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quick DVLA medical Q


daxuha
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my doctor will be sent a form from the DVLA to fill in re my medical fitness to drive.

 

In the past 3, 4 or 5 months my mental health has been excellent no problems.

BUT earlier this year like 7 months ago I (voluntarily) admitted myself to a psychiatric ward and was there for 3 weeks.

 

I know the doctor will have a question to answer along the lines of "has the person been admitted to a hospital in the past 12 months for psychiatric treatement?"

 

Does this mean I won't be allowed to drive until a year has passed since my admission date, even though I have been fine in recent months?

Or does it depend on each circumstance?

 

I'm worried about this, I need my driving licence and my life is on hold until I get it back.

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It depends on each individual set of circumstances.

 

DVLA’s published guidelines suggest they look at:

A) The individual, and how their diagnosis affects their medical fitness to drive [some diagnoses are an absolute bar to driving, some it depends on their severity / symptoms, while others aren’t considered a bar at all),

B) the effect on driving of any medication used.

 

Without an idea of your diagnosis and any medication you take to treat it, I’m not sure you’ll get a more definitive answer.

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All I was wanting to know was whether being admitted to a hospital for "psychiatric treatment" was an automatic ban for 12 months.

For example if someone were to abuse alcohol that would be an automatic 12 month ban regardless of anything else.

 

I'm not on any medication and haven't been for months now, and my medical condition is something that has absolutely no impact on my fitness to drive or to concentrate etc, but a social worker told me I had to declare it and because I did DVLA now have to write to my doctor once a year.

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All I was wanting to know was whether being admitted to a hospital for "psychiatric treatment" was an automatic ban for 12 months. For example if someone were to abuse alcohol that would be an automatic 12 month ban regardless of anything else.

 

 

12 month minimum (instituted by DVLA, rather than a ban by the courts for drink driving) is for alcohol dependency.

Alcohol "abuse" (or rather 'misuse', to use the title given in DVLA's guidelines) is 6 months.

 

Both are based on the risk of impaired driving posed by those conditions.

 

I'm not on any medication and haven't been for months now, and my medical condition is something that has absolutely no impact on my fitness to drive or to concentrate etc, but a social worker told me I had to declare it and because I did DVLA now have to write to my doctor once a year.

 

See my previous answer.

There isn't "an automatic ban". Whilst the 2 different alcohol-related conditions are dealt with in 2 1/2 pages (of 7 pages of one chapter dealing with both drug misuse, alcohol, and its associated conditions), there are similarly 9 pages (in one chapter of the guidelines) dealing with the different psychiatric disorders. These are separated into different disorders and there isn't a "if they have been admitted in the last year" component applicable to all.

 

So, if you want a more definitive answer and don't want to give details here, you may need to phone DVLA Drivers' Medical Group (which becomes heavily dependent on how 'clued-up' the particular advisor you get to speak with is!), or look at the "fitness to drive" medical standards for your particular condition.

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I'm not on any medication at all and I don't drink or use any recreational drugs. I've been driving 15+ years with no issues at all.

 

I'm worried sick over this, I've been to my GP to discuss it with her and she wouldn't give a "yes I'm happy for you to drive" or a "no I don't think you should drive" answer and would only say she would have to fill it in depending on what's on my medical notes or her "head will be on the line".

 

I'm worried if there is anything at all on my notes even the slightest thing she will "err on the side of caution" and say I can't drive because she will be petrified if she said yes and I were to then crash she would get the blame.

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Your GP should answer the questions DVLA ask in their pro-forma questionnaire. Your GP doesn’t make the decision about your fitness to drive (DVLA Drivers’ Medical Group do, based on their interpretation of the answers they have been given).

DVLA’s decision should be based on their (published!) Guidelines.

 

Why do you think you are on ‘yearly review’?

How long was your last licence issued for?

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yes but there is a box called "serious psychiatric illness" which if a doctor ticks that means an automatic revocation of the licence for 3 months regardless of anything else.

 

my licence has been revoked twice.

first time through no fault of my own my doctor ticked the above box then went back on his word and said it was a "mistake" and that "he didn't know me well enough to make that decision" and I also had another doctor (my psychiatrist) who said he had no problem with me driving at all. Despite this, it still took me 4 months to get my licence back.

 

I lost my licence again this year because I was admitted to a pscy. ward, was in a really bad place mentally and was having thoughts of suicide.

 

Turns out it was my medication risperidone causing the suicidal thoughts as I got much better when I asked to come off it.

 

I don't even think I should have been put on an anti-psychotic at all (I'm not schizophrenic or have psychosis) but every doctor I see always seem to want me on risperidone (I strongly suspect my surgery is visited by drug reps who take the doctors out for meals).

 

Apparently the doctors think risperidone is good for anxiety, but if I really do have anxiety then I'd rather have anxiety than take risperidone, nasty stuff.

 

On a licence for one year at a time, for no reason other than I told the DVLA what I have which now counts as a "declared medical condition".

 

It's really messed my life up, I dropped out of uni and lost a lot of friends over the stress of losing my licence the first time round which was all because of a doctor's mistake.

 

Is there an actual criteria for what actually constitutes a "serious psychiatric illness"?

Or is it entirely at the doctor's interpretation/discretion?

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A diagnosis of “Suicidal intent” will get the driver’s licence revoked, as there is a risk of someone planning to kill themselves by driving into something, (and the risk to other drivers too while they are doing so).

 

“Medical licences” can get issued for 1, 2, or 3 years (sometimes even longer e.g. until age 70, though this is rare).

The interval is decided by a combination of the diagnosed condition, and it’s stability (or otherwise!)

 

Is there an actual criteria for what actually constitutes a "serious psychiatric illness"? Or is it basically entirely at the doctor's interpretation/discretion?

