Student Health Services are making changes to improve access and appointment availability at A.P. Beutel Health Center.
A new ramp, steps and automatic doors along with the ability to check appointment times online are some changes that have already been implemented at the center.
Russell Klinkenberg, senior associate director for Student Health Services, said the improvements were necessary to accommodate the increased student population.
“The center was built to service 18,000 students,” he said. “Now there are about 45,000 students to serve.”
Klinkenberg said the online clinic availability checking system is a wonderful new tool for students.
“It’s so easy for students to log in and check to see what times are available and convenient for them,” he said.
Students can check for clinic availability by going to the Student Health Services Web site (http://shs.tamu.edu). Students must then call the health center appointment line to reserve a particular appointment time.
“The system runs in real time as long as there is interaction on the Web site,” Klinkenberg said.
Online appointment reservations, he said, will be available in about six months to a year.
The health services fee at A&M is $55 a semester, which entitles students to unlimited clinic visits.
Klinkenberg said the fee is the second lowest among the Big 12 schools behind Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, which charge students $54 a semester.
Scott Draper, assistant director for Student Health Services, said it’s beneficial for students to use the health center.
“If you visit your family physician, there is an insurance co-pay,” Draper said. “Here there’s no co-pay.”
Beyond clinic visits, students are responsible for paying for X-rays, lab tests, physical therapy and prescriptions from the pharmacy.
Draper said a lot of the costs may be covered by student’s personal health insurance.
“We give students the equivalent of a billing form to turn in to their insurance provider,” he said.
The services that the center charges extra for, Draper said, are equal to or below what other health care providers charge.
“You are not required to use our services, but shop around,” he said.Klinkenberg said they don’t want to replace a student’s family physician.
“We just want to be a viable, convenient choice for students,” he said.
Another change at Beutel is the addition of a pharmacy at the front entrance.
Jyane Pearson, chief pharmacist at Beutel, said she hopes the new pharmacy will be open by mid-March.
“It’ll be nice to get out of the basement,” she said.
The new pharmacy will be large enough to store all the drugs and useful documents they need in one area, Pearson said.
“The main benefit of the new pharmacy is increased visibility and accessibility for students,” she said.
Klinkenberg said besides primary health care, that Student Health Services’ main focus is to educate students about health care issues.
“We are an introduction to self-education,” he said. “We want to prepare students for health care beyond us.”
Klinkenberg said the lines at the front door of Beutel have been eliminated because they are trying to address privacy concerns of patients and become a more appointment-based clinic.
Eventually, he said, there will be an information desk up front that will direct patients to the right area of the clinic.
Draper said they are trying to encourage students to become educated about health concerns and to use the health center for that reason.
“You are going to see us out there changing our image,” Draper said.
“Overall, we hope that students look to us for their