The Hammond Health Center, in all its glory, has generated way too many complaints, considering it’s in charge of Ithaca College students’ health. We thought that our spectacular Medicated Issue would be a perfect opportunity to address some of the biggest complaints and absurdities of the place.
We think that this, of all college services, should be the most responsible. However, far too many students have had misadventures and misdiagnoses there. Nurses avoid those they think are “too sick,” prescribe the wrong drugs and jump to dangerous conclusions.
First of all, its hours are beyond inconvenient. When students are forced to drive to Urgent Care because the health center isn’t open, it is a problem. It is even worse when those students end up satisfied because the Urgent Care is faster and cheaper. Especially when health center weekend appointments are only 1-3 p.m., and they advise students to call 911 when they are not available—which is often.
One student went to the health center when he thought he had the flu, and for fear of swine flu, a nurse backed away and avoided the student instead of the more helpful option of treating him.
Another student had a cold, and was prescribed what she thought was cold medicine. After she had trouble staying awake in class for a week, she went back to the health center only to find out that what they had given her was really vicodin. No other medical center would stand for this, and yet it goes on all too often at our health center.
The health center’s website reminds students “Your health is in your own two hands!” No, I’d rather my health be in the hands of professionals who know more about health than I do.
Ask girls on campus, and many will tell you that the health center has told them they were pregnant instead of a real diagnosis.
A Buzzsaw editor, who shall remain nameless, went to the health center for a strep test. They gave him a test, sent him on his way, and then never gave him the results. Thanks for infecting us all, health center.
The main problem with all of these mishaps is that this is a health center responsible for the well-being of IC students. Also, unlike most other doctor’s offices, the Hammond Health Center has the luxury of being able to exist indefinitely, even in spite of mass dissatisfaction with its services, while other medical centers can be avoided or closed down. Part of every student’s tuition goes towards maintaining this facility, thus, we deserve better than a place that prescribes us vicodin for colds.
-A Konerman/Giblin joint