A team of professionals provides Deerfield students with comprehensive health care and counseling services at the D.S. Chen Health and Wellness Center. The health center is staffed by a full-time physician and nurse practitioner and by registered nurses who are on duty 24/7. With a 16-bed infirmary and a busy outpatient clinic, the Chen Center is well equipped to care for the majority of illnesses and injuries common to students. Our closest hospital is the Baystate Franklin Medical Center, a 93-bed community hospital with a medical staff of approximately 150 physicians, located five miles away in the town of Greenfield. Our tertiary care center and Level 1 trauma center, the 700+bed Baystate Medical Center, is in Springfield, MA, 30 miles away.
Appointments at the Chen Center are provided 24 hours per day by the nursing staff. Physician and Nurse Practitioner appointments can be scheduled Monday–Friday 8:30 am – 4:30 pm. Students may also walk-in anytime to be seen by a nurse who can address many common symptoms (i.e. seasonal allergies, headache, congestion, cough etc.) and arrange a timely follow up with the physician or nurse practitioner if needed. If a student needs to be seen urgently, they should come to the Chen Center or call 413-774-1600 to speak with a nurse. If a student feels they are experiencing an emergency, they should call Campus Security at 413-772-9880, who will assist the student and either contact emergency services directly or transport the student to the Health Center.
The Outpatient Clinic
The D.S. Chen Health and Wellness Center is a Massachusetts Department of Public Health-designated outpatient clinic. The health center is open and a nurse is on duty 24/7 while school is in session. If a student feels unwell or has any medical concerns, they can either call the Health Center at 413-774-1600 to schedule an appointment or drop in for a walk-in visit. If it is after curfew, they can call Campus Security (413-772-9880) to drive them over the Health Center to be evaluated.
Monday through Friday, 8:30 am—4:30 p.m., Dr. Benson and Ms. Soifer PNP have scheduled office hours to see students. After hours and on weekends, the nurse on duty assesses students with medical needs. If the student has an urgent medical issue, the nurse will discuss it with the physician or nurse practitioner on call.
Medical Excuses for Classes, Meals, or Other Required Events
Students who feel sick or are concerned they are becoming ill should call the Health Center to schedule an appointment or come to the Health Center for a walk-in appointment. A written medical excuse for class, meal or other required event may be provided by the nurse if the student was seen at the Health Center. The nurse will determine the appropriate parameters of the excuse (i.e., a late slip as opposed to being excused for the entire class period or entire day) based on the duration of the encounter. Medical excuses will only be provided for students who present to the Health Center and are evaluated by a nurse, physician or nurse practitioner. If a class is missed because the student is unwell and is resting/being evaluated at the Health Center, students are responsible for informing their teachers as soon as possible by email regarding their situation. If a student is being seen at the Health Center and too unwell to complete or submit a graded assignment, students must notify their teacher as soon as possible to discuss when said assignment(s) can be completed. Students who miss class due to illness will be instructed by health center staff regarding upcoming participation in cocurricular, classes, other campus obligations and whether they need to remain or return to the health center to convalesce.
Medical Excuses for Cocurricular Activities
Only a school nurse, nurse practitioner or physician may excuse sick or injured students from cocurricular activities. In such cases, students are expected to communicate with their cocurricular supervisors/coaches as soon as possible regarding their absence.
Overnight Infirmary Stays
Students stay overnight in the Health Center at an average rate of one night per student per year. Students are expected to call their parents or guardian when they are admitted for an overnight stay. If a parent or guardian has a question about their child’s admission, they may at any time call the nurse on duty to discuss.
Day Student Health Care
It is assumed that a day student will continue under the care of their local primary care provider; however, the Health Center is available for urgent medical issues. As with boarding students, day students are subject to the school’s health center policies and medical supervision when participating in sports or when illness or injury occurs at school.
Sexuality and Healthcare
Deerfield Academy feels that adolescent development includes issues of friendship, romantic attachment, and intimacy. While affirming young people’s needs to understand and express their sexuality, the school feels that intimate sexual contact is not appropriate within the context of school life. However, it is recognized that there will be occasions that necessitate counseling and care in specific areas relating to sexuality. The school addresses these concerns through academic and Health Services programs that provide necessary information for students to make responsible decisions.
With the full understanding that adolescents are legally free to obtain contraception, pregnancy testing, and counseling on their own from doctors and clinics in this area or home communities, the Health Center will offer these services in the hope that the student will instead choose to talk with those who know the student best and have their health and well-being as their foremost concern. Contraceptive counseling and pregnancy testing will be offered through the Health Center. These services are provided confidentially unless otherwise dictated per Massachusetts regulations.
The Counseling Center is located on the second floor of the D.S. Chen Health and Wellness Center. More information can be found here.
The Athletic Training Office is in the Athletic Center and is staffed by three full-time athletic trainers, who work with injured athletes. They coordinate a weekly Orthopedic/Sports Medicine Clinic staffed by a local orthopedic surgeon.
Consultation with a board-certified psychiatrist is offered through the Health and Wellness Center as part of our integrated approach to providing health care. For the convenience of students and their families, our psychiatrist offers consultation on site at the Health Center.
