Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic this fall will be a huge challenge for college health centers, many of which have a history of care delays or deficiencies, according to an investigative report by The Washington Post.
For the report, Post reporters interviewed more than 200 students, parents and health officials regarding student health services at nearly 1,700 four-year college campuses. They also examined thousands of pages of medical records and court documents, along with 5,500 online reviews of student health centers.
About 220 collegiate medical clinics of the thousands nationwide are accredited by outside health organizations for safety and quality, the Post found.
Students commonly reported waiting days or weeks to get appointments at their student health centers. Dozens also required hospitalization due to medical errors, including misdiagnoses made by clinicians at campus clinics. In one instance, a nurse practitioner misdiagnosed a student's meningitis infection during two separate student health visits at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
University spokesperson Rebecca Morrison said the school "communicated fully" with the student and her family in 2016, but declined to comment further, citing privacy laws.
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