New SECH check-in location raises concern among students

Some University women are concerned about a lack of confidentiality at McCosh Health Center's Sexuality Education Counseling and Health services.

McCosh underwent renovations over the summer and the SECH check-in desk was moved from the relatively secluded third floor to the first floor, adjacent to the main reception area. The concern among many University women is that their privacy has been lost along the way.

SECH addresses sexual health issues, the vast majority of which are annual OB/GYN checkups, sexual education counseling and birth control distribution.

Moving the SECH receptionist was part of an effort to consolidate SECH health charts with outside medical records on file and to allow the SECH receptionist to assume additional duties, such as checking other patients out, said Janet Finnie, Associate Director of Health Services at McCosh.

"We have been able to provide much more effective care since we merged SECH charts with those from outside medical practitioners," Finnie said. "It gives our practitioners full information on their clients. It's a much more holistic approach."

Some students, however, feel the move has jeopardized SECH's claim of confidentiality.

One sophomore woman said that she and a friend came to McCosh earlier this year to visit SECH and both checked-in at the first floor main reception area.

"The nurse at the front desk asked my friend to say her problem out loud in front of every other patient waiting in line — many of whom were guys. Needless to say it was awkward," she said.

According to Liz Cincotta '02, a SECH student counselor, there is greater privacy for those students who have scheduled appointments, she also said that confidentiality can often matter most when an appointment is not feasible.

"Many people who visit SECH enter on an emergency basis, and they have to check in at the front desk," she said.

Cincotta added that privacy concerns are not the greatest obstacle keeping students from using SECH's services.

"The greater deterrent [to women using SECH's services] isn't confidentiality," she said. "It's that students don't know that Princeton provides a day-after pill 24 hours a day and at no cost to the student."

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According to Finnie, McCosh is in the process of moving the entire SECH office into a private wing on the first floor, but construction will not take place until next summer.

"[McCosh] was built in 1925 and so we are obviously dealing with limited resources," Finnie said. "We are in an intermediate stage for this year, but we are going to hire an extra [registered nurse] to support SECH in the short term and will move SECH to an isolated place on the first floor and add cubicles for privacy in the long term."

Still, some students said they would prefer that SECH remain on the third floor.

"I would prefer going up to the third floor because it's less exposed to general services," Rachel Vandagriff '05 said. "It's hard enough for some girls to come forward already."

McCosh reports that the first two weeks of school are always the busiest, but also that there has not yet been any drop-off in the number of female students visiting SECH.

"For those females concerned with saying the reason for their visit at the main desk out loud, the nurses behind the desk have little sheets of paper that students can write their reason on discretely and triage nurses who students can see in private," said Finnie.

"Issues dealing with sexual activity and behavior are obviously highly sensitive and we're doing all we can in a not ideal situation," she added.