GSO Guide to Student Life
Guide to the UConn Health Center
The Health Center will be your home for the next four to ?
years. You'll learn here, work here, eat here, hang out here,
and possibly even occasionally sleep here. The building's a
circle, so you can't get completely, hopelessly lost (unless you
go through the subbasement). Below are some ins and outs of the
campus and what it has to offer.
Parking
Before you partake of the many gifts the Health Center has to
offer, you've got to figure out where to leave your car (if you
have one, you need to get a sticker for it at Public Safety,
near the police station). As a general rule, if it's 8:55 a.m.
and you have a 9 a.m. class, and you see dozens of parking
spaces located close to the building, it's illegal to park
there. Grad students can park in lots J, K, and M, on the
street, on all levels of the parking structure except the very
top level, and in the three shuttle lots. However, D lot is
reserved for car pool vehicles after 8:30 a.m. (Public Safety is
the place to go to get a car pool sticker), and not open to the
general public until after 4:30 p.m. After 4:30 p.m. and on
weekends, you can also park in lots A, B, and C by the Academic
Entrance. Below is a summary of where you'll most likely find a
spot to park depending on when you arrive.
During the Academic Year
Before 8:20 a.m.: Any legal place except D lot (unless you have
a car pool lot sticker)
8:20 to Lunch Time: Parking structure (all but top level) and
shuttle lots 1, 2, and 3, though you'll probably end up in
shuttle lot 3 (they don't call them shuttle lots for nothing).
It's a healthy walk from the bottom of the hill. There's a
phone in shuttle lot 3 that you can use to call (x2143) a
shuttle after 7 a.m. It may or may not be worth your while to
make a quick round of the other lots before settling for parking
there. (If you REALLY like driving round and round the Health
Center, then you might get lucky and find a space.
Lunch Time through 4:30 p.m.: Scavenger parking. Check your
favorite parking spot (this excludes the gated-lots); people
often leave for lunch.
4:30 p.m. to 2 a.m.: Pretty much anywhere. The faculty lots
open at 4:30 p.m. Note that the Academic Entrance is open
according to the library hours. After that, you will need to
enter the Health Center through the Police entrance.
In the summer parking is much easier. The bottom level of the
parking structure is usually the farthest you have to go to get
a spot.
Lyman Maynard Stowe Library
Library Hours:
http://library.uchc.edu/about/hours.html
Library Card
Your Health Center ID (later a record of how much graduate
school has aged you) also doubles as your library card with a
UPC sticker attached to it. You can get the UPC sticker from the
library’s Front Desk.
Books and Journals
The Stowe Library is a (bio)medical library containing over
150,000 volumes, and has current subscriptions to nearly 2,000
journals. If they don't have the reference that you're looking
for, someone at the information desk can usually help you get it
through interlibrary loan and many items can be found online.
Database Searches
Searches of computerized databases (biomedical journals) can be
performed via Medline in the library. This is an extremely
convenient system when you need to find information on a topic
for class, journal club, research project, or just general
interest. The computers hooked up to Medline are located on the
B floor in the library at the windows facing the elevators. You
have to sign up to use the computers, but since this service has
become available to any Health Center computer on the Net, you
can go to ANY computer in the library or in many labs.
Computers
Macintosh computers and PC compatibles are available for use in
the back of the library. They are almost ALWAYS available unless there
is a class. Students are also able to check out loaner laptops
from the library for a 24 hour period. For more information on
this program, visit
http://library.uchc.edu/laptops/loaner_laptops.html.
Photocopiers
There are about five of these available in the library. Only one
takes coins, the rest use copy cards. Copy cards can be
purchased at the main desk. Usually individual labs have copy
cards.
Leisure Reading
If you've got the time, they've got the spot. The repertoire is
limited in this field, but the ambiance makes up for it.
Police Department
Emergency: x7777
Non-emergency: x2121
Radiation Safety: x2250
The emergency room is in the C building (CM313) on the main
floor.
The Police Station is located on the ground floor near Public
Safety. This is where they take the photo
for your Health Center ID. Two of the services provided by the
police department at the Health Center that you'll probably use
the most are the rides to your car after 7 p.m., and unlocking
of unrestricted rooms. For the latter service, you need to show
your Health Center ID, which, of course, is usually locked in
the room with your keys, but they're pretty understanding. There
have also been unconfirmed rumors that if you live across the
street behind the Exchange, and it's late at night, they'll
drive you home. Additionally, the Police can jumpstart your car
or help if you lock your keys in the car. Lost and Found is also
located at the Police Department.
