Today I had my occupational health check before I start university. It was really nerve wracking, but then I always tend to get really nervous of the unknown. I arrived half an hour early because I had left plenty of time to find the correct building in the unfamiliar maze of the university. After signing a couple of forms consenting to blood tests, I settled in to wait, reading out of date magazines.
I didn't have to wait long before the nurse called me in and asked for my ID, which she photocopied on the way to her room. We talked through the long form I'd had to fill in a few months ago, and she just confirmed my answers. I was told to get a second MMR vaccination, as I had one as a child, and a single Rubella booster a few years ago. My arm was also checked for the BCG scar, as I needed proof of two immunisations. My blood pressure was taken, and it came out a bit on the high side. Not surprising, given the hike I'd undertaken to get there from the car park! I completed a peak flow, and she needed a urine sample for a dipstick test. She also checked the integrity of the skin on my hands, just to check I had no Eczema. She advised me that when I start the course to dry my hands thoroughly, as a small problem can soon amount to a large one.
She then sent me off for a blood test for the Hepatitis B and C antibodies and antigens (to see if I have it or am immune to it), HIV and Varicella. The test was just one little tube of blood, as the Hepatitis vaccines I'll need to start my course will be timetabled in. Apparently we all troop over in a group in the first month!
So ladies and gents, that should comprise your Occupational Health check for University!
I saw some beautiful old buildings today that I think used to be an old ostler's stable. I passed the coffee shops, library and shops that pepper the buildings. I found a little museum that I think will be interesting, and hopefully one day I'll get the time to explore it. I'm really looking forward to starting, it seems such a relaxed and multicultural setting, the babble of foreign languages was quite nice to hear. However at nearly nine years older than many of the students walking around the campus, I felt a bit out of place. I suppose I'll stop caring about that once I'm in university, and would spend a lot of time on placement anyway.
