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The Miami
HURRICANE Vol. 93, Issue 12 | Oct. 6 - Oct. 8, 2014
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STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI IN CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA, SINCE 1929
Understaffing prompts policy changes BY ERIKA GLASS MANAGING EDITOR
As midterm season begins, more students seek ways to cope with the stress of exams. Some turn to the Counseling Center for support. But starting this year, the Center will implement changes that will affect how students will be able to seek help. The changes include swapping the visitor walk-in process with a triage model and setting a 15-visit limit per student per academic year. In the last few years, the total number of attended sessions increased from 5,438 in 2010-2011 to 9,083 in 2013-2014. Counseling Center Direc-
tor Ernesto Escoto attributes this to the increasing stress in our society. “The amount of stress that our students are experiencing coming to campus, and not only to do well but also to gain the skills necessary to enter the workforce, is very high,” he said. “And as you can tell from our data, anxiety is our number one concern.” However, the decision to limit student visits to 15 is not arbitrary. According to Escoto, the Center works in a short-term scope. This means that their services are based on follow-up appointments that they schedule every other week, meaning that a student could then have up to eight scheduled visits per semester. “We can say, you know, you only get 15 sessions per academic year, and really you need that many sessions in the period of two months or three
months, and that certainly is not something that we would be able to sustain,” Escoto said. This is not a firm limit, however, as the Counseling Center will still see those who have exceeded their limit and require additional help. Still, according to Escoto, students only visit the center an average of five to six times per academic year. “So, in fact, that number is significantly above the average number of sessions that a students sees us,” Escoto said. “Having said that, there is some flexibility if a student needs to be seen for an additional two to three sessions just to make sure that they get adequate care, we will certainly consider that service.” To some, like junior Alyssa Zirkman, these changes do not sit well, particularly the 15-visit limit. She said the changes are “ridiculous.” SEE COUNSELING, PAGE 4