Written consent for consultation must be granted by parents/guardian in advance.
Psychiatric consultation typically includes:
Follow up appointments with the psychiatrist, when appropriate, will occur in accordance with the treatment plan (typically every other week for the first month or two, then decreasing in frequency).
Costs for psychiatric consultation fall outside of the health fee, and parents/guardian will be billed directly for the services provided. Once payment is received, families may then submit the bill to their health insurance company for reimbursement. Please note that not all insurance companies reimburse for these services.
For more information regarding psychiatric consultation at Deerfield Academy, please contact the Health Center at 413-774-1600.
Off-Campus Medical Appointments and Transportation
Appointments Scheduled by the Health Center: Students may be referred by the Health Center to see local providers/specialists for evaluation. The Chen Center will provide transportation to these local appointments for a reasonable fee (see below). If a student requires emergent transport by ambulance to the emergency room or hospital, transport back to campus will be provided by the Health Center per the below fee schedule.
Appointments Scheduled by Parent/Guardians: Students may leave campus for appointments made by parents/guardians with outside providers if they check into and out of campus through the Health Center. If a student requires transport to see a local provider not scheduled through the Chen Center, families must inform the Chen Center of this need at least 7 days before the appointment to allow time for the Health Center to try and arrange transport and, if transport is arranged, will be charged per the below fee schedule. Students and families are encouraged to schedule elective appointments and procedures at home during school breaks. Any appointments of a recurrent nature, such as Physical Therapy, MUST be scheduled in the Greenfield and/or Deerfield area. The Health Center may not be able to accommodate transport for recurrent appointments outside this area and parents/guardians will be responsible for arranging transport.
Fees will be charged to the student account for all transportation provided by the Health Center per the fee schedule below:
| Greenfield | $30.00 |
| Deerfield | $30.00 |
| Whately | $30.00 |
| Turners Falls | $30.00 |
| Northampton | $45.00 |
| Amherst | $45.00 |
| Florence | $45.00 |
| Hatfield | $45.00 |
| Bernardston | $45.00 |
| Hadley | $45.00 |
| Brattleboro, VT | $60.00 |
| South Hadley | $60.00 |
| Springfield | $60.00 |
| Holyoke | $60.00 |
The Health Center will not provide transportation to appointments outside the above listed local area. Transport outside the local area must be arranged by families.
The Health Center reserves the right to cancel and reschedule transports as need based on operational needs. We will do our best to notify students and families as soon as possible of such changes when they occur.
Please reach out to Ms. Carol Rogalski, the Office Manager, if you have any questions (413-774-1600).
It is the responsibility of the student to inform teachers when he or she misses a class for medical reasons. This can be easily done by phone, voicemail, email, or in person. It is particularly important for students to talk to their teachers if they are unable to complete a graded assignment because of illness or injury, whether it is an in-class assignment such as a test or quiz or an out-of-class assignment such as a paper or project. It is the student’s responsibility to clarify with teachers as soon as possible when the assignment will be made up. A student’s advisor and the Student Life Office are notified of Health Center visits that occur during class-time as well as overnight stays in the Health Center. When a student misses a class because of being in the Health Center, the Student Life Office will excuse the absence and Accountability Points (AP’s) will not be given. Although teachers are not automatically notified when students miss their class for medical reasons, teachers can and often do check with the Dean or the Health Center to verify whether a student has been in the Health Center during their class.
We do strep tests and urinalyses at the Health Center at no charge. Blood tests are drawn at the Health Center and sent to the local hospital, the Baystate Franklin Medical Center, in Greenfield. We do not have X-ray facilities at the Health Center. Students are transported to the Baystate Franklin Medical Center for X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, etc. The Baystate Franklin Medical Center will bill your insurance company directly for lab tests and X-rays done at their facility.
The healthcare landscape in the United States is uniquely complicated and unfortunately illness and injury in teenagers can occur unexpectedly. Therefore, all students at Deerfield Academy are required to be enrolled in a US based health insurance plan with adequate provisions for local coverage. International students are required to enroll in the Student Resources Plan offered by United Healthcare. To be a boarding student at Deerfield Academy it is requisite you have documented insurance coverage at all times during the school year. If you have any concerns about your insurance coverage please speak with your broker.
The Health Center fee covers most on-site expenses associated with routine outpatient use of the Health Center and stays in the infirmary. Charges will occur for additional services and are handled in the following way:
The school physician frequently refers students to specialists in the local area, usually in Greenfield. Most commonly these referrals are for specialists in orthopedic surgery, general surgery, and oral surgery. However, a wide variety of medical and surgical specialists are available in the local area and those referrals are made as the need arises. Transportation is provided to and from doctor’s offices in Greenfield by the school for a small fee. The local hospital is the Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield. The closest tertiary care center is the Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, MA, a major teaching hospital associated with Tufts University Medical School.
The Health Center staff does not include a dentist or other medical specialists. If such services become necessary, the Health Center will arrange appointments and transportation to area offices.
healthcenter@deerfield.edu
413-774-1600
Fax 413-772-1118
Mon-Sun, All Day
D.S. Chen Center
PO Box 55
Deerfield, MA 01342