Father attempted suicide-Can he be sponsored?

K

kalvar

Registered Users (C)
Hello members

Next year (2011) I will naturalize and intend to sponsor my parents.

My father has a long history of depression. He attempted suicide about 10 years ago and was diagnosed with schizofrenia at one point.

He is an intellectual type and somewhat of a "little genius" but not always able to cope with life's problems.

Nowdays he has recovered. He takes his medicine and has a social life. The scars remain though both emotional and physical.

He has one on his neck leftover from a self inflicted wound.

He has a clear criminal record and has never been violent with other people. He has never represented a danger to society but to himself. Also, categorically free of infective diseases.

What is the "medical examination" like? Do they check for general stuff like tuberculosis and broken bones or the entire medical history comes under scrutiny?


When times come to sponsor him, will his medical history prevent him from obtaining a green card?

Anyone been in a similar position?
 
There is a section on mental health issues in the medical examination form. It will have to be filled by the civil surgeon so according to the day your father is examined, the doctor will decide if your father is "mentally" fit or ask for him to be seen by a psychiatrist. The ball will roll from there. I dont know much on immigration law but I do know medicine as long as your father goes with his meds and talks about his past medical history I beleive the medical exam will go fine as he has been in remission for 10yrs. Important thing though is you as the son should know what triggers your dad's depression and know how to help him when he falls in such state, sometimes the medical establishment wants to know if the patient has a reliable support system to help him if things go for the worse. So it's always good to be prepared.
 
First of all, thanks for the quick reply.

As it is often the case new questions arise.

The main reason my father's health faltered was my departure to the US. I am his only child and we were/are extremely close.

I can attest that being with me helps his psychological health tremendously.
Will the psychiatrist ask for evidence or statements?

My greatest fear is that I will have no role to play and that this "evaluation" once conducted has no appeal mechanism.
 
As I said before I am not knowledgeable on the immigration law. I can only advice you to get a letter from his regular psychiatric doctor just in case to attest to his case. And try to get more information from a legal point of view even if it means a consultation with a knowledgeable lawyer.
 
Definately won't spare anything in terms of money to try and get this done even if it means consulting expensive lawyers.

Your advice seems to be spot on. I will make sure everything is properly disclosed and be transparent. His psychiatrist is a family friend and can play an important part. I won't hesitate to contact state legislators in case of help.

Hopefully, they will understand that granting him this privilige will prevent a USC family from being separated. Otherwise, I will have to leave the country and be close to him. It is my duty as my father.

thanks for your help
 
kalvar said:
First of all, thanks for the quick reply.

As it is often the case new questions arise.

The main reason my father's health faltered was my departure to the US. I am his only child and we were/are extremely close.

I can attest that being with me helps his psychological health tremendously.
Will the psychiatrist ask for evidence or statements?

My greatest fear is that I will have no role to play and that this "evaluation" once conducted has no appeal mechanism.
Click to expand...

Your statements are illogical. If you are so convinced that your presence is essential to his well being, you would have returned to be with him long ago. It is evident that your life in the US is more important than your father based on your actions. This will be evident to a US immigration official.

You should have no role to play in the mental evaluation. Your father must be assessed to determine his ability to function properly. Anyone with a prior suicide attempt and a diagnosis of schizophrenia should be considered a risk to himself and others.

You need to be realistic. You also should consider that life in the US will be far different from his now. If he is unable to cope there, what makes you believe that he would be able to cope in the US?

Quite frankly, your attitude scares me - both for your father and for the US community in which you live.
 
Your statements are illogical. If you are so convinced that your presence is essential to his well being, you would have returned to be with him long ago. It is evident that your life in the US is more important than your father based on your actions. This will be evident to a US immigration official.

There is nothing illogical about my actions. I left my country 10 years ago and sought political asylum in the US. I haven't returned out of fear for my life. This will be evident to the immigration official. What is so illogical to you?

You should have no role to play in the mental evaluation. Your father must be assessed to determine his ability to function properly. Anyone with a prior suicide attempt and a diagnosis of schizophrenia should be considered a risk to himself and others.


Do you always jump on conclusions without properly reading the facts? I never said i should play a role in the medical evaluation as a distinct health procedure. But when his application is reviewed my voice and concerns as a family member deserve to be heard. And apparently this is the USCIS official position. They consider the medical evaluation and other factors when making the decision.