 

DVLA don’t set what defines “serious”, but in a number of places in the Guidelines they distinguish between (“with” or “without”) “Significant memory or concentration problems, agitation, behavioural disturbance or suicidal thoughts”.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Still waiting to hear if my application to get my licence back has been successful.

 

The DVLA received the medical forms from my doctor a fortnight ago and I still don't know either way been checking online every day and no letter yet.

 

I am frankly worried sick and the anxiety from this is affecting my wellbeing.

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please keep to one thread

 

well you know it can take months from before.

 

its only been 2 weeks so far.

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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Dx: there was additional text on my post (on the ‘new’ thread, as well as noting it needed the ‘merge’ to this one)

It laid out what the OP could still expect from DVLA : can it be reinstated, please?

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not touched it bazz

looks like you didn't hit reply?

cant see any wayward post from you

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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I've already been waiting months. I sent an application form, they sent me a medical form, I sent it back, then they sent a medical form to my GP, then she sent it back (and all these steps can take weeks and weeks). I know the DVLA received her form a fortnight ago I was hoping I would have heard by now.

 

I just find it a little unfair the form has to be filled in by my GP- someone who I generally see for a 10 min appt every few months or so. Someone who has never been a passenger in my car or seen me drive or seen how I am day-to-day.

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DVLA won’t start their 18 week clock on their ‘service target’ for Drivers Medical Group until they have received all the paperwork they insist on.

 

After 18 weeks? They’ll change from saying “18 weeks” to saying “18 weeks is a target, not any sort of limit ......”

 

I hope it is less than 18 weeks for you, but it can be that long (or longer!)

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Is there any chance the DVLA could fasttrack my application if I explained my circumstances to them?

 

I have really bad anxiety over waiting and it has been affecting my appetite and sleep.

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You can but ask .... don’t hold your breath.

 

I know someone who was approaching the 18 weeks, and asked if their application might be reviewed before they went on holiday abroad, (which was after the 18 weeks!) as they were hoping to share the driving abroad.

 

Their license was waiting for them when they got back, in the post delivered while they were away ......

 

Bear in mind this is the organisation that won’t let you apply “too early” for a medical renewal, and then takes so long that the (limited duration) ‘medical license’ expires.

They then point out that you can still drive under S.88 of the Road Traffic Act, but have no reply when it is pointed out to them this doesn’t allow driving while abroad if the license has expired.

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Got a letter today saying they had written to my doctor.

 

But a fortnight ago they received the form from my doctor

 

what's going on have they made a mistake? or has the doctor missed something out on the form? I'm not coping with this

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Phone Drivers Medical Group and ask if the letter to your doctor is:

a) a decision (normally they'd write to you)

b) Asking for further information that wasn't asked for on the original form,

c) Asking for information that was requested on the form that was 'missed' by your Dr, or

d) sent by DVLA DMG in error.

 

Bear in mind that the staff manning the phones at DMG aren't healthcare professional, but admin staff.

Record the call. Bear in mind they have been known to be mistaken in what they tell you (I'm not saying they lie, because that'd be them performing an act of malice, wheres 'mistaken' covers incompetence and lack of knowledge of their processes by them, too)

They've also been known not to log complaints (and might not log a complaint unless you use the phrase "I wish you to open a complaint"... and even then, they sometimes don't!)

 

I wish I could give you the magic secret to getting DMG to speed up, but we never found it.........

 

Can you make an appointment with your GP?. They may be able to

a) help with your anxiety / 'not coping', and

b) tell you what the latest letter is, and how they are intending to reply.

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To be perfectly honest I'd be afraid to tell my doctor I'm anxious incase it goes against me getting my licence back

 

I'm only anxious of course because I need to drive to live my life and I'm isolated without it and I don't know if/when I will get it back.

 

Obviously that's not a reason for me not to get my licence back because being able to drive again would resolve the anxiety.

But the doctor might not see it that way.

 

There's a question on the medical form along the lines of "anxiety with agitation" if the doctor ticks that then no licence. It could happen so easily.

 

Turns out my GP missed out questions on the form, so the DVLA have sent her another one.

 

I should know by now but now I need to wait for her to fill the form in again and send it back off and for the DVLA to process it and make another decision.

 

There's another problem. I now have to fill in a questionnaire about drugs even though I haven't used cannabis for well over a year.

 

It's asking if I've used it in the past 3 years. Does this mean if you use cannabis you can't drive for 3 years?

 

I last used cannabis over a year now. Will my licence application be refused?

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for a minimum of 6 months, which must be free of misuse or dependence

 

So in other words, if the person making the application has refrained from any use of cannabis for over 6 months it will not stop the application being granted?

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I have one more question.

 

What exactly entails "satisfactory complying with treatment" if the licence was revoked for "serious psychiatric illness"? Is it esstential to have to have appointments with a mental health professional? I'm concerned because I've just been seeing my GP I don't have a CPN or psychiatrist or anything like that.

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Did your GP feel your treatment required input from a CPN or psychiatrist?

 

“satisfactory compliance” is attending appointments made for you and taking any prescribed medication.

 

If not, and you had been discharged to your GP’s care (without follow-up with CPN or psychiatrist) how could not being seen by them be considered “not satisfactory compliance”???

 

I fear you are going to keep coming up with questions due to your anxiety, and asking here instead of asking your GP ..... who is the right person to ask.

How about finding out when your GP has returned the form, and then going to see them to get a plan agreed and your questions answered?

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  • 1 month later...

I need to have a medical examination, as part of it I need to provide a urine sample for drug screening. Why do I have to do this even though I told them it's been a year and a half since I last used any cannabis?

 

What else does the examination involve? And do they really watch you pee?

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