Tests required by Australian immigration
Wojtek Ciszak M.D.
In addition to an examination by a Panel Physician, DHA requires the following routine test and investigations.
Chest X-ray
This is important to the Australian government, because of the rising incidence of tuberculosis (TB) in and the rising prevalence of drug-resistant TB worldwide. A TB infection can develop very slowly and without symptoms. All applicants aged 11 and over must have a chest X-ray.
What if the chest X-ray is abnormal
If you are Canadian, having lived in Canada all your life, the chances of having latent TB that would show on X-ray are very low. If you have immigrated to Canada from a part of the world where TB is prevalent, you have been exposed to TB without knowing it and developed full or partial immunity to it. This may have a left permanent scar or other residue in the lung that is visible on the X-ray. This residue can still reactivate after many years and cause disease, as well as infect other people. If your X-ray shows such a suspicious residue, you may be required to repeat the X-ray in 3 months and have sputum culture tests to rule out an active or evolving TB. If there is an active infection, you will be treated at no cost by the BC Centre for Disease Control. You will have to postpone yout travel plans until you are deemed non-infectious.
Blood test for serum creatinine
Serum creatinine (usually expressed as Glomerular Filtration Rate) is a very important and accurate test for detecting kidney disease. Since the treatment of advanced kidney disease is very expensive and long lasting, the Australian governement is concerned about its impact on their public finances. All adult applicants must have this test.
What if the serum creatinine test is abnormal
DHA will probably request a
medical furtherance report from a nephrologist (kidney specialist). They will want to hear what the chances are that the person might require kidney dialysis or a transplantation during their stay in Australia.
Blood tests for HIV and Hepatitis B and C
These tests are only required if you are pregnant or planning to work a health care field in Australia.
What if one of these tests is abnormal
If you belong to one of these two categories, you are very unlikely to be surprised by an abnormal result. Since we have never seen a single case in this group, we are not able to predict what the response of the DHA Health might be.