You need to be realistic. You also should consider that life in the US will be far different from his now. If he is unable to cope there, what makes you believe that he would be able to cope in the US?

Thanks for lecturing me about life in the US !!! I believe that family is very important and helps to cope with problems. Read again.His health deteriorated when I was forced to leave.

Quite frankly, your attitude scares me - both for your father and for the US community in which you live.

Quite frankly, don't know whether to laugh or cry at your fears!!!
 
kalvar said:
Your statements are illogical. If you are so convinced that your presence is essential to his well being, you would have returned to be with him long ago. It is evident that your life in the US is more important than your father based on your actions. This will be evident to a US immigration official.

There is nothing illogical about my actions. I left my country 10 years ago and sought political asylum in the US. I haven't returned out of fear for my life. This will be evident to the immigration official. What is so illogical to you?

You should have no role to play in the mental evaluation. Your father must be assessed to determine his ability to function properly. Anyone with a prior suicide attempt and a diagnosis of schizophrenia should be considered a risk to himself and others.


Do you always jump on conclusions without properly reading the facts? I never said i should play a role in the medical evaluation as a distinct health procedure. But when his application is reviewed my voice and concerns as a family member deserve to be heard. And apparently this is the USCIS official position. They consider the medical evaluation and other factors when making the decision.

You need to be realistic. You also should consider that life in the US will be far different from his now. If he is unable to cope there, what makes you believe that he would be able to cope in the US?

Thanks for lecturing me about life in the US !!! I believe that family is very important and helps to cope with problems. Read again.His health deteriorated when I was forced to leave.

Quite frankly, your attitude scares me - both for your father and for the US community in which you live.

Quite frankly, don't know whether to laugh or cry at your fears!!!
Click to expand...

I don’t know much about this from immigration point of view.

But one more thing you have to consider is that his treatment aspect and its cost in USA.

If he diagnosed with schizophrenia most probably he needs life long treatment.

All the best
 
kalvar said:
First of all, thanks for the quick reply.



My greatest fear is that I will have no role to play and that this "evaluation" once conducted has no appeal mechanism.
Click to expand...

You explicitly stated that you expected that you should have a role to play in the determination of his ability to immigrate.

Being older than dirt and a long time observer of people and their behaviour, I stand by my statement that your actions do not reflect your stated concerns. This is how a reasonable USC evaluating your statements verses your actions would view what has transpired based on common and expected practice by USCs.

Your father is a high risk to become a public charge and with a prior suicide attempt and his diagnoses is a risk to himself and others if he does not receive the proper treatment. He is uninsurable. Check out the cost of psychiatric care and medications. Realistically, can you afford them on your own? If not, you can see why he is a poor risk for a visa.

You are free to ignore my observations. I suggest that you reflect on them so that you can better prepare to address the issues and deal with any denial if it occurs.
 
i wouldn't mention it at all. if your dad is acting normally now, there's no reason his past should follow him for ever.

i just got out of medical exam myself yesterday. they ask in the form if one of my parents has/had any mental problem. My mother has currently dementia from a rare disease called corticobasal degeneration (some sorta mix of parkinson and alzheimer) but that can't be transmitted to siblings, so I answered NO.

See, the civil 'surgeon' is just a basic MD. He has no way to verify your father medical history from abroad. Therefore USCIS has NO way to verify that either. If I was you, I would NOT mention it at all. If your father is capable of attending an immigration interview normally without acting erraticaly or giving clues of his schizophrenia, then he has nothing to worry about.

Here's what the civil surgon does:
1) they test for syphillis and HIV
2) they test for tuberculosis
3) make a very quick health check (ears, eyes, beathing and that's it).

no deep interrogation whatsoever. if you declare he had some mental issues in the past, you're up for unnecessary complications with his immigration process.

but it's of course your call. if, on the other hand, you believe (or local neurologists believe) he's a ticking bomb and can harm anyone and be a danger to society, then I would recommend declaring it, because it could backfire should that happen.

oh, and Kalvar: you're being rude and stupid. personally, i'm more scared of people like you for the sake of my community. let me guess: you live in a gated community and are the head of a neighborhood watch program, right?
 
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Indian_Citizen said:
I don’t know much about this from immigration point of view.

But one more thing you have to consider is that his treatment aspect and its cost in USA.

