Comprehensive Guide to Student Health and Wellness Services at UVA
The University of Virginia (UVA) is committed to supporting the holistic well-being of its students. Recognizing that growth extends beyond academics, UVA provides a wide array of health and wellness services designed to help students thrive both inside and outside the classroom. All students who have paid comprehensive tuition fees are eligible for medical and mental health care at UVA.
A New Era of Student Health: The Cutting-Edge Health and Wellness Center
The University of Virginia is planning a new cutting-edge student health and wellness center. To further enhance its commitment to student well-being, UVA is constructing a new, state-of-the-art Student Health and Wellness Center. The University of Virginia is planning a new cutting-edge student health and wellness center to be completed by 2020. This ambitious project reflects the university's dedication to providing comprehensive and accessible healthcare services to its growing student population.
Key Features of the New Center
- Size and Location: The four-story center will span 156,000 square feet and be located at the south end of Brandon Avenue.
- Comprehensive Services: The new building will house general medicine, gynecology, counseling and psychological services, student disability access services and health promotion.
- Funding: UVA’s $100 million center project is funded in part by an anonymous donor’s $40 million gift, and the university is raising the $30 million remaining.
- Amenities: Some deals are still being finalized but features include a radiology clinic, retail space for a pharmacy, decadent green spaces, lounge areas for students all throughout with a large student living room on the first floor.
- Focus on Prevention: The building mission is to provide preventative and wellness care.
- Additional Features: There will be a teaching kitchen, meditation areas, and a pleura of student-run activities.
Accessible Healthcare Services
All UVA students who pay mandatory fees with their tuition are eligible for no-cost visits with Medical Services providers at Student Health and Wellness. Student Health and Wellness provides services which support the health and well-being of University students. All sections within the Department collaborate to provide the best care possible for students and to achieve the Departmental mission, vision, and goals.
Confidentiality and Appointments
Confidentiality is strictly observed, consistent with applicable law. Students are encouraged to make an appointment for services. If there is an urgent medical need, a “triage” system will offer either same-day care or suggest a scheduled appointment. When Student Health and Wellness is closed, students with an urgent medical concern may call (434) 297-4261.
Comprehensive Services Offered
Student Health and Wellness encompasses a range of services designed to address the diverse needs of the student body.
Read also: Comprehensive Health Overview
Medical Services
Medical Services provides primary care services to students for acute and chronic health concerns. In addition to diagnosis and treatment of illness, clinicians emphasize health education, mental wellness, and disease prevention. Medical Services includes travel medicine services, STI screening, and immunizations. Medical Services can provide allergy injections for students prescribed immunotherapy by an outside allergist. Medical Services also offers treatment and consultation for nutrition, eating disorders, and gender affirming care.
Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)
Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) at Student Health and Wellness is the primary student mental health clinic on Grounds. CAPS is committed to providing a safe and affirming environment for all students seeking to improve their mental and emotional well-being. CAPS provides a range of mental health services, including psychological and psychiatric assessment, individual and group psychotherapy, 24/7 crisis consultation and intervention, referral assistance, and psychiatric medication management. Specialty areas include eating concerns, trauma, substance use and recovery services, biofeedback, art-based mental health interventions, and limited animal-assisted therapy. CAPS partners with TimelyCare, a national telehealth service.
Care and Support Services (CASS)
Care and Support Services (CASS) at Student Health and Wellness is a non-clinical resource available to help students build their support networks to effectively navigate a wide variety of experiences and challenges. CASS provides incident response and non-clinical support for students in a variety of behavioral and personal well-being contexts and also engages in general, nonacademic advising and troubleshooting of student issues and needs. CASS provides consultation, coaching, referrals, outreach and training, and resources for assisting students with their safety and well-being. CASS also manages programs and resources related to accessing emergency financial support and combating food insecurity, including a community food pantry. CASS members staff a 24/7 “CASS on Call” line to provide after-hours nonclinical triage and response to urgent student safety, well-being, and support needs. If students need to speak with someone regarding an urgent mental health concern, Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS) has providers available at (434) 243-5150. Students can also access TimelyCare’s “TalkNow” service to speak to a mental health professional in minutes, anytime. If students don’t have a medical or mental health concern, but need to speak to someone about an urgent matter after hours, Care and Support Services (CASS) provides 24-hour crisis management and incident response to all students via their on call program. CASS can assist students on many issues related to student support and well-being.
