In an interview with The Eagle, Student Health Center Director Dan Bruey addressed some common concerns that AU students have about the Student Health Center and spoke about how the Health Center is working to accommodate these concerns.
Q: There has been some concern among students that the staff of the Student Health Center is not qualified; there is only one doctor on the Heath Center’s staff and the rest of the staff are either physicians’ assistants or nurses. How do you respond to this?
A: We hire very qualified staff, and we do check references. A lot of primary care medicine now is being handled by what they term “mid-level providers” — nurses, physician’s assistants. A lot of hospitals, doctors’ offices and health centers use mid-level providers. It’s the most efficient, least expensive method with the highest quality medical care that we can get.
Q: Students say they have shown up at the Health Center with injuries or medical emergencies that require immediate medical attention, only to be told they have to schedule an appointment for later in the day. Does the Health Center ever make exceptions for students who have not scheduled an appointment, but need immediate medical assistance?
A: If someone is experiencing a medical emergency, they shouldn’t take the time to go [to the Student Health Center] because every second counts. If it’s a medical emergency we would transport the student to the hospital anyway. Students should contact Public Safety if they are on campus or call 911 off campus if they have an emergency. We are working on getting a staff person who will be able to handle students that are coming in with injuries that are not quite a medical emergency. But because of the current volume of students coming in and the H1N1 crisis we have had to revert back to needing everyone to have an appointment to be seen.
Q: Some students say they have been misdiagnosed when they go to the Student Health Center. Is this a common occurrence?
A: There are a lot of instances where a student will say, “I went to the Health Center and it was a cold one day but a couple of days later it was bronchitis.” It could have been a cold that was leading into bronchitis. It happens. That doesn’t mean that the student was misdiagnosed — the diagnosis and treatments given at the time would be based on symptoms at the time [of the visit]. Any student who feels that they were misdiagnosed should bring in their medical records to the Health Center to evaluate what’s going on.
Q: One of the biggest student complaints about the Health Center is its availability. Many students are frustrated that the Health Center closes at 6 p.m. on weekdays and is not open on weekends. Are there any plans in the future to expand the Health Center’s hours?
A: We’re looking to hire a full-time staff member who could accommodate shifting our hours and could provide some more hours that are convenient to students. We are looking at later evenings and Saturdays. We’re currently in the hiring process, but we haven’t been able to finalize anything yet. For the time being, if students need medical help after hours, they can call the nurse help hot line, accessible through the Student Health Center’s main line after the [Health Center] has closed.
Q: If students have any questions or concerns about the Student Health Center, what can they do?
A: Our e-mail for suggestions and feedback is SHCsuggestions@american.edu. Students could also directly e-mail me at bruey@american.edu or call me at 202-885-3382.
You can reach this staff writer at jryan@theeagleonline.com.
