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| Telephone Advice Nurse administers round-the-clock care
By Andy Elder, Student Affairs Writer Picture this. You're a new student at University Park. A freshman, maybe. Your stomach's been upset all day but you shrug it off. Maybe it was that General Tso's Chicken you had for lunch. Or, maybe it was nerves over that PoliSci test you took that afternoon. You head home after classes, crash on the couch, watch a little TV and hit the sack early. Maybe after a good night's sleep you'll feel better. Suddenly it's 1 a.m. and you're in the bathroom throwing up. A lot. You're so dizzy you don't know whether you'll be sick again or pass out first. You're more than a little concerned, even a bit scared. What do you do? The better question is: Who do you call? The best answer is: The University Healthy Services Advice Nurse at 863-4463. But, wait, it's 1 a.m.! Calm down, it doesn't matter. No matter what time of day or night, if you dial that number, someone will answer. And not an automated voice making your head spin even worse with 72 different options. No, a living, breathing, qualified nurse will answer your call. "We're really a triage," said Ellen Nagy, Marketing Manager for University Health Services. "We listen to symptoms, take a little background and help the student figure out the best course of action. Someone with experience will help the student sort out this new experience on their own." After briefly gathering some initial information, the telephone advice nurse elicits answers to three key questions:
"Sometimes, calling the advice nurse is another part of a student's educational process," Nagy said, especially if the answer meets the criteria for No. 3. "The nurses help students make their own choices with health care." If the proper response falls under Question 2, then a student can make an appointment from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays or Fridays, or from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays. What if the answer to Question 1 is: "Yes?" University Health Services can help with that, too. One of two University Health Services ambulances can be dispatched to transport a student who lives on campus to Mount Nittany Medical Center, which is mere minutes away from campus. If the student lives off campus, or if both ambulances are on a call during a call from on campus, a community ambulance service is summoned. "Our ambulance service is staffed by some professionals and some students, but all of the staff has had extensive training. About 24 students and 15 to 20 volunteer emergency medical technicians (EMTs) are in our training program," Nagy said. "Anyone on campus who is injured or ill can dial 911 and our ambulance responds, whether it's a student, staff or faculty member or a visitor." The after-hours advice nurse receives between 200 and 250 calls a month, Nagy said. During regular business hours, the advice nurses receive hundreds of calls a day. While any call to the advice nurse is free and confidential, the ambulance service charges a fee. "We do urge students to make calls about routine problems during the day, when we're better staffed," Nagy said. "We would like students to reserve evening calls for more critical issues and questions."
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Updated January 12, 2006