by Bridget M. Rohrer
Editorial Assistant
ULV’s Health Center is under new management this year. After Dr. May Mandalawi left last spring, Dr. Victoria Shook took over as the school’s physician and has set new goals for the Center.
Shook and her two physician assistants, Tony Marino and Lane Brewer, also work at the Urgent Care office in Montclair, which is affiliated with Pomona Valley Community Hospital.
Dr. Shook and her assistants offer a wide range of services to their patients. Brewer explained how the Urgent Care differs from other clinics in that they are a well-established clinic that has the ability to refer patients to a number of other doctors when needed. The students who visit the ULV Health Center, located at Second and “E” streets, are offered these same benefits.
“Our goal is to be accessible to the students at La Verne. We want to get the students in [the Center] who need our services,” said Dr. Shook.
“We are education-oriented and use the patient’s appointments to help them understand their bodies better,” said Brewer. “If I can throw out one fact that is not related to the patient’s visit, then I’m happy.”
Medical services are important to everyone and Dr. Shook explained how surprised she was by the students needs. She didn’t believe that students could have such a wide array of health problems.
“I assumed we’d be treating students for the common things such as colds and birth control, but we are finding that the problems are more severe,” said Dr. Shook. “Such things as high blood pressure and diabetes are being treated here.”
She explained that students tend to ignore the problems they are experiencing and that stress can be a key factor in a patient’s health. Students have a lot of responsibilities and when the stress becomes overwhelming, Dr. Shook said it can affect their health.
“We’re working closely with the Counseling Center because a lot of the students can benefit from them and it could improve their health,” said Brewer.
“Taking over at the Health Center has worked out quite well,” said Dr. Shook.
“We’re having a great time,” said Brewer. “It’s nice having patients from a different background and different age group.”
The Health Center’s hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 8 a.m. to noon on Fridays. When students are unable to be treated at the Health Center, they can visit Dr. Shook and her assistants at Central Ave Urgent Care.
Bridget M. Rohrer
