Harvard University Health Services

This review is for all of the nonsense that I have personally had to deal with as a student here. I am honestly fed up with the general attitude here. Giving it 2 stars because of neutral to good experiences I’ve had with some members of staff.
Freshman year: I go to my primary care doctor. I tell him I have these horrible headaches. He literally tells me to just get sleep. Um. Ok.
Sophomore year: I have this massive 2^nd degree burn. I go to urgent care, literally no patients waiting there. I have to wait an excruciatingly long time before I get treated. When the doctor is ready to see me, she says, «Oh we have patients staying overnight who have more urgent concerns than yours.» No apology. To top it off, the primary treatment I am given is this topical cream that, after a quick google, I find out, «prolongs healing time» and shows no «real indications of efficacy.» I get by on codeine.
Junior year: I go to an urgent care having filled out a survey. My thyroid might actually be infected. A doctor sees me, and she tells me, «Oh, we don’t treat thyroid issues in urgent care. It’s not urgent. You have to go see primary care.» I guess I would have really appreciated it if they had just emailed me to not show up rather than making me show up and wasting my time.
The next day, I phone in to try to schedule a primary care appointment. She asked me why I didn’t call yesterday, and I told her that I had a lot of work I was trying to take care of. She literally scoffed at me. She also was both extremely unhelpful and condescending when I asked her about the steps I would need to take to treat thyroid issues and. .. I’m fairly certain that she doesn’t understand the difference between getting the ok for a thyroid screen and actually getting a screen. She honestly didn’t seem to know what she was doing in general. It goes without saying that it is extremely frustrating to talk to someone who is both illogical and also arrogant about it. Never in my life have I dealt with such terrible service from health staff.
Point being, HUHS, step up your game. We as students go to you to be treated, not aggravated.

This review is for their Ob/​Gyn through Harvard Vanguard. It is a very unprofessional office, stay away.

I’m so torn. I would give HUHS 5 stars for their doctors, but negative stars for 1 receptionist.
I always have a great visit with doctors and the NP’s– especially dermatology (Dr. Cummins is so great!). However, there was one receptionist, Susan, in Specialty Services who is HORRENDOUS. I mean… do NOT ask her any questions, no matter how legit and valid they are because she will bite your head off, and then some. Amazingly horrible customer service– I left with tears in my eyes because she made me feel oh-​so stupid and I was so not prepared to be attacked by a massive jerk. This leads me to the 3-​star review because I cannot get over the insane hostility.
In my opinion, Specialty Services needs to learn to stick-​up for their customers and kick this woman out (at least put her in the back where she never interacts with humans). Apparently being overly hostile towards me just wasn’t enough for her ego, so Susan was condescending and short with everyone else that entered for eye-​care. Anybody who had questions was ridiculed until they would just walk away in bewilderment. Sounds like Susan loves people and her job, right? Hah. It’s scary that she actually treats everybody liek this and nobody cares to tell her to stop!
Speaking of that, when I mentioned how disrespected, belittled and humiliated I felt to another receptionist she simply said «Yahhh, sorry.» and passed me tissues. I later heard her gossiping with Susan about me, to which she said «Don’t worry, it doesn’t even matter» !!! Um… what?! Great customer care, people. I was so upset that I couldn’t even tell the doctor what had happened– I literally thought I would cry. I may sound like a huge baby, but really, I am just a normal human who doesn’t care to be attacked for no reason. We’re all entitled to ask questions about the cost breakdowns, aren’t we? No need for Susan to be defensive (newsflash lady, it isn’t your personal money) and freak out on me. Just simply explain the breakdown like A-​B-​C.
So, in conclusion, receptionist Susan in Specialty Services is an asshole (sorry, I seriously have no other words to describe her) and gets negative stars. Never talking to that evil queen again. However, I will continue to get my eye exams, dermatology and basic health exams here because it is convenient and I enjoy who takes care of me, so 5 stars to the Doctors and NP’s.

