for a very short time about 10 years ago!

I wasn't sure about this, but thanks for clearing it up.

I'm pretty sure that i'm correct about asthma with respect to ground trades, and obviously you can have had hay fever if you are going for aircrew as i declared it and i've been accepted. However, i have been symprtom free for over 10 years now, so that probably swung in my favour.

Reply 10

pjblink

Thankyou for all this really detailed advice. I was laughing AT the careers advisor when he told me. He will be the person interviewing me in the 12th, would that definately make this a filter interview? Or more of a chat?

I will do as you say. Be completely honest. I havn't suffered in a very long time, and the prescriptions are merely for incase i ever suffered, which i havn't. Is there anyway i can get a full copy of my medical records so i can check dates and preform reasons for each?

Reply 11

LouE3D

I went to the doctors and asked them to help me go through my medical form for OASC so I could get all the right dates, medication etc. they were very helpful. Filter interview is an interview not a chat. Glad info helped, good luck!

Reply 12

Rizza Razzu

Yes, it probably is your filter interview - have you done the P2 presentation yet ? If it's your filter, you'll have a specific appointment booked and a letter confirming that it is.

As for the records - yes, you can obtain these. Declare everything to do with your hayfever on your initial forms. When you've completed OASC and been provisionally accepted for service, they'll send you a form which you need to take to your GP for him to complete. OASC ask for you to leave the form with the GP for him to complete at his convenience, but my GP actually did my form on the spot and we went thru' it together - for each question he was aked he checked the records for the answer. Ask your GP if he'd mind if you did this, this will help your peace of mind. The RAF say you can have access to your records if you want them, but they will only let you have them if you fail the Medicals.

Reply 13

pjblink

Hang on, doesn't it sound very likely like he wants me to fail?
He didnt mention learning about anything for the interview, just casually mentioned he'd be in on the 12th and to put my name down for a "talk" with him on his own. And then he advises me to lie (to him?!) about my hayfever past... weird.

Reply 14

GR4pilot

Another example, I have a history of migraines in my medical records - I, initially was barred from all air, control and int trades but have since been cleared at OASC. If I'd lied they would've found out and I would be binned.

Reply 15

Wzz

pjblink

Is there anyway i can get a full copy of my medical records so i can check datesand preform reasons for each?

I shouldn't worry about that too much. They won't expect an encyclopaedic knowledge of your own medical records. Lying about not suffering is one thing, but not knowing exactly how many times and when you went to the doc about it is altogether different.

You can always ring your doc and ask.

Regards your bizarre interviewer, he shouldn't be going into any medical issues in the filter interview.

Reply 16

Rizza Razzu

pjblink

If he said it's a talk, then it's a talk.

If he booked you an interview and you get an official letter confirming it, then it's an interview.

However, the 'lying' thing is inexplicable, really.

--------------

Also, further to what WZZ said, OASCdon't ask for your actual records, your GP only fills out a questionnairre and the answers he gives will be based on your records.

They also won't ask for them until you have completed OASC - worry about getting there, first.

Reply 17

StaVix

With hayfever if you have been to the doc and had a perscription subscribed they take the allotted time (4 years I think) from that date, I am TMU for certain trades inc. pilot as I have hayfever and last visited the doc Oct 05 so am not eligiable until Oct 09, but will always have hayfever so its not really an issue.
You will have the chance to explain your medical forms if you get to OASC so dont worry about putting it down.

Reply 18

Scorg

StaVix

Talking of which, Have to fill in the hayfeaver supliment form for the initial applications, and damn, when did I first suffer symptoms, there is no way I can remember that, I was very young, at primary school but thats all I can recall. Was given some nasal spray away back then. But I have not been back since in regard to hayfever as far as I can remember anyway, definetly not in the past four years.
But then im confined to ground branches anyway, damn eyesight!

Reply 19

StaVix

Its actually a good thing I dont want to fly. Have hayfever, no aptitude (failed horribly some of the pilot tests at OASC the academic officer thought it was quite amusing).

The AFCO helper phoned me and in a grave voice announced he had some 'bad news' I was quite concerned but then he said I was TMU for all flying branches as if I might break down and burst into tears, and I was like... your point being, I didnt want to apply for them anyway. Its funny how some officers I have met assume if you dont want to fly its strange and that flying is the be all and end all of being in the RAF.