By Amy Briggs
The ANU and The University of Canberra (UC) both provide students with health and wellbeing services. But what are the differences between these services? Observer compared the offerings at both campuses in order to determine whether students at Canberra’s other major University are getting a better deal on health care.
Counselling services
Both universities offer free counselling services through the UC Medical and Counselling Centre and the ANU Counselling Centre that are only accessible to their enrolled students. Wait times for either centre are not provided on their respective websites, listing a number of alternatives for students to seek out while waiting for appointments.
Medical services
ANU students are able to access health services through the ANU Medical Centre during normal business hours through HotDoc. Services are bulk-billed through Medicare for domestic students and through OSHC providers for international students.
Different practitioners will see ANU students exclusively or students and staff. All services are only available to ANU affiliates. Medical services include standard consultations, urgent appointments, STI testing and treatment, women’s health services, vaccinations and facilities for ECG and Audiometry assessments.
There is also a campus nurse that is accessible through the dedicated email account [email protected] for free consultation.
Conversely, UC students are able to access health care from a range of service providers on campus through the UC Medical and Counselling Centre and the UC Health Clinics.
For UC students accessing the Medical and Counselling Centre, consultations are bulk billed through Medicare (with international students again being able to access healthcare through OSHC providers). Practitioners are also available to the general public at a range of rates through Hotdoc. The Medical Centre additionally provides free condoms and sanitary products for students among their standard consultations, emergency treatment, pathology services and women’s health services.
UC students have a wider range of services available to them through the UC Health Clinics where specialist services are available, from optometry and physiotherapy to nutrition and dietetics. These services are available to both students and the public at a subsidized rate as they are used for teaching facilities.
Appointments to both medical centres can be made through Hotdoc, with the ANU Medical Centre having a no-show fee of $40 for a 15-minute consult and $80 for a 30-minute consult. For the UC Medical Clinic, there is a flat rate of $25 for missing a consult.
While both ANU and UC provide comprehensive health care services, Observer found that UC provides a further range of specialist services at a subsidized rate that both ANU and UC students have access to.
Graphics by Annisa Zatalini.
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