Walk-in’s here work differently to how it is back home, in that I need to walk-​in twice for a check-​up: first for my vitals, and 2^nd after setting up an appointment with the next available nurse or doctor. Tedious, I know, but thankfully the wait wasn’t long today and I was helped pretty quickly.
Both the nurse and the doctor were friendly and engaging. I received a form in addition to my prescription outlining a list of things to do to help my viral infection. The nurse practitioner who helped me also offered to write a note of absence for a class/​discussion I had to miss today.
Otherwise, the University Health Services also have a pharmacy right inside Holyoke Center– which makes coming here very convenient for check-​ups and prescription pick-​ups.
Overall the staff was efficient, friendly, and sympathetic during my visit, and I am certainly impressed with their general efficiency and warm hospitality, from the receptionist on the 1^st floor to the nurse practitioner who performed the check-​up.

Great service for a health care clinic! Conveniently located downstairs from my office. Really easy to talk to a Human being, and not to mention affordable!!!
i would give it TEN starts if i could!

HUHS is a pretty convenient place to see a doctor if you’re a Harvard student. The Holyoke center is right in the middle of Harvard Square, so getting there from just about anywhere is a breeze. The pharmacy is located just downstairs from the doctors, so you can immediately get anything filled that’s prescribed (bonus: if you are a law student or business student, they will deliver your prescriptions to your campus). I’ve found the doctors to be knowledgeable. What I will say is that after hours can be a bit of a gamble… I’ve been there for myself and with friends. Sometimes I have had absolutely no wait, other times two hours — at which point an argument can be made for just going to the hospital. For regular hours, you can schedule online and they seem to run on time!

I like the self check in system.

I’ve been here so many times and for so many services over the last decade that my review is for my collective experience and not one experience in general. Here is a summary of some of the services I’ve taken advantage of:
1) Dental Service — the best experience I’ve had. Ever. People normally dread the dentist, but I love mine. My hygienist here, Marie, is the bomb diggity. I absolutely love and adore her. She makes cleanings incredibly pleasant! In addition to preventative services, they also offer a wide range of dental services ranging from periodontology (gums), to teeth whitening to oral surgery (wisdom teeth removal), to general dentistry, etc. The only thing I don’t know if they do is not is orthodonture (I’m pretty sure they don’t).
2) Vision — There are a few optometrists working here, and I’ve seen two of them. Most recently, with Dr. Fuhrman. She is very matter-​of-​fact, but thorough. Eye care is serious business to her! Appointments aren’t too hard to get. the worst part is waiting to be called at your appointment. I don’t think I’ve ever been seen exactly at my appointment time. They are always running behind.
3) Obstetrics/​Gynecology — I was here last year when I was pregnant. The OB/​Gyn specialists here are a hidden gem. Seriously, they are top of the line. The doctors here are actually part of a practice in Chestnut Hill, but all the doctors rotate one day a week here in this clinic. They are all INCREDIBLE. I made it a point to have an appointment with at least each doctor, since you end up delivering with whomever is on call, and it could be any of them. I liked them all. A LOT. So incredibly knowledgeable and I was never once worried about my health or my baby’s. The NP here, Fran, is also amazing. She’s been delivering babies for the last 30 years and knows her stuff (probably more than some of the doctors!). The in-​house nurse, Harriet, is easily accessible, even via phone and email. She is prompt in getting back to you, and if something unexpected comes up, she can usually squeeze you in that day with a doctor or nurse. If you use this practice here, you end up delivering at Brigham & Women’s, which has one of the BEST L&D/Maternity wards in the *country*. Boo-​yah!
4) Pediatrics — My daughter is in good hands here. We see Carole Browne, who is actually a NP here, but she is as good and knowledgeable as any pediatrician I’ve ever met. She genuinely loves and cares about her patients (and their parents too!). We wouldn’t go anywhere else.
5) Adult Primary Care — it seems like ages since I’ve seen my PCP, but I do go annually and have never had an issue with them. I book my appointment months in advance, and they always go smoothly. Again, very knowledgeable doctors and staff.
6) Laboratory Services — located in the basement here. You go here for bloodwork, x-​rays, etc. It’s great that it’s located in the same building, and not too far away. Results usually take a few days, since the blood is shipped off-​site. But, the staff is prompt and very nice.
Keep in mind that even though this looks like a rinky-​dink little medical operation, it is a full-​fledged mini-​hospital. It is not unusual here for the doctors to teach at the Medical School, have their own practices, or practice at a Harvard-​affiliated hospital (Children’s, BWH, MGH, etc.). You are getting world-​class medical knowledge and care in a smaller, more intimate setting. Plus, if you are a HUGHP member, you get three hours of free parking in the downstairs garage with validation. How do you possibly give that less than 5 stars?

