OPINION: Counseling Services: Committed to supporting students

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For the past six years, my main responsibility has been to work with students in a variety of personally challenging situations. I have been directly overseeing Counseling Services for the last two years. I know firsthand that the demand for support via our therapists has hit an all time high this year. 

In recent years, we have grown the Counseling Services staff from only three full time counselors to two full time psychologists, two full time counselors, three doctoral interns and a part-time psychiatrist. Many students would not have been able to stay at DePauw in the past because the level of care they needed exceeded the scope of our services. 

The average time elapsed between when a student calls for an initial appointment and the date of the intake appointment is approximately seven calendar days, and most students are seen within 14 days, or two weeks. Factors that may contribute to the wait time extending beyond two weeks is when a student requests a specific therapist--regardless of that potentially meaning a longer wait time, appointment availability that does not match with a student’s availability and peak times of need. 

One thing that has impacted availability of appointments at Counseling Services this year is the significant number of students who “no show”, i.e. have not cancelled in advance, increasing by 49 percent from fall 2014 to fall 2015. Students are sent email reminders the business day before their appointment, if they have opted-in to receive appointment reminders. Many students call in advance to cancel their appointments. The number of students who cancelled their appointment increased by 220 percent from fall 2014 to fall 2015.

We are fortunate to be able to provide access to a psychiatrist for DePauw students. Most institutions our size are not able to provide psychiatry. We do so at no additional charge to the student, which is very unique; most college counseling centers with psychiatry charge a fee for those services. But as need increased for psychiatry, up 68 percent from fall 2014 to fall 2015, combined with the large numbers of missed appointments without prior cancellation, we needed to do something. Students are only charged for missed appointments if they do not cancel in advance. This practice is the same as what you would find a most healthcare provider’s offices. A missed appointment does a disservice to the student-patient because he or she is not getting the care needed and prevents a student who needs an appointment from having access. 

Ultimately, our Counseling Services staff does their best to meet the needs of students. They work with the Wellness Advocates to do preventative education and self-care programs. They run group therapy sessions on a variety of topics. They respond to emergency consultations at all hours of the day. Their job is to take care of students who may be in the worst place they have been in their lives. They care. 

We are committed to reviewing feedback, identifying ways to alleviate the strain on services and seeking additional input from students about their experiences with Counseling Services. 

I welcome you to read more about the DePauw Counseling Services at http://www.depauw.edu/studentlife/wellness/counseling-services/.

There is no online scheduling system, as The DePauw indicated. Only Health Services, provided by Hendricks Regional Health, uses online scheduling.

-Sutherlin is Assistant Dean of Students at DePauw University.