Immunizations, TB screening and the physical at Loyola New Orleans

Updated September 25, 2026 · Reviewed by the Loyola Preceptor placement team

Loyola University New Orleans asks nursing students to document MMR, Tdap, polio, varicella, hepatitis B and COVID-19, a flu vaccine every year, yearly TB testing or the HCP Baseline Individual TB Risk Assessment, and a physical signed within the past 12 months. Each record goes to Exxat Prism for review. Exemptions exist, one vaccine per waiver form, but an exemption can close some clinical sites to you.

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2MMR doses on Loyola's immunization list

1vaccine per Immunization Exemption/Waiver form

The health records Loyola lists

The 2026-27 graduate bulletin names the immunizations every Loyola New Orleans graduate nursing student documents, and the School of Nursing adds its own forms for TB and the physical. BSN and ABSN students meet a parallel list in the undergraduate bulletin, where immunizations and a yearly physical sit among the clinical admission items.

Immunizations, TB and physical records at Loyola New Orleans
Record	What Loyola lists
MMR	Two doses
Tdap	Tdap vaccine
Polio	Polio vaccine
Varicella	Varicella vaccine
Hepatitis B	Hepatitis B vaccine
COVID-19	Vaccination according to CDC guidance
Influenza	A flu vaccine every year
TB	Yearly testing, or the HCP Baseline Individual TB Risk Assessment, following CDC guidance and site rules
Physical	An exam within the past 12 months, on the Physical Examination Attestation Form signed by a licensed primary care provider

Each record is uploaded to Required Documents in Exxat Prism, where the APPROVE team checks it. The compliance overview shows how these health items sit beside the background check, BLS, insurance and license.

The yearly flu vaccine and why it trips people up

Influenza is the one vaccine on Loyola's list that you repeat every year, which makes it one of the records most likely to go stale mid-program. A flu shot documented at admission will not carry you through a three-year plan of study, and a practicum course such as NURS G829 or NURS G858 can fall a year or more after your first upload.

Missing health records have a direct effect on registration. When the Nursing Student Handbook explains registration blocks, the example it reaches for is an absent immunization record, which surfaces under the Holds tab in LORA; the student systems guide shows where LORA and Exxat fit. A hold on the eve of a practicum term leaves little time to clear it before your preceptor expects you.

Make the flu vaccine a standing appointment. Get it as soon as the seasonal vaccine is offered where you live, upload the new record to Exxat the same week, and check that its status reads approved before your next practicum registration opens.

TB: yearly testing or the risk assessment

Loyola accepts two routes for TB. The bulletin calls for TB testing yearly or a risk assessment according to CDC guidance and site rules, and the School of Nursing's own form for the second route is the Health Care Personnel (HCP) Baseline Individual TB Risk Assessment, posted in a 2025 version.

The words "site rules" matter. Because the bulletin ties the choice to what your practicum site allows, a hospital or clinic can ask for a test result even if Loyola would accept the risk assessment. Ask each prospective site which it wants before you schedule anything, so you do the right one once.

Whichever route you take, track its anniversary. A TB record that expires between the end of one practicum and the start of the next is easy to miss, and the APPROVE team reviews what is in Exxat, not what is on your calendar. Upload the new result or assessment before the old one lapses.

The physical exam attestation

Loyola wants a physical completed within the past 12 months, documented on the Physical Examination Attestation Form and signed by a licensed primary care provider. The linked version dates from 2018, so pull a fresh copy from Loyola's resources page each time rather than reusing an old one.

Timing the physical well saves you a second appointment. A physical signed in May covers the Fall and Spring terms that follow; one signed in February runs out the next February, partway through a spring practicum. Count 12 months forward from the signature date and compare it with your practicum courses on your plan of study.

Ask your provider to complete every field on Loyola's form at the visit, and check the signature, date and provider details before you upload. An incomplete attestation means a second pass through review, and a returned document can hold up the rest of your file.

Count 12 months from the date your provider signed the attestation, not from the day you uploaded it, and renew before that date lands inside a practicum term.

