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Health Issues at WVU
" I'm {insert your
child's name here}'s roommate, and
she asked
me to let you know that she's in the
emergency
room because she broke her ankle. See you
later."
The above answering machine message is guaranteed
to
produce a new patch of gray hair for most parents.
We
receive a lot of calls on the Parents Club
Helpline
about medical situations. Whether the situation
is
serious or not, it is always frightening to
contemplate a medical emergency. In this "Parent
E-News," I'd
like to cover some information that should be
helpful for
all parents of WVU students.
University Health Service: A Clinic, Not an
Infirmary
Baby boomer parents may hearken back to college
infirmaries where students living on campus could
go
to see a health professional and spend the night
recuperating. With the absolution of "in loco
parentis" and the changing face of healthcare in
America, health facilities in colleges have
changed,
too. At WVU we offer a facility much like your
family
clinic, which is known as "University Health
Service."
This clinic is located on the ground floor of the
Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center, near Ruby
Memorial Hospital. It is accessible by the PRT,
and
students should bring their Mountaineer card,
chart
number (once assigned), and a $5 co-payment for
every
visit (they also accept Mountie Bounty). To make
general medicine and gynecology appointments,
students
should call 293-2311. Routine gynecology
appointments
are only scheduled one day in advance due to
limited
availability. The receptionist begins scheduling
these appointments at 8:30 a.m. daily for the
following workday. Students should let the
receptionist know if there is an urgent gynecology
problem so that they may be appropriately
scheduled.
Students also may call 293-2311, ext. 3 to speak
with
a registered nurse about health concerns or
questions.
Making an appointment decreases the time students
wait
to be seen, and allows them to see the health care
provider of their choice. Urgent problems will
receive immediate attention, facilitated by a
triage
nurse. If students arrive without an appointment
and
the problem is not urgent, they will be seen at
the
first opening in the schedule.
Students can visit University Health Service as
long
as they are enrolled in classes and have paid
their
special fees. If they happen to be in Morgantown
for
the summer but are not enrolled in classes, they
can't
go to University Health. Please work with your
students to decide how to handle health care if
they
plan to be in Morgantown between semesters but are
not
enrolled in classes. Your student shouldn't wait
(as
one young man I worked with did) to decide how
he/she
is going to handle health care until after he gets
a
power adapter stuck in his foot (don't ask).
The University Health Service is staffed by
faculty
physicians, registered nurses, nurse
practitioners,
physician assistants, medical technologists,
health
educators, and other support personnel who are
interested in the health concerns of college
students. Members of the medical staff hold
academic
appointments in the Departments of Medicine,
Family
Medicine, Behavioral Medicine, Psychiatry, and
Pediatrics.
At University Health Service, students receive
evaluation and treatment by health care providers,
as
well as routine laboratory tests and diagnostic X-
rays. In addition, students can visit University
Health for family planning, psychiatric services,
allergy injections, physical therapy consultation,
and
international travel counseling. Specialized
testing
such as CT scans/MRIs, sonograms, colposcopies,
and
routine mammograms are not covered. University
Health can refer students to specialists when
needed.
For example, last year a parent called whose
daughter
needed a hand surgeon. We don't have one on the
staff, but the doctors at University Health were
able
to give the parent a referral.
If students have accidents or become ill after
regular
business hours or on the weekend (when Student
Health
is not open) and require emergency medical
attention,
they should go to the emergency room at Ruby
Memorial
Hospital. PLEASE make sure that your students
have
copies of their medical insurance cards in their
possession in case of accidents. Visits to the
emergency room and to doctors outside of Student
Health are not covered under the $5 co-pay. If a
student is not covered under your health
insurance, he
or she can purchase health insurance through a
private
outside source coordinated through WVU. For more
information, call 304-293-2315.
Take Your Toothbrush to College
Students in need of dental care while at WVU can
contact the WVU School of Dentistry at 293-3511
during
normal business hours to schedule an appointment.
If
a student encounters a dental emergency during
non-business hours, (think midnight football games
in
the mud) they should contact Ruby Memorial
Hospital at
598-4000 to speak with the dental resident on-call
(Call first, don't walk in to the emergency room,
unless you want to pay the ER fee). Dental
students
and residents work in the student clinic, and
faculty
dentists work in the UHA private practice. Your
WVU
students may choose which service is right for
them;
many of the faculty and staff at West Virginia
University use the student clinic because of its
lower
prices.
Speech Therapists on Call
WVU's Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology
offers free speech therapy to WVU students.
Students
may call for an evaluation and to schedule therapy
at
293-4242, ext. 3. The department also provides
hearing evaluations and can order and fit hearing
aids, earplugs, and musician's earplugs (ear
plugs
and hearing aids are not free, however). All
testing
is done by graduate students who are supervised by
certified speech pathologists and audiologists.
Pharmacies
Several pharmacies are available to students with
prescriptions. A pharmacy is available in the
Physician's Office Center (598-4848), which is
next to
University Health Service. Krogers, (599-8316)
which
is a grocery store within walking distance of the
Evansdale Residential Complex (Towers), has a
pharmacy, as does Giant Eagle (292-0385). The
residence halls on the downtown campus are located
within walking distance of City Pharmacy on High
Street (296-3314).
Phone Numbers to Keep
(click here for
printer-friendly list)
City Pharmacy
(304) 296-3314
Giant Eagle Pharmacy
(304) 292-0385
Kroger Pharmacy
(304) 599-8316
Physician's Office Center Pharmacy
(304) 598-4848
Student Insurance Information
(304) 293-2315
University Health Services
(304) 293-2311
WVU Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology
(304) 293-4242 ext. 3
WVU School of Dentistry
(304) 293-3511
Ruby Memorial Hospital Emergency Room
(304) 598-4000
Monongalia General Hospital Emergency Room
(304) 598-1200
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West Virginia
University