Researchers have expressed concern that some seeking medical clearance—many of them early-career scientists and individuals from underrepresented groups—are failing the U.S. polar research program’s screenings for reasons that aren’t medically sound.
A storm is brewing over the U.S. polar research program’s medical qualifications process, which screens hundreds of scientists for physical and psychological ailments each year before they deploy to field sites in Antarctica and Greenland where they will have limited access to medical care. Scientists are too often rejected for questionable reasons, some researchers argue.
NSF’s screening process is administered by the University of Texas Medical Branch and involves detailed medical questionnaires, blood tests, and a physical examination by each applicants’ personal doctor. NSF says it is an important tool for catching potentially dangerous health problems before scientists leave for field sites. “The health and safety of all deployed personnel is NSF’s top priority,” an NSF spokesperson wrote by email.
Penalizing researchers for actively managing their mental health is counterproductive, says Seth Campbell, a glaciologist at the University of Maine, Orono. “I’ve spent over 7 years of my life in the field and that’s the [kind of] person I want in the field with me,” he says. “Someone that’s willing to actually get mental health support.”
Michael Gooseff, a hydrologist at the University of Colorado , Boulder, who oversees a project that deploys 31 scientists to Antarctica each year, applauds the letter’s recommendations. “The idea of a periodic external ethics review is really a great idea,” says Gooseff, who wasn’t aware of the letter untilsent him a copy. He would also like to see UTMB issue its decisions earlier.
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