Photo illustration by Courtney Smith/Arizona Daily Wildcat A record number of students have looked to Campus Health to provide medical care so far this semester. Campus Health provides a wide variety of services that can all be applied to Campus Care, the university's open enrollment health care plan.

From health insurance to counseling to yoga, parents can be assured Campus Health Service offers many different health options to suit their child's needs.

The spectrum of student ailments varies from students coming in with urgent conditions like broken bones or the flu to other individuals who need check-ups or mental assessments, said Kris Kreutz, director of administrative services at Campus Health.

Campus Health - located by Highland Commons at 1224 E. Lowell St. - offers many medical services including sports medicine, women's health and immunizations, to name a few, Kreutz said.

Campus Health also offers specialty services for students who want specific care, including orthopedic doctors and on-hand dermatologists, said Lori Piper, insurance manager for Campus Health.

In addition to health care, the facility offers two different types of insurance plans that parents and students can choose from: an all-encompassing insurance plan and Campus Care, a plan for students who already have insurance but may live out of state, Piper said.

Campus Care is a pre-paid health care option limited to services provided by Campus Health. The rate is $60 per semester, Piper said.

Campus Care is ideal for out-of-state students and students who cannot afford health insurance. The option covers a co-payment for services, and if further services are required, students will be referred to outside providers, Piper said.

The other option is a student health insurance plan available through United Healthcare, which offers in- and out-of-network benefits for students, Piper said.

The enrollment period for both plans begins upon class registration and ends the 14th day after the official start of classes, according to the Campus Health Web site.

The Campus Health Pharmacy also offers discounts on certain medications for students on an associated campus plan or to students on their own health insurance, Piper said.

Being a student is not easy, especially at at university, and you can obtain your services on campus without having to leave. - Lori Piper, insurance manager

"Because our clientele is the student body, we get discounted rates to pass on to our students," Piper said.

Piper said Campus Health is convenient because it's on campus, and students are usually seen the same day through the triage system, which allows a student to speak to a nurse and schedule an appointment either that day or sometime soon.

"Being a student is not easy, especially at a university, and you can obtain your services on campus without having to leave," Piper said.

Other services students can receive from Campus Health include Counseling and Psychological Services, which provides counseling and other forms of help to students who just need someone to talk to or want group therapy.

Students may face stressful situations at the university, like breakups or the stresses of school, and CAPS is a service available to students who want long-term or even short-term therapy, Kreutz said.

Yoga, meditation, acupuncture and T'ai Chi Ch'uan are other services available for students looking to benefit their mental health, according to the Web site.

Campus Health also offers Health Preventative Services, a group that works with students on everything from surveying students about health and wellness to working with Greek Life and residence halls to help students manage living a healthy lifestyle on campus, Kreutz said.

According to a study conducted in the spring of 2005, students are generally pleased with the services Campus Health offers, with 86 percent of students rating their satisfaction with Campus Health at an 8.6 out of a possible 10.

In the same survey, 98.9 percent of students said they would recommend Campus Health to a friend.

Students were also asked if the availability of Campus Health decreased the number of classes they missed, and 61 percent said yes.

Forty-six percent of students also said CAPS made it more likely for them to stay at the UA, rather than leaving to get their education elsewhere, according to the survey.

Terri West, administrative assistant for Campus Health, said the survey is a good indicator of how students feel about the facility.

West said this year Campus Health "started out with a bang," and she thinks the convenient location has been part of that.