If he diagnosed with schizophrenia most probably he needs life long treatment.

All the best
Click to expand...

he can still buy drugs from india. most generic drugs at walgreens or CVS come from there anyway. just go to any online canadian pharmacy, and they'll deliver it to your door, for a 5th of its US cost.
 
Concerned4us said:
Your father is a high risk to become a public charge.
Click to expand...

who cares? isn't it what form i-864 is meant for, duh? if there's an affidavit of support, the immigrant CAN NOT become a public charge!
 
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Minoo thanks for your constructive input.

I am not trying here to argue and waste people's time.
I am just trying to figure out the proper procedure to sponsor my father.

Concerned--being older than dirt I expect you to be wiser than a 1st grader (not offense to them, of course). You seem to know very little about the immigration process. As sponsor, I take full responsibility for his financial needs.That means, I pay for everything he NEEDS. You understand???? Forget his insurance. I can afford his care for the next 100 years out of my pocket. I am a young professional, own my business and find myself in the high marginal tax brackets.

Speaking of community. I don't complain when as a single taxpayer my taxes go to fund your kids schools, scholarships and fringe benefits. That's because I understand that as a USC it's my duty.

Needless to say, I become irritated when I am reminded that my family member will become "a burden to society". He won't because I am sponsoing him and that's part of the deal. But even if he were...what's the problem?

Your views suggest that you have almost a fascist notion of who should be part of a society. Tell me your opinion about autistic kids? They don't contribute to society. What you suggest, we kill them? No my friend. That's wrong.

Learn to appreciate human life beyong its financial impact.

And understand that mental disorders can be treated and can be kept under control.

Again...read what I told you and don't waste my time. I am not an MD. I WILL not conduct his medical evaluation. That is a distinct process conducted by a professional. I told you this already. But I will play a role when his application is evaluated OVERALL. That is the US government's stance with what I am reading. It's part of the procedure. You don't like it? Too bad. They will listen to me and decide.
 
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minoo

My father has suffered from bipolar disorder his whole life. He tried to commit suicide and they diagnosed him with schizofrenia. The doctor responsible for this was not his regular doctor. It was a new guy out of college. I am sure that If he asked for a re-evaluation they would backtrack and go to his original disorder(not disease).

He is not incoherent. The guy can hold multidimensional conversations ranging from poetry to 16th century italian painters. He can talk about politics, sports, women. You name it!!!

However he has the scar in his neck. And I have an attitude of doing everything by the books, With what I am reading online, his conditions will not bar him from an immigrant visa. It will just slow the process a bit. He will still be able to come if we follow the right procedure. And this is what I intend to do.

They can't verify his personal medical file anywhere. He could just not mentiona anythign at all. But that would be lying and we have nothing to lie about. He did something and his disorder can be controlled through medication.

thanks my fiend.
have a nice one
 
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To the OP:

I'm not sure if all civil surgeon exams are like mine, but from my experience I could have had a dozen different serious mental or physical conditions and it would never have been detected or reported on the medical form. I went in one day, filled out the form, gave a blood sample and TB test to a medical assistant - not even a nurse, I'm sure. Couple days later, went back, had TB test read by same medical assistant. It was positive - I was immunized for TB as a kid, and always get a positive for the skin test. She asked me if I was immunized as a kid, I said yes - did not have any proof with me, she never asked for any either. She put down 0 mm on the form. The correct procedure at this point would have been to order a chest X-ray - I was prepared for this, but obviously wasn't going to argue if she didn't want one. Then she handed me my medical form which had ALREADY been signed by the doctor. I never met this doctor in the whole process. The only diseases that would have been caught are AIDS and STDs.

So my advice to the OP is - do not volunteer any information to the civil surgeon. If he asks too many questions, just find another one who is like mine. Do not mention your father's history to the IO. As long as your father can act normally for the 30 minutes it will take for the interview, you should have no problems whatsoever and your father's medical history should be irrelevant.

Best of luck!
 
Sincere thanks Physicist.

Will not provide more information than requested. The consulate has its own physician for the medical examination.

My father is not incoherent. It is the scar on his neck that concerns me.

I had my own medical exam many years ago and was not asked for scars in my body and their origin.

I will have to enquire about this particular doctor and how his examination are conducted.

Yours appears to have been a pure formality.
 
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