DE Asst. News Editor

WARNING:Calling Health Service for an appointment may be hazardous to your health.

It certainly would have been bad for my health if I had believed what they told me. My story is a simple one. It does not involve malpractice. However, I do believe it involves unprofessional behavior and a genuine disregard for my well-being, not on the part of the staff in general, but on the part of the nurse I talked to when I called for an appointment. This person’s behavior could have seriously damaged my health. And she probably doesn’t even realize it.

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I had bronchitis and needed medication. Having been to Health Service before, I knew the routine. You call very early in the morning to make an appointment, which you must keep. Once you show up for the appointment, you are examined, given an inexpensive prescription for your illness and sent on your way on a timely basis. The key is making an appointment or so I thought.

I called for an appointment at about 7:50 a.m., 20 minutes after Health Service opened. Because I could not afford to miss any of my classes that day, I asked for an appointment in the later half of the afternoon. I was told that there were no appointments available during that time, and that I could not make an appointment for the next day appointments are made on a same-day basis only, the nurse said. I told this registered nurse I had bronchitis, an infection she should have realized can get dramatically worse if allowed to go untreated. Still, I was refused an appointment and the nurse suggested I try calling earlier in the morning next time.

As she was talking, I could feel the pain in my throat growing worse, and I realized that my infection would probably worsen by the time it was treated the next day. I did not know what else to do I seriously could NOT miss class that day. My frustration got the better of me and after a few choice words, I hung up on the woman.

I then headed to my first class, frustrated and scared that I would get so sick that I would have to miss work, which I rely on to pay my rent each month, feed myself and pay any other bills life may throw my way. It seemed to me that this was a drastic situation that required drastic action.

So, after all of my classes, I headed straight for Health Service without an appointment. I arrived at 3 p.m. and then proceeded to the appointments desk. I explained that I had bronchitis and needed to be seen that day before the infection worsened. After some sighs and groans, the nurse informed me that there were no openings that day, but that she could make an appointment for first thing the next day. Remembering I had been told earlier that this was not possible, I decided to accept the appointment as an unsavory compromise.

Then, as I was giving the woman my information, something miraculous happened. Without talking to a soul, the nurse suddenly became aware of a cancellation in the Urgent Care appointment book and handed me an authorization to see a nurse within 15 minutes. She informed me that next time, I should call for an appointment. Indicating I had learned my lesson, I headed to the waiting room.

As I was waiting to be seen, I witnessed five more miracles. Five other students showed up without appointments, were directed to the appointments department and were granted appointments to be seen that day. That’s a lot of cancellations. Either that or they use a different system than the one they tell us about. That is, if they have a system.

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The story has a happy ending. By 4 p.m., I had seen a very friendly and professional nurse who wrote out a prescription for some antibiotics. I was quickly signed out, and I picked up my medication without a hitch. And yes, I am feeling much better no thanks to the appointment lady.

What can be learned from my experience? I think there are two gems of advice I can give.

First, to any sick student who is denied an appointment:Don’t believe it. Go anyway, and demand they see you. They will find a way to fit you in. Your health is not something that should wait.

Second, to Health Service:Find a better way of doing things. If I had been a little more naive, I could have gotten much sicker waiting for you to get your act together.

And one final word to the nurse I talked to over the phone:Brush up on your people skills and pay attention to what your patients tell you. My case is not one that should have waited another 24 hours. You should have done your best to get me in. That, quite obviously, is not what you did.