Weight measurements no longer required to receive care at Student Health and Counseling Services

New “Decline to Weigh” policy and other recent body inclusivity initiatives seek to increase patient comfort during appointments and reduce weight stigma on campus

BY JADE BELL campus@theaggie.org

A patient satisfaction survey conducted by Student Health and Counseling Services (SHCS) during the summer of 2020 revealed that one of the main deterrents of students seeking out medical care at the SHCS facility was the required weight measurement at appointments. As a result, SHCS created and implemented of a new policy that allows students to decline being weighed if it is not necessary to their appointment purpose.

Shantille Connolly, a health promotion specialist at SHCS, explained the details and results of this survey. “We are tracking the number of people who have opted out of being weighed,” Connolly said. “So far, in this school year, 318 students declined to be weighed when they came in for an appointment. In fall quarter, we were using a card system [...], but now we changed it to where the MA just asks, ‘Would you like to be weighed

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today?’ And then the patient can say yes or no.”

Connolly said that in February, before the change was implemented, only around 15 students took advantage of the card to decline to be weighed. By comparison, when the new practice was implemented in March, 137 students declined to be weighed.

“It really shows that when you change the practices of an organization, it increases access and gives the patients more autonomy,” Connolly said.

Medically speaking, according to Connolly, it’s not always necessary to weigh a student if that’s not the main point of their appointment. However, she noted that in instances where an exact weight is necessary, it will now be recorded in a way that allows the patients to remain unaware of the number on the scale.

“Some medications are weightbased in order for them to effectively work, so we do have the option for a blind weight,” Connolly said. “[This] is where they turn their back toward the scale, so they don’t have to see the number. [The MA] would tell the patient that the medication they are in for is weight-based, so they need an accurate weight to prescribe the correct dosage.” variety of sizes available,” Connolly said. “Keep in mind that this was in 2020, so things have changed — they have changed their clothing vendors specifically to go with clothing vendors who have a wide variety of sizes. The bookstore is trying to be more intentional about that [...] as a result of the survey.” SHCS also received feedback from students in regards to how they felt in classroom spaces, in particular, how lecture hall seating affected their mental health and academic performance.

In addition to the measures being implemented by SHCS, Connolly said that similar steps are being taken across campus to “build and maintain a body-inclusive environment.” She attributed some of this to a response to student feedback collected via the free response survey that SHCS ran.

“We just did a pilot [program] in Olson Hall,” Connolly said via email. “We wanted to know how classroom seating that was not size-inclusive was negatively impacting students’ mental health. And we found that students were really anxious and stressed about coming to class because they couldn’t find seats that fit their body [and] couldn’t focus because they were in seats that were digging into their sides or they couldn’t position their laptop or iPad to take notes appropriately. So it impacted their academic performance and just overall sense of belonging.”

Connolly addressed these issues by sharing what campus policy updates are being made to better accommodate all bodies in classroom seating.

“We did update the campus policy — all new furniture that is purchased should be at least 400 pounds in weight capacity, 22 inches wide and armless whenever possible,” Connolly said. “That policy was enacted before the Teaching and Learning Complex was complete, so all the furniture in there complies with that policy.”

“I would tell myself that professors aren’t so scary and you should get used to going out of your comfort zone to talk to people,” Uchio said when asked what advice he would give to his freshman self.

Bella Masterson, a fourth-year psychology and human development double major, shared her regrets as well.

“I think what I regret is not making more connections and putting effort into meeting new people and trying new things,” Masterson said.

While Masterson was busy studying and gaining work and internship experience, she said she wished she had participated more socially and joined on-campus clubs.

“I think I tend to stick to what I know, but college is a great time to try new things because there are so many opportunities to do that,” Masterson said.

Recent college graduate Cate Sievers also wished she had gotten out of her comfort zone more.

“I definitely regret allowing fear and anxiety to hold me back for so long,” Sievers said. “Once I learned how to overcome those obstacles it felt like a whole new part of the world was available to me. I got to meet so many wonderful people and do things I never thought I’d be capable of doing.”

Sievers, who graduated last quarter with majors in sociology and communication, believes that college is all about embracing discomfort, something that took her a while to fully embrace.

“College is a time for major selfgrowth, and to really allow that to happen you need to really allow yourself to explore the unknown,” Sievers said.

When asked what advice they would give themselves as college freshmen, those interviewed unanimously agreed that not letting self-doubt get in the way of new experiences was the best way to conquer fears and limit regrets.

“Choose confidence and understand the power you have,” Masterson said. “It is easy to second guess yourself and what you are capable of, but that is only selling yourself short.”

Getting out of your comfort zone could be something as big as signing up for a student-led backpacking trip or as small as giving a friendly compliment to a fellow classmate.

Whatever it is, just don’t wait until you graduate to do it.