Please note that the officers on campus are State of
Connecticut officers. Traffic rules are enforced on campus and the police
will ticket you if you park in the wrong places, fail to stop at
a stop sign, etc. These are ‘real’ state police tickets and the
fines double after 10 days if you do not pay them. Also, it is a
state law in Connecticut to yield to pedestrians in a cross
walk!
Food Court
Hours
Weekdays: 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Weekends/Holidays: 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Noon is NOT the best time to go to lunch since everyone else
goes then, making the lines long and seating difficult to find.
The time to go is before noon or after 12:45 p.m., although the
selection is usually better before noon.
What you'll like at the Food Court depends on your taste.
There are a several different windows and each has a special for
the day, which you can preview online (http://i-cuisines.com/SodexhoCafe/UConnHC/). Check them all out before
making your decision. The prices are fairly reasonable, and you
can get a filling meal for around $5.00.
Student Lounge and Fitness Center
Student Lounge
The student lounge (located next to the Bookstore near the
Academic Entrance) has foosball, ping-pong, pool, vending
machines, a microwave, refrigerator, TV, stereo, and
couches/chairs. For the combination to the door, please email
the Graduate Student Organization at
gso@uchc.edu.
Fitness Center
The new Student Fitness Center is located on the Ground Floor
of the ASB (Academic Services Building; the building in front of
the MARB, near the four way stop and the pond). The Center is
open to students only and you must present your UCHC student ID
for entry.
- Hours:
Monday through Thursday, 3 to 11 p.m.;
Friday: 3 to 9 p.m.
For questions, please contact Ms. Lisa Francini
at francini@nso2.uchc.edu.
Where to Smoke
If you're a smoker, you're out of luck here. UConn is a
smoke-free environment and as of November 18, 2010, the entire
campus will be smoke and tobacco free; you will not be able to
smoke on the UCHC campus. For more info on the Clean Air
initiative, please visit
http://employees.uchc.edu/engagement/cleanair.html.
Building Codes
Finding offices and other locations at the Health Center can
sometimes be a challenge. Here’s brief guide to what all those
letters before the room numbers mean:
- ARB-Academic Research Building (these rooms are also
coded as ‘E’; a.k.a. ‘the new building’)
- ASB-Academic Services Building (a.k.a. ‘down the hill’;
where the Fitness Center is located)
- L-Laboratory Building (a.k.a. ‘the old building’)
- A-Academic Building
- H-Hospital
- C-Clinics
- M-Main Floor (level the Food Court is on)
- G-Ground Floor (level the Massey (previously Blue) and
Patterson (previously Green) auditoriums are on)
- MUNS-Munson Road Building (where all the Human Resources
and Finance people
are located)
- MARB-Medical Arts and Research Building
Generally, the first number or letter (in the case of the
Main and Ground floors) indicates the floor and the numbers
after that indicate the room.
So if you were looking for L-4102, you’d go to the L
building, 4th floor, room 102.
Other Handy Health Center Information
There is a Peoples Bank ATM located near the entrance in the
hospital lobby.
There are snack and soda machines outside the cafeteria, as well as in the kitchenette by
EG-013 and EG-052 (the Large/Small Conference rooms in the
Academic Research Building (ARB)), outside the library entrance, and
on the main floor across from
the Dental rooms.
There is a Hartford Courant newsstand outside the Academic
entrance and the Hospital entrance.
The Connucopia gift shop off of the main hospital lobby
carries many items, including t-shirts, greeting cards, candy,
jewelry, stuffed animals, various UConn related items, small
gifts, some OTC medications (like Tylenol, aspirin, cough drops,
etc.), stamps, flowers, etc.
All hall phones can be used to make local calls. Just dial 9
to get an outside phone line, and then the phone number. To dial
a number within the Health Center on these phones, just dial the
last 4 digits of the phone number.
You can buy (or add copies to) a copy card in the library or
at Reprographics copy center (located in the basement). Copy
machines in the library take cards and cash, but most others in
the Health Center only take cards. Copies are $.10 each with
cash, $.07 each with copy card at general copy machines, $.045
at the copy center with a copy card and $.03 if you have the
copy center make the copies for you. The copy center also has a
color copier available.
Wireless internet service is available throughout the main
floor of the Health Center. Contact the IT department at x4400
for assistance in setting it up on your laptop. <
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