Exemptions: one vaccine per waiver form

Loyola offers an Immunization Exemption/Waiver form, and each form covers one vaccine. If you are asking for more than one exemption, you complete a separate form for each. The version posted on the resources page is dated 2023.

The form carries a clear warning. An exempt student may be barred from some clinical sites, and the form notes that a titer or vaccine record is needed. In practice, Loyola's waiver settles Loyola's requirement; it does not bind a hospital or clinic that sets its own rule for everyone who works there.

If you expect to use an exemption, say so at the start of your preceptor search, which Loyola asks you to begin at least three months ahead. It narrows the list of workable sites, and learning that after a site has agreed to host you costs weeks you may not have. Your placement advisor can raise the question with each site at first contact, before your Wishlist is submitted.

How we plan your health records around your practicums

We build your health-record timeline into the placement from the first conversation. For each site on your shortlist we ask how it handles TB (test or risk assessment), whether it asks for titers, what it expects for COVID-19 and flu, and whether it accepts exemptions. You see those answers before you choose, so the site you pick is one you can clear.

We then line up your renewals against your practicum terms, from NURS G823 through a DNP project course, and remind you ahead of each expiry. The approval itself belongs to Loyola's placement office and faculty; what we add is a request that arrives with every health record current and every site rule already answered. Read how it works, then tell us your track and first practicum term on the contact form.

Questions Loyola students ask

Does Loyola New Orleans require the COVID-19 vaccine for nursing clinicals?

COVID-19 appears on the graduate bulletin's immunization list, with the requirement tied to CDC guidance. Practicum sites may also set their own COVID-19 rules. If you need an exemption, Loyola's Immunization Exemption/Waiver form covers one vaccine per form, and the form warns that some sites may not accept an exempt student.

Is a TB test required, or is Loyola's risk assessment enough?

Loyola allows either yearly TB testing or a risk assessment, following CDC guidance and site rules. The School of Nursing's form is the HCP Baseline Individual TB Risk Assessment. Because site rules count, your practicum site may insist on a test result. Confirm with the site before you pick a route.

Can I submit titers instead of vaccination records?

Loyola's waiver form mentions a titer or vaccine record as the documentation needed. The APPROVE team reviews each upload, and sites can set their own preferences for proof of immunity. Ask the Clinical Practicum Coordinator which document suits each item before you pay for lab work.

Who can sign Loyola's physical exam form?

The Physical Examination Attestation Form must be signed by a licensed primary care provider, and the exam must fall within the past 12 months. Use the current version from Loyola's resources page, ask your provider to fill in every field, and add the completed attestation to your Exxat Prism profile.

Do BSN students follow the same immunization rules?

The undergraduate bulletin gives BSN and ABSN students a similar set before any clinical work: immunizations, BLS, health insurance, an annual physical and a urine drug screen. Their placements are arranged by the program, so questions about undergraduate submission steps go to the clinical instructor or the Undergraduate Program Director.

ComplianceCompliance requirementsEvery compliance item Loyola New Orleans nursing students need before a practicum, the 60-day vs thirty-day deadline conflict, and how a compliance hold works.ExxatExxat PrismHow Loyola New Orleans nursing students use Exxat Prism: the two subscriptions, Required Documents, STEPS, the APPROVE team, hour logs and preceptor evaluations.ScreeningBackground check and drug screenHow Loyola New Orleans nursing students handle the background check and drug screen: the contracted company, the designated facility, LSBN reports and cannabis.SystemsStudent systemsCanvas, LORA, Exxat Prism, Nursys e-Notify and Respondus at Loyola University New Orleans: which system holds each part of your nursing practicum.TimelineThree-month lead timeLoyola University New Orleans says a practicum placement can take three months. A backward plan from your term, with Spring and Summer 2027 count-back dates.

Last checked 2026-09-25

We check these pages against Loyola's own bulletin, program pages, practicum guides, forms and licensure disclosures. Your plan of study, your practicum guide, your program director and the Clinical Practicum Coordinator have the final word.

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