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UWRF Student Health and Counseling Services team
The staff in the UW-River Falls Student Health and Counseling Services Office is being recognized this week by the Pierce County Public Health Department for their work meeting university students’ health needs. Submitted photo.
 

Meeting many needs: Student Health and Counseling Services Office recognized for its efforts


Team members among five honored by Pierce County Public Health Department


April 6, 2023 - When University of Wisconsin-River Falls students need help in a variety of forms, the university’s Student Health and Counseling Services (SHCS) is there to meet their needs. 

From mental health counseling to reproductive health to wellness classes and more, SHCS staff finds ways to assist students in need of assistance. To recognize those efforts, the Pierce County Public Health Department is recognizing UWRF’s SHCS staff this week as part of the department’s Public Health Heroes campaign. 

The SHCS team is one of five entities being honored this week as Public Health Heroes. The efforts of SHCS team members will be honored on the health department’s Facebook page on Friday, April 7.

Pierce County Public Health Director AZ Snyder praised the UWRF SHCS team for its longtime dedication to promote the health of the university's students. The team’s efforts during the coronavirus pandemic were especially notable, Snyder said.

“UWRF Student Health and Counseling staff went above and beyond during the pandemic to work with Pierce County Public Health to ensure students and staff had access to COVID-19 vaccines and testing,” she said. “Many of the (SHCS) team volunteered to work during on-campus vaccine clinics to augment public health's capacity."

Others being recognized for their work to improve public health include Alyson Sauter, community impact director for United Way St. Croix Valley; Dianne H-Robinson, a retired Pierce County Public Health Department nurse; Mercedes Falk, director of the nonprofit organization Puentes/Bridges; and Pierce Pepin Cooperative Services, an energy services co-op in Ellsworth. 

SHCS team members were humble about the recognition, saying they strive to do their job the best they can to meet students’ needs. Doing so during the pandemic was especially challenging, they said, but the students they work with motivate them.

SHCS Director Debra Janis praised her staff’s ability to meet students’ needs amid the numerous challenges the pandemic posed. Seeing their hard work be recognized is heartening, she said. 

“I’m so proud of this team,” Janis said. “They are such a wonderful group of professionals who work very hard to provide students with the best possible services.”

During the pandemic, SHCS staff worked diligently to keep connected with students who needed their assistance, said Sonja Johnson, SHSC office manager. Oftentimes that meant devising creative ways to reach students and meet their needs when they couldn’t be on campus, she said. 

“The office worked together to meet the need by building community, thinking of other ways of connecting with students, such as health apps, virtual telehealth appointments, and care kits for students in isolation,” Johnson said. 

SHCS staff has continued its work since the pandemic, as students continue to struggle with increased anxiety, depression and other stresses. 

“Our office is very busy. A typical day can be filled with back-to-back counseling appointments, group events, health promotional activities, and occasionally a crisis,” Janis said. “To keep things running smoothly requires a great team with a common goal of student success.”

When asked why they think their office has success working with students, SHCS staff members offered a seemingly simple yet meaningful answer. 

“I think students sense that our care for them is genuine,” Johnson said. 

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