General News
20 July, 2023
GP services on campus
CAMPERDOWN College students with health concerns now have access to a GP and a nurse through the Doctors in Secondary Schools (DISS) program.
CAMPERDOWN College students with health concerns now have access to a GP and a nurse through the Doctors in Secondary Schools (DISS) program.
The program is a Victorian Government initative to fund GPs attending 100 Victorian government schools to provide medical advice and healthcare to students.
The service is provided monthly with a GP and a nurse on campus.
Doctor Shalini Ahlawat said students approach the clinic with any issues they may have, including physical, mental and sexual health issues.
“It started because there is not great access to healthcare in rural communities,” she said.
“The first most important thing is their focus and concentration; if that is related to a mental health issue that the child is suffering, they won’t be able to focus on their studies and eventually won’t do well at school.
“To improve outcomes of their education as well, it is important that their mental health is good too.
“We always say that good health is not just physical health; it is physical, mental and social health all together.
“This is what I feel is important in terms of their outcomes in later life and their education outcomes.”
Nurse Vivek Kumar said GPs and nurses in the program try to link students with local specialists when needed.
“In addition to this, the last few years have been really hard with online learning,” he said.
“There are students that can be anxious with having face-to-face learning or coming into school after all that time in isolation.
“It is natural; people can be anxious, they can be depressed, and they might be afraid of coming into school.
“This is why mental health has become the most dominant factor in today’s world, not just in school.”