First Place: OSU Student Health Services

Student Health Services was selected by Oregon State University students and the Corvallis community as the best place to receive healthcare.

Student Health Services at OSU was originally established in 1916, and has been serving the OSU community for over 100 years. The main SHS clinic location is housed in Plageman Hall, but has since expanded to additional locations around campus: Tebeau Hall, McNary Hall, Dixon Recreation Center and Dixon Lodge.

SHS provides a number of services, including vaccinations, treatment of minor injuries or illnesses, allergy shots, nicotine treatment, contraceptive counseling, sexual health care, nutrition counseling, transgender care, and substance abuse counseling, according to Gina Flak, marketing and communication manager for SHS.

Jennifer Haubenreiser, associate vice provost for student affairs and the executive director of SHS, said the mission of SHS is to support and promote optimal health of the OSU community by providing holistic and comprehensive care, fostering safe and supportive learning environments, empowering students to build a capacity for long-term health, well-being and success, and embracing diversity and inclusion.

“In essence, the core purpose of SHS is to support student success through our leadership of comprehensive college health and wellness programs and services,” Haubenreiser said via email. “We take a health equity approach to help ensure all students have access to essential health and mental health care, while actively working to create a campus environment that is conducive to the health, safety and well-being of the OSU community.”

Jeff Mull, physician and medical director of SHS, also emphasized the goal of SHS: to ensure academic and lifelong success for OSU students.

“Health care integrated within the campus community allows better integration with other student services and academics to assure students have access to all of the tools they need to succeed,” Mull said via email. “In addition to helping students navigate physical and mental health issues, a campus health program strives to create healthy habits and lifestyles that will stay with them long after they graduate.”

Connie Hume-Rodman, director of clinical services and physician at SHS, has worked in her position for 10 years. Rodman said she feels honored that SHS was selected as “Best of Health” by the OSU students and community.

“Our whole mission is to help students succeed. It is such a privilege to enable students who have come to Student Health Services with some kind of struggle to feel better—healthier, happier, and/or better equipped to handle challenges,” Hume-Rodman said via email.

Mull, who has worked as a clinical physician at SHS for 35 years, said he is proud to be a part of the team that received the honor of being named the “Best of Health” location.

“We have an extremely dedicated staff who enjoy the challenges and rewards of helping students make their way through school and hopefully life,” Mull said via email.

Haubenreiser said the “Best of Health” recognition is amazing, specifically because it is what SHS strives to be for OSU students.

“There is no better experience within this work than to know we are truly helping students, individually or collectively. Central to our values is our aim to serve students in a compassionate and student-centered way that is tailored to the unique needs of our student population,” Haubenreiser said via email.

Second Place: Samaritan Health Services

Julie Manning, vice president of marketing, communications and community health promotion, said Samaritan Health Services began serving the Corvallis community back in 1913, when the first Good Samaritan Hospital opened.

Additionally, the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center has served the community from its north Corvallis location since 1975. The Regional Medical Center offers a variety of care options, including the hospital, primary and specialty care clinics, inpatient and outpatient mental health care, a pharmacy, cancer care and a guest house for patients.

Manning said Samaritan also has a number of other locations around Corvallis, including Samaritan Athletic Medicine located on the OSU Corvallis campus, a pediatrics and youth mental health clinic at the Boys and Girls Club of Corvallis, a pediatrics clinic and outpatient physical therapy at the Samaritan Square campus on Ninth Street, family medicine and urgent care in Safeway shopping center on Southwest Philomath Boulevard, a SamCare Express at the corner of Northwest Highland and Circle Boulevard, and other specialty clinics on Circle Boulevard and Ninth Street and Walnut Boulevard.

“All our programs and services are designed to foster greater overall health (physical and mental),” Manning said via email. “This in turn has a positive impact on OSU students, faculty and staff. In addition, at the Samaritan Athletic Medicine facility on campus, our programs focus on helping athletes and other community members recover from injuries and attain their optimum athletic performance level.”

Manning said Samaritan Health Services is proud and honored to be named one of the “Best of Health” locations by the OSU students and community, particularly because of their partnerships with the university.

“Because our mission is ‘Building Healthier Communities Together’, our goal is not just to provide health care for students who need it, but to equip OSU students to make healthy choices for their long-term success in life,” Manning said via email.

Third Place: The Corvallis Clinic

Founded in 1947 by three physicians, The Corvallis Clinic now has a total of 11 locations.

The first was located on Northwest 27th Street and Tyler Avenue, and today, is home to the Benton County Health Department. According to their website, the Corvallis Clinic’s core values are compassion, excellence, teamwork and trust, with a vision and hope of making a positive difference in the health and well-being of individuals in their care.

The organization’s mission statement, according to Corvallis Clinic CEO Edward Kelly, is to deliver exceptional medical care with compassion and commitment to service.

“We strive to have our mission provide the OSU community with the best care possible. With our QuickCare clinic located conveniently on Monroe Street, seven days a week, next to campus,” Kelly said via email. “One of our goals is to provide easy access to quality care for the OSU community when they need it.”

According to their website, the Corvallis Clinic consists of more than six hundred medical professionals and support staff, and serves over 250,000 patients in Oregon’s Linn, Benton and Lincoln counties, with offices in Albany, Corvallis, Philomath and Lebanon. It is the largest multi-speciality medical group in the mid-Willamette Valley.

Previously, the Corvallis Clinic has also been recognized by the American Medical Group Association, the National Committee of Quality Assurance, the Medical Management Association and the Corvallis Chamber of Commerce.

In response to the clinic’s “Best Of Health” selection by OSU students and the Corvallis community, Kelly expressed gratitude.

“We’re very excited to have been recognized for this position. It is a continuous and daily priority that the Corvallis Clinic is the community’s first choice for care,” Kelly said via email.