While a majority of the illnesses suffered by college students are not life-threatening and will not result in a trip to the emergency room, a host of aches, pains and sniffles will leave most students feeling less than their best at some point during the school year.
For UB students who do not wish to go off-campus, the only place to seek medical attention is at UB's health service center, Michael Hall, located on South campus.
According to students who live on North campus, being forced to travel between campuses in times of illness is more than an inconvenience.
"I can not imagine traveling down to South campus while being seriously ill," said Brandon Cygielman, a sophomore business major.
Jeffrey Martinko, a junior communication major said he can easily fathom this type of situation.
"I remember when I was a freshman, I was so sick, I did not even want to go to South campus and I became even sicker on the bus," said Martinko.
Students like Martinko believe that medical facilities should be available on both campuses in order to best serve the entire student population.
"I think there should be something on North campus, not as big as Michael Hall but something," said Martinko. "It is not fair."
According to Paul Diebold, coordinator of medical records and customer service for Student Health, administrators are working on ways to get medical facilities to North campus.
"We are trying to launch a possible after-hours clinic (on North campus)," he said.
For now, on occasion there are rooms set up in the Union with medical providers who offer basic physicals, Diebold said.
While students look to the long-awaited completion of the Lee Road Project to furnish the university with more residence buildings as well as a shopping district, students hoping for medical facilities on North campus will also be appeased when the project is completed.
"(A) Plan is for Health Service to move to North campus as part of the Lee Road Project," stated Dennis Black, vice president of Student Affairs, via e-mail.
Some students said they do not believe there is an urgent need for a health service center on North campus.
"It is unfair for a medical center to be on North," said Yuri Almonte, a junior health and human services major who lives on South campus. "North campus already has all the facilities, plus it is too complicated to have two health facilities."
Mercedes Cepeda, a senior health and human services major living on South campus, said the distance between campuses makes for an inconvenience that seems insurmountable to a student that is not feeling well.
"I definitely think they should have a (medical) facility on North campus because of transportation; when you are sick you do not want to get on a bus," said Cepeda.
If a student's needs are severe enough to warrant assistance in arriving at medical facilities, some might think this constitutes an emergency. According to Black, there are services to deal with such serious illnesses.
"Public Safety handles emergency response on North campus when called," stated Black. "They can assess and refer for treatment or call for an ambulance as needed."
Follow-ups and "preventative care" will take place on South campus, added Black.
Even with emergency transportation and care provided by Public Safety on North campus, according to Diebold, some students feel that is not enough, as he noticed during the move-in weekend this past August.
"Parents came in (to Michael Hall) to check out the facility and expressed concern," said Diebold.
According to Diebold, parents said they would prefer to have a health service center on North campus. Diebold said from his own observation that the majority of students who visit health services are from North campus residence halls and apartments.
Michael Brook, a sophomore aerospace engineering major, said he does not see the distance between campuses as an obstacle in receiving medical care when necessary.
"I have not been sick yet so having a medical facility is not a problem, and if I do get sick, it is still not a problem because I have a car," he said.
For those who are not so fortunate, administrators said the need is recognized and a resolution may be on its way.
"Perhaps way down the road there will be a medical facility on North Campus," said Diebold.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
