UT Health San Antonio to provide student health services at UTSA
UT Health San Antonio is expanding its recently announced partnership with UTSA to include an integrated college health plan for students aligned with current national best practices.
UTSA and UT Health San Antonio first announced the formation of a comprehensive, inter-institutional partnership to advance their shared goal of creating a healthier society in April. For the initial step, UT Health San Antonio became the official health care provider for UTSA Athletics, offering student-athletes access to UT Health San Antonio’s distinguished physicians and clinicians for primary care; for orthopaedics, physical therapy and other specialties; and for imaging and surgical services.
UT Health San Antonio will build a major community outpatient center on UTSA’s Park West Campus that will ultimately support the sports medicine program for UTSA student-athletes and has the potential to provide future collaborative opportunities in academics, research and health care delivery.
In the new agreement, announced June 1, UT Health San Antonio will provide clinical services for students that include primary care, women’s health and behavioral health services through the School of Nursing’s Wellness 360 clinical practice.
The agreement broadens the services currently offered through UTSA’s Student Health Services and opens the door for future health services for UTSA faculty and staff.
“UT Health San Antonio Wellness 360 is proud to expand our strategic partnership with UTSA in support of the university’s wellbeing initiative and as part of our commitment to maintain and promote the health of college students in Bexar County,” said Eileen T. Breslin, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean of the School of Nursing. “Our team of clinicians offer a holistic approach to taking care of students’ health and wellness, and we are ready and excited to join with UTSA in this endeavor.”
The integration will begin Aug. 1, with a transition from services currently provided by UTSA’s Student Health Services to those provided by Wellness 360 that will include behavioral health, women’s health and additional treatment services and diagnostics.
Throughout the fall semester, UT Health San Antonio and UTSA Student Affairs will work to create a center of excellence for counseling services within the integrated college health model and determine the optimal structure of the integrated approach for counseling, crisis and advocacy services, including the engagement of current UTSA Counseling and Mental Health Services staff. Student Health Services and CMHS employees affected by the transition will be provided opportunities to apply for employment at UT Health San Antonio.
The School of Nursing launched a similar partnership with Alamo Colleges in October to provide virtual health care services to Alamo Colleges students. When COVID-19 restrictions lifted in May, the services expanded to in-person visits for all Alamo Colleges students on the Palo Alto College and San Antonio College campuses.