Putting the care in health care: What NGU clinic is and may become
Samantha Martin, Staff Writer
North Greenville University has made many changes in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. One such effort is the revival of the NGU Clinic.
Currently staffed by RN/CPN Helen Neely and Nurse Practitioner Eunice Parajon who was contracted through St. Francis, Physician Services, an offshoot of the Bon Secours health system.
The clinic has played an important role in the NGU Strong initiative the school has taken to work with students, staff and faculty in order to protect everyone in this time of uncertainty.
“I kind of jumped into the middle of it [COVID-19], so I don’t know what NGU was like without it,” said Neely.
For those that may be anxious about visiting the clinic, hopefully their minds will be eased by the screenings that take place before each visit.
“So we do the COVID screening questions; we check everyone’s temperature before they come into the building. And if someone calls me for an appointment, and I ask them their symptoms, if they have two or more symptoms on the list of COVID symptoms, then we refer them to go get tested,” said Neely.
The care from the campus clinic does their best to ensure students receive the COVID care most suited for them.
“I’ll actually give a plug to the Pelham Medical Center, on [Highway] 14; they have a free drive in center, and that’s where we’re sending everyone just because they don’t have to pay a copay for a visit or anything. It’s totally free and they’re resulting in like 24 hours,” said Neely.
She wants NGU students to have the easiest access to a place that is not going to cost anything. Also, getting results back in 24 hours helps the clinic to get students plugged into a care circle where they can figure out if they’re going to isolate on campus or off campus.
Courtesy of NGU Strong page, screenshot taken by Samantha Martin.
Even though COVID and the NGU Strong initiative was a big part of the need to open the clinic, it is not the only reason students see this campus staple revived.
“So we reawakened the clinic because we knew coming into this semester we were going to really need some assistance, but the intention of this is not just a COVID response,” said Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement, Jared Thomas.
Thomas continues, “It [COVID-19] provided an opportunity and a good time to bring the clinic back. It was never the intention to have the clinic completely closed forever. It was facility issues and just a myriad of issues that led to that.”
When it comes to keeping numbers low on campus, everyone following policies can take credit there, but the clinic has been a key help in a different way.
Courtesy of NGU Strong page, screenshot taken by Samantha Martin.
“I would like to say that the main factor [in keeping numbers low] is students following the policies, and overall, students have done a good job. Where it has helped is the management of cases and medical needs when they do arise,” said Thomas.
The clinic has been keeping the wellness of students on campus a priority, and someday, it could look quite different with a larger staff and wider variety of services.
NGU now has the medical clinic and counselors there, and they are working towards an area of student health that is more holistic, hoping to expand those services time goes on.
“Hopefully in the next couple of years, we’re going to see more growth and even more added employment, different forms and services out of that,” said Thomas.