Well-being Services
Well-being Services at Student Health and Wellness, works in collaboration with the Teaching Kitchen, Art Room, and Functional Exercise teams, utilizing evidence-based practices to promote student success, personal health advocacy, and overall wellness. Well-being Services collaborates with students to develop the skills and knowledge essential for personal health advocacy and optimal well-being. Using evidence-based interventions, the department addresses college health challenges in addition to cultivating a healthier UVA community. Core initiatives include Prohealth social marketing campaigns, embedding well-being practices across grounds, interactive and health advocacy programs, and special events that promote harm reduction and overall community well-being.
Student Disability Access Center (SDAC)
The Student Disability Access Center (SDAC) coordinates disability-related accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. Examples of such accommodations include alternate text formats for course material, note-taking assistance, exam accommodations, support for assistive technology, American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting and other hearing services, housing arrangements, and other reasonable accommodations. All accommodation requests should be submitted in a timely manner, preferably at the beginning of the semester or upon onset of disability. All enrolled students are eligible to receive disability services as well as support through Care and Support Services.
Read also: Health Insurance for U of U Students
Fried Center
The Fried Center offers University students individualized, one-on-one fitness plans tailored to meet their unique health and wellness goals. The exercise programs prioritize the enhancement of natural biomechanics, fostering improved exercise tolerance post-injury and promoting lifelong wellness. Our 3,000-square-foot gym, fully equipped with cutting edge functional exercise equipment, cardio machines, dedicated treatment space, and a suspension track extending over 50 feet of turf, ensures a state-of-the-art on-site training experience at SHW.
UVA Student Health Pharmacy
The UVA Student Health Pharmacy offers retail prescriptions for patients. The pharmacist provides drug therapy review, patient education, drug information, and counseling for prescription and over-the-counter-medications in a private counseling area. The pharmacy has a selection of over-the-counter medications and healthcare products in the Atrium Apothecary.
Access and Transportation
The Elson Student Health Center is limited and is only for students who are visiting the pharmacy or receiving care. Parking is limited to two hours. Use of parking for any other purpose is considered a parking violation. Find shuttle stop locations. Elson Student Health is on the UTS Blue and Green Bus Lines.
Drug Take-Back Program
Don't throw away or flush your outdated or unwanted medication as it comes with potential risks. Instead, use the drug take-back program at UVA to safely dispose of your medications. The take-back bins are green metal boxes with a drawer at the top located in the pharmacy. Once the bin is full, pharmacy employees will remove the medications from the box and have them destroyed by an outside processor.
Payment Options
All UVA Pharmacies are not currently accepting cash or checks. Credit & debit cards are the only accepted payment method. However, you can still get your medicine if you only have cash. We’ll fill your prescriptions and discuss later billing and other payment options with you. At the UVA Student Health Pharmacy, patients can use the following to pay:
Read also: U of U Student Health Plan
- Credit or debit cards
- FSA or HSA cards
- Cavalier Advantage
The pharmacy uses most drug insurance plans. Families may also establish a secure credit card-based account for their student.
Additional Resources and Initiatives
The Gordie Center
The University of Virginia’s Gordie Center aims to end hazing and substance use/misuse among college and high school students nationwide. The Gordie Center empowers students to transform their campus and community cultures through peer education and bystander intervention using evidence-informed, student-tested resources.
Research at Student Health
Research in the Department is overseen by the Student Health Office of Research Excellence (SHORE), a group of research-minded team members tasked with overseeing clinical and epidemiological research within the confines of the Department in terms of access, appropriateness, and safety.
Financial Information
All other services within the Department are available to all registered students who have paid the comprehensive fee regardless of insurance coverage. Visits with professional staff do not incur a charge since they are included in the comprehensive health fee. However, there are charges for medications, laboratory tests, copies of student medical records, and supplies for certain treatments, immunizations, and allergy injections. The Department will only file insurance claims on behalf of students who are insured by the UVA Aetna Student Health Plan. Students with other health insurance plans will be billed directly for these charges via their student accounts and are responsible for filing their own insurance claims.
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