School Physicals

New York State now requires school physicals in the following years - Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, Second, Fourth, Seventh, and Tenth.

The Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten Physicals are the only ones required to be handled by the parents.

Hudson Headwaters Health Network is our governing physician and sends a representative to MCS every year in the fall to perform the "in-school" physicals.  These are provided free to all students providing they are in attendance on the day of the exam or have provided a legitimate reason for not being in attendance.

If a student is absent on the day of the exam, there are three possible outcomes:

• If the need is urgent, the student can be brought over to an HHHN facility for the physical by the parent, with MCS receiving the bill. (This is generally discouraged as we only have a limited number of "out-of-building" physicals allowed by HHHN.);
• The parent can bring the student to their own physician (paying for it on their own) and provide a copy of the physical results to the school (A generic physical form is provided below if parents would like to use it - otherwise the school can take the forms provided by the individual physicians).; or
• The student can have the physical during the Spring Sports Physicals provided in the school by HHHN.
• The school physical is a basic exam that checks the following:  eyes, ears, nose, throat, height, weight, blood pressure, pulse, respiration, hernia check on the males, and a quick scan for scoliosis.  The representative also questions the students regarding any health concerns or issues the student might have.  If anything that might be of concern is found, a letter is sent home notifying the parents with recommendations for actions that should be taken.
• Beginning during the 2007/2008 school year, New York State is requiring the addition of BMI calculations at the time of their physicals.  BMI stands for Body Mass Index.  This is a calculation based on height and weight and helps determine if a child is overweight, underweight, or in a good weight range.  At this time, these calculations will be added to each students' medical records and offered to parents at their request.

Any questions or concerns regarding this process or any letters that are received should be directed to Mrs. Frasier and are welcome!

Sports Physicals are provided every year in the Spring.

Every student in grades seven through twelve who participates in an extra-curricular athletic activity is required to be approved to play by a physician or physician representative.

The sports physical is more involved than the regular school physical.  Along with all of the regular physical items of interest, the sports physical also includes:

• A separate form to be filled out by the parents.
• A two-minute exercise to determine working heart rate and then recovery heart rate.
• In-depth questioning regarding any sort of specific movements involved with the sport(s) the student will be playing.

A student's own physician will give a more in-depth exam but the school offers sports physicals free of charge to students.

Normally, this exam is of sufficient quality to ensure the fitness capability of the child but, if a parent has any concerns regarding the sport(s) their child wants to play, I would recommend that they please speak with their own physician regarding these issues.