Journal of American College Health

ISSN: 0744-8481 (Print) 1940-3208 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vach20

The Annual Physical Comes of Age John M. Dorman Executive Editor MD To cite this article: John M. Dorman Executive Editor MD (1990) The Annual Physical Comes of Age, Journal of American College Health, 38:5, 205-206, DOI: 10.1080/07448481.1990.9936188 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07448481.1990.9936188

Published online: 09 Jul 2010.

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EDITORIAL

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The Annual Physical Comes of Age

With the articles published recently in this journal on the periodic health examination,’ TB2 and blood pressure screening (see page 2351, the whole concept of routine screening is worthy of reexarnination. The ideal of an annual physical exam for a time was part of the fabric of American life.3 Even now, students often come into my office with the complaint that ”I haven’t had a physical now for several years.” They feel guilty and expect me to chastise them for having fallen away. When I arrived at Stanford in 1973, all students were required to have a physical exam prior to matriculation. This was in addition to TB screening, polio and tetanus boosters, CBC and urinalysis, and even smallpox vaccination. Over the intervening years, we have whittled away at our requirements. Ofthe above list, only TB screening and tetanus protection remain. We have, however, added requirements for proof of immunity against measles and rubella4 and are contemplating mumps.’ Cholesterol screening has also been advocated by some,6 although we have not yet made it a requirement here. During the time of the required physical at Stanford, I performed a number of these exams for students who arrived here without having fulfilled the requirement. To dispel the boredom of such a task, I did

VOL 38, MARCH 1990

some research into the history of the routine physical and found as I did so some of the classic references in the A good summary of these was published in IAMA in 1983.” In 1982, I even gave a talk at the Seattle ACHA meeting on the subject”; only a handful were in attendance. My paper was rejected by the IACH: something to the effect that a ”topic of such importance required a far more exhaustive and careful treatment“! Such a more exhaustive and careful treatment was given by Reith in his article on the selective periodic health exam in our November issue.’ I would emphasize that the views expressed are those of the author and do not represent those of the ACHA or of the journal. Indeed, one reviewer felt that “the last thing that the student health community needs is an attempt at developing (or appearing to develop, as a publication in the journal would seem to suggest) its own list of scheduled preventive interventions among college students.” The US Preventive Services Task Force” released its final report in May 1989, but I think Reith’s article is good historically, and I hope it will be thought-provoking as well. Perhaps even letters to the editor will be forthcoming! As a companion piece, in addition to the other articles on screening, I also commend to the readers

the tidy little article by Fingar on patient problems at a student health center that was also published in the November issue.13 Although the results may have surprised few, it was good to have such nice documentation. The article demonstrated also how good and simple clinical research can be in a student health setting. John M. Dorman, MD Executive Editor

REFERENCES 1. Reith P. Adapting the selective periodic health exam to a college-aged population. j Am Coll Health 1989; 38~109-113. 2. Quillan S, Malotte K, Shlian D. Evaluation of a tuberculosis screening and prophylaxis program for international students. ) Am Coll Health 1989; 38: 165-1 70. 3. Charap MH. The periodic health examination: Genesis of a myth. Ann Int Med 1981;95:733-735. 4. Dorman JM, Lahr J, Moore C. Measles and rubella: A new requirement. ) Am Coll Health 1984;33:81-83. 5. Williams WW, Sosin DM, Kaplan M, Hersh BS, Preblud SR. Vaccine-preventable diseases on a college campus: The emergence of mumps. ) Am Coll Health 1989;37:197-203. 6. Manchester RA, McDuffie C, Diamond E. Screening for hypercholesterolemia in college students. 1 Am Coll Health 1989;37:109-113. 7. Frame PS, Carlson SJ. A critical re-

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COLLEGE HEALTH view of periodic health screening using specific screening criteria. / Fam Pract

report. The periodic health examination. Can Med Assoc / 1979;121:1194-

1975;2:29-36, 123-129, 189-194, 283289. 8. Breslow L, Somers AR. The lifetime health monitoring program. N €ngl / Med 1977;296:601-608. 9. Canadian Task Force on the Peri-

1254. 10. Council

odic Health Examination: Task Force

on Scientific Affairs, American Medical Association. Medical evaluations of healthy persons. /AMA

1983;249:1626-1 631. 11. Dorman JM. Entrance medical evaluation for university admission. Pre-

sented at Annual Meeting of the ACHA, Seattle, April 14-19, 1982. 12. US Preventive Services Task Force. Guide to Clinical Preventive Services. Baltimore, Williams & Wilkins,

1989. 13. Fingar A. Patient problems encountered at a student health service. / Am Coll Health 1989;38:142-144,

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DIRECTOR, COLLEGE HEALTH CENTER Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts Mount Holyoke College announces the reopening of the search for Director of the Health Center. The College seeks a physician with particular interest and experience in issues of adolescent and women’s health care. We look for a commitment to education and prevention consistent with the goals of a college environment. The Director participates in patient care, the on-call rotation, and is a member of the Executive staff of the College and serves on appropriate College-wide committees. Mount Holyoke College is a selective undergraduate liberal arts college for women located in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts enrolling 1900 students. The Health Center is a comprehensive facility which includes a 12-bed inpatient infirmary and intermediate care clinic. The Health Center includes the Mental Health Services and employs a staff of physicians, clinic and infirmary RN’s, medical technologists, and a mental health staff of

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social workers, a psychologist, and a part-time psychiatrist. There is an FTE of 17 employees. Experience in financial and personnel management is desirable. BC/BE preferred; clinical and administrative experience and Massachusetts license or eligibility required. Competitive salary and benefits. Please forward CV including names and telephone numbers of three references to: Health Center Search Committee, 106 Mary Lyon Hall, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA 01075. Initial review of candidates will begin December 18, 1989, and continue until appointment is made. Mount Holyoke College is committed to fostering multicultural diversity in its faculty, staff, and students, and to achieving equal opportunity through Affirmative Action in its faculty and staff appointments. Applications from women and minorities are especially welcome.

IACH

The annual physical comes of age.

Journal of American College Health ISSN: 0744-8481 (Print) 1940-3208 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vach20 The Annual Phy...
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