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Volume CXXXIII, Number 1 |
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Ask Dr. Jeff
JEFF BENSON, M.D.
Staff Writer
Dear Students: In this, my first column of the new year,
I wanted to rekindle last year's discussion about our sense of mission
here at the Health Center, and to introduce some of our new programs and
services.
Before coming to Bowdoin, many of you were likely cared
for by pediatricians, and most likely under your parents' direct and attentive
supervision. You might not have had the opportunity to develop independent
provider-patient relationships of your own. You might not have needed
to be responsible for pursuing your own health care, and you might not
have even been expected to understand your own health needs.
This is exactly what we would like to offer you: the opportunity
to take charge of your own health care and needs, with as much support,
information, and hopefully good advice and guidance as we can muster.
In providing health care services on campus, we try to emphasize
health promotion and disease prevention. We treat acute illnesses, offer
preventive exams and vaccinations, and sponsor health education programs.
We hope to help you gain access to the information, resources and services
you'll want in order to understand your own health needs, to pursue your
own health care, and to promote and sustain your own well-being.
We've started a few new programs this year. We're able to
offer all students free tetanus, flu, pneumonia and chickenpox vaccines.
In addition, Hepatitis B, Polio and Measles/Mumps/Rubella vaccinations
will be free for students 18 years of age or younger. Travel vaccines
and the meningitis vaccine will, as previously, be available at cost.
Pap tests at the Health Center will be free, and utilize
a new, highly sensitive technology. We offer free STD testing to both
women and men, including HIV testing. For men, we're now using non-invasive,
urine tests for STD's.
This year, our in-house, formulary prescription medications will be dispensed
to students free of charge. Our formulary includes over thirty of the
most commonly prescribed medications.
We'll be opening up a "Self-Care Room" by the
end of the month, where you'll find the information, diagnostic tools,
and remedies to evaluate and treat - by yourselves -- some of your more
common ailments.
Our Health Center staff is happy to see you for a broad
spectrum of primary and acute care needs. Routine physical exams, GYN
exams, and travel consultations are scheduled by appointment (X3770).
More urgent medical needs can be met on a walk-in basis. In addition,
Dr. Avery, from Orthopedic Associates in Portland, will be here Monday
mornings for Orthopedic consultations. Mona Alley, R.D./L.D., will be
coming to the Health Center every two weeks for Nutrition consultations.
And, O. J. Mayo, P.T./A.T.C., will remain available for on-campus Physical
Therapy referrals.
We are always eager to hear back from you about your needs
and concerns, and about how well (or not!) we seem to be meeting them.
Please feel free to contact any of us by email or phone, or stop by to
chat. We will also be starting up student advisory focus groups to address
these questions longitudinally.
And finally, there's my weekly column in this paper. It
has always been meant to provide a forum for discussion about any questions
and comments you may have, related to health care, public health, preventive
medicine, health policy, Health Center services, or any other issues involving
health or wellness. Please feel free to email me (jbenson@bowdoin.edu)
with any of these questions or comments. If published, your questions
and comments would be printed anonymously, but our discussion might benefit
the whole community.
Salud!