Starting today, the Student Health Center will no longer accept walk-in patients.

“We’re changing the way we’re doing appointments and handling walk-ins in order to see more students in the time we have and improve continuity of care,” said Brian Dunn, interim supervisor in Prevention, Education and Outreach for Student Health.

The new appointment policy will replace the old system where students could walk in and wait anywhere from half an hour to three hours to see a doctor, Dunn said.

“If someone decides to walk in, they won’t be able to wait for a physician,” Dunn said. Instead, students will see a nurse right away to assess their condition and either set up a same-day or next-day appointment.

There will also be one doctor designated as the urgent-care physician who will handle all immediate-care responsibilities.

Dr. Mark Shulman, acting chief of staff for the Student Health Center, said the new appointment system is designed to treat the patients most in need of care first.

“What we’re hoping to see is the sickest patients first,” Shulman said. “We don’t want to let someone who’s extremely sick fall through the cracks.”

Shulman said with all patients making appointments, they will be able to see the same doctor each time they come in, which will improve relationships and ultimately provide better patient care.

“Hopefully, we’ll be more familiar with our patients,” Shulman said. “Most patients feel more comfortable seeing the same doctor.”

Sarah Cooney, supervisor of Nursing Services, said the new system will allow for more appointments to open up during the day.

“It’s a trial; we just want to take a look and see if we can improve things. We want to make sure students can get in and out as quickly as possible,” Cooney said.

The idea for the new appointment system was created out of frequent complaints from students about the wait time to see a doctor, Cooney said.

She also said before making the decision about how to set up the new system, officials from Student Health visited health centers at the University of Iowa and Drake University.

Depending on how the trial goes, an additional nurse might be hired next fall, Cooney said.

The no-wait policy is unique to the city. “It’s a service not provided anywhere else in Ames,” Cooney said.

Shulman also has high hopes for the new policy.

“I think [the new system] gives you much better care, and it is our hope that students bear with us while we make this transition,” he said.