My AME Pt II

[Richard]

I love my AME. As a good friend, as a man of integrity and character, and as my AME, not to mention that he tells very good jokes and old, bold pilot stories. By his own admission, he's an old country doctor who happens to have been a AME for the past 36 years and a pilot for longer than that. Our visits are much more than simple poke and probe office visits.

(For Adam: My AME also mentioned that he was a "Philadelphia Lawyer" meaning that he doesn't actully have a degree in Jurisprudence but that both his parents were attorneys at law and he therefore was immersed in the law from very early on and continuing into his adulthood.)

The last I wrote about this man I mentioned that he checked for hemaroids. The responses I got to that was that I should be looking for a new AME. With that in mind, during my most current visit with him I specifically mentioned how 'roids are not a disqualifying condition to which he readily agreed.

To that end he began to explain how the FAA, et al, are concerned with "public safety" and when the FAA asks their AMEs to inspect, he means to comply. This all in the interest of "public safety". Our visit was drawing to a close and he was chomping at the bit to begin his month long vacation with his new bride so I did not ask him to further elaborate.

So, I put the question here: what did my good friend and AME mean WRT hemaroids and the FAA's request for information on an applicant's general health?

BTW: I am yet again the proud owner of a Class II cert.

 

[One Short]

I became an AME in 1999. At that time it was no longer "required" to do a rectal exam. But I got the impression it was not all that long ago that it was part of the AME exam. If your AME had been doing it for 25 years when it was mandatory, it might just be a hard habit to break.

Barb

 

[TMetzinger]

Or it could be part of a study the FAA is doing - where they would collect additional medical info about people during the exam, but this info is NOT used to qualify/disqualify someone for a medical, and is later scrubbed and anonymized for research purposes. Not sure the medical application includes waiver language for that purpose, however.

 

[bbchien]

I cannot think of a single rectally disqualifying condition. Aside from prostate carcinoma, for which every male over 50 should be screened.

Q: But like on the PTS, what if the inspector, after having you demonstrate 11 maneuvers properly selected, asks you to do one more thing which he doesn't like. Now what does he do with the information?

A: Don't be looking beyond the requirements. JUST the requirements.

 

[Richard]

Thank you all for your responses. I plan to further discuss this with my AME in about one month.

 

[Dave Krall CFII]

I knew an AME that offed them as an optional service because he was after all, a good doctor, then when he quite general practice to be just a full time AME, he discontinued the offering of the exam because of lesser coverage on the cheaper insurance that he carried.