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Answers from Dr. David Lawrance, Medical Director


What happens if child is sick?

If a student is sick and they want to see us, we want to see them. There are a number of ways to make those arrangements:

They can call the dial-a-nurse for advice and assistance. Sometimes self-care is all a person wants. Though the after-midnight/Sunday dial-a-nurse cannot make them an appointment, all the other dial-a-nurses working the rest of the day can do that for them. We're very conservative on what we recommend for self-care and are probably going to recommend a vist if there are any doubts.

They can go to our web site and schedule their own appointment using the MyMcKinley web portal.

They can call for an appointment. If we're out of appointments for the day, we'll offer our acute care clinic where most patients are seen by order of arrival. On a good day, we can see almost everyone on an appointment.

They can even just walk in to McKinley, though we encourage calling first. We won't send anyone away.

What medical supplies are available?

Aside from the cold comfort over-the-counter medications, the health resource centers at McKinley and at the Illini Union offer wound care kits. When we see a patient and they will be needing dressing supplies, we'll supply those.

The pharmacy has free glucose meters for patients with diabetes if they have a presciption, and we'll also supply them with their needles and syringes for the $5 copayment. The medical clinics and the laboratory can exchange their sharps containers for empty ones.

When someone needs crutches or a cane, we'll loan them that. When we see somone for a twisted ankle or a wrist sprain, we'll get them their ACE wrap and if one would be useful, a brace. Such supplies would be given as part of a provider visit. We don't have a store or an office where someone can come in to pick them up.