University of Wisconsin University Health Services is looking to expand its student services with a new after-hours nurse line that would allow students 24-7 access to medical advice on a wide range of health issues.

UHS Executive Director Sarah Van Orman said with the after-hours line, the office hopes to help students with health questions and issues that arise at times when the UHS office is closed.

She added UHS hopes to be able to provide students with access to medical advice 24 hours a day and seven days a week via a phone line.

“As healthcare providers, this is what we really should be doing,” Orman said.

Orman said UHS recommended the nurse line proposal to the Health Care Advisory Committee, which agreed there was a need on campus for such a service.

UHS reached out to Team Health, a company unaffiliated with UW, to staff the after-hours line with high-quality nurses. Orman said UHS staff members are required to either be paid for working on-call service hours, or they must have a certain amount of time off during the week. Upon researching the situation, Orman said UHS found it cheaper and more efficient to staff the after-hours line with an outside company rather than with UHS staff.

UHS Clinical Nurse Manager Cheryle Sickles said one of the many reasons UHS wanted to introduce an after-hours line with greater coverage was because staff members knew having only their own staff positions on call limited services to students.

With the after-hours line, Sickles said UHS now provides expanded services for students for a longer period of time during the week.

“A lot of students stay up later than 9 p.m., and their lives don’t start winding down until later,” she said.

Sickles said UHS expects to help students decide if they need to be seen immediately in the emergency room or if their symptoms are less serious and can be dealt with at home.

The after-hours line will provide on-call services 24 hours a day and seven days a week any time the UHS office is closed, including nights, weekends and holidays, Orman said.

A previous on-call program utilized by UHS did not meet students’ needs after 9 p.m. during the week and had limited hours on the weekend as well, according to Orman.

“Things come up and we want students to have access to good information and medical advice when they need it,” Orman said.

Orman said some common questions students can expect help with via the new line range from injuries and illnesses to even urinary tract infections.

Regarding injuries, Orman said students who are injured and are unsure of the seriousness of their injury can contact on-call nurses on the line to determine whether a trip to the emergency room or other urgent care facility is necessary.

Sickles said the organization understands student life is geared around academics. She added that students who are away from home for the first time may not be sure how to take care of symptoms that arise.

Orman also said UHS provides mental health coverage at all hours of the day, seven days a week.

“We’ve always provided mental health coverage,” Orman said. “Part of the idea was that we could provide medical or mental health questions all of the time.”