Clemson’s Redfern Health Center recently expanded a program that provides virtual appointments for various specialized fields. This is part of an effort to help students more easily access care that had not previously been offered.
“The virtual specialty clinic we started out with was launched on Nov. 8, 2021, and at this time, only rheumatology is available for virtual care. Our plan intends to offer virtual visits for endocrinology and neurology in the near future,” said George Clay, executive director of Student Health Services.
Rheumatologists study immune disorders like lupus and will be accessible through the new program. Endocrinology is the study of hormones and gland-related diseases, such as Type 1 diabetes, while neurology focuses on issues with the brain and nerves, including epilepsy and traumatic head injuries.
Redfern has been partnering with the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) since July 2019 to provide psychiatric and urgent care. They began offering tele-psychiatry in the fall of 2019 and opened virtual urgent care services in August 2020. Later, they expanded these services to all students from anywhere in South Carolina, including students at other Clemson campuses.
While Clemson’s partnership with MUSC is expected to grow over time, the clinical specialties available now are not the most requested specialties, according to Clay. However, he assured that it will make the process easier for many students.
To set up an appointment via telemedicine for a virtual visit, the Redfern provider will refer the patient to set up an appointment with a specialist, and then patients will be offered the choice of virtual or in-person appointments. If they chose a virtual visit, the request will be submitted to MUSC, who will contact the patient directly to schedule.
“Some complaints will still require an in-person visit, which will be scheduled with local specialist offices,” said Dr. Leslie Pekarek, medical director of Student Health Services. “For those needs that are deemed appropriate for telemedicine evaluations, the appointments can be scheduled to occur here in our office but with a specialist from MUSC via telemedicine.”
Without having to navigate around transportation challenges that could arise for underclassmen students and off-campus commuters, students will be able to receive immediate care from Clemson and MUSC staff, according to Pekarek.
This article appeared in The Tiger’s Nov. 18 print edition. It may differ in formatting or content due to space constraints.