One of the biggest shocks when I moved to Victoria back in July was realizing how hard it is to find a family doctor.
Locals told me it’s easier to just stick to walk-in clinics, but I wanted to get around that when I registered at Camosun: I was hoping the college had an on-campus doctor. My hopes were quickly crushed when I asked around and found that there’s no doctor here. I was shocked.
Why is it impossible for students to find a doctor? Not that I don’t think sexual and dental health aren’t important—they are both essential parts of our health—but you would think there would be a general health doctor on campus before having these services here.
It’s time to question this. Can’t students agree that it’s a pain to wake up super early on your day off or hours before class starts to wait for hours in a walk-in clinic? That’s if you have time to sit and wait—most students need to work on their days off of school to keep up with bills and payments; taking an entire day off to wait in a walk-in clinic can be extremely pricey for some people.
So why aren’t students here pushing for a doctor? The last thing students want is to stress about getting their prescription refilled before it runs out, or about having a nasty cough for a few weeks that doesn’t seem to be leaving. UVic has a clinic on its campus (it even offers flu shots and deals for students on sports teams). Plus, do classrooms even come equipped with first-aid kits anymore? Teachers aren’t required to know first aid; what if a student cuts themself really badly and they need medical attention? Or, worse yet, what if a student has a cardiac arrest in the middle of a hallway? Sure, there’s a first-aid room, but does anyone know where it is, or what the number to dial for it is? (Spoiler: no.)
There’s a hospital about five minutes from the Lansdowne campus, yes, but the ER wait is atrocious. So with the ER backed up as well, either way, you’re waiting for hours for medical attention.
Camosun College, this isn’t okay. Students shouldn’t have to worry about their health and be putting aside the massive amounts of time that walk-in clinics involve when they’re already busy with classes or work.
I believe there should be a push for a doctor at Camosun, and I believe this should be mandatory for all campuses.
It would only make sense to have a doctor here. Students are given health benefits, after all—shouldn’t we be able to use them?