Although they advertise themselves as accepting Davis Vision, they will not actually see you for eye exams unless you also have Harvard University Group Health Plan insurance. Deceptive, and a waste of my time.

(I’m comparing this to other university health services that I’ve had experience with)
Great service. Just got a free flu shot, and I’ve had to work w/​HUHS for start-​of-​school immunizations, etc. All in all, they prepare well, have plenty of people on hand to work with crowds. When you have an appointment, they docs and NPs are super friendly, offering relevant advice. Hard to see anywhere they could improve. Keep it up!

These guys are ok. The waits are not so bad; 20 to 40 minutes usually. They did a great job when I went in for a UTI, but not so great when I was hung over and my eye hurt (it turned out I had half a contact lens stuck in there).

This review is for the massage services portion of HUHS. (Note: I think most services are restricted to students, faculty, and staff, so apologies to all those out there who can’t access HUHS!)
I fell in love with HUHS massages when I went to free health tent that HUHS was holding a couple years ago. I waited patiently in line to get a free 10 minute massage, and found out I had a knot (at this point, I didn’t even know what this meant.) In 10 minutes, I felt SO much more balanced and calm than I had throughout the 20-​some years of my life before that.
UHS offers 10-​minute chair massages 3 days a week (MWF) for $ ¹²⁄₁₀ minutes. It’s not the cheapest: I can name a few places that offer massages $ 1/​minute, even at the low ten minute mark. But it’s very professional and tips are not allowed, so I think it all breaks even. Warning on the 10-​minute massages: their quality varies a LOT. I’ve had «wow, I’m so glad I did this» feelings to «wait, I just spent how much for that?»
I had my first one hour massage here a month ago, and let me tell you, it surprised me how wonderful it was. I randomly chose a masseuse and she was AWESOME. I didn’t think it was overly relaxing during the process, but days after I felt like I might never need another massage again, which I think is the real point of massages — to «heal» you, not to make you crave more and more (and trust me, I’m addicted to massages, so this feeling is not easy to come by).
It’s cheap, too, at $ 60/​hr, with the no-​tipping policy. Sometimes you can stumble upon good deals elsewhere, but this is a good, steady staple for those who want professional/​medical treatment and are somehow affiliated with Harvard.

I spent thirteen years getting all of my health care at HUHS, and there were some high points and some real low points.
So, here’s my collected advice:
1) If you can, always make appointments at HLS HUHS, not Holyoke Center. The clinicians are much less frazzled (it’s less busy there) and thus they spend more time with you. Most people don’t know that they can be seen at HLS UHS. I found it was worth the extra ten minute walk.
2) I had great experiences with Nancy Rund (who I think is no longer there) and Dr. Churchill. Generally, all of my experiences with RNs there were positive.
3) If you are going to UHS for run of the mill stuff– a runny nose, strep throat– they are more than equipped to care for you. If you have something more complex, you might run into problems. Example: I started getting bad hives about halfway through grad school, and I couldn’t figure out what was happening. It started to get severe enough that it was keeping me up at night. The first two people I saw literally just said «Eh, I don’t know what that is. Sorry.»
4) Props to the lab downstairs. They are efficient and great.
5) Props to the travel nurse. She’s great at making sure you have what you need to get where you want to go.
6) Specialists: UHS is really cheap with students seeing specialists there. Over the course of my time there, it became increasingly difficult to see a specialist, and it felt like they were constantly limiting the time between specialist visits (I could never see a specialist, say, twice in six weeks.)
7) Yes. They are going to ask you if you are pregnant. No matter WHAT your symptoms are. It’s just part of the protocol.
8) In my experience, the member services folks are very, very receptive to feedback. If you have a problem, drop them a line. They’ll fix it.
9) Sometimes people are just a little too informal at UHS. On more than one occasion, I was escorted into an exam room and someone else’s medical information was on the computer screen.
10) Generally, the entire experience often feels too rushed. I had many physicals there that were so fast, I was sure that they could’t have been checking everything (major exception for Nancy Rund who always, always took her time — asked me how life was, checked in with me about everything — I felt like I was in amazing hands with her).

I’ve generally had very good experiences here during my time at Harvard.
The less than stellar ones have included:
— Not being given proper information concerning allergy testing, and the fact that one needs 2 – 3 meetings to get to the actual allergy testing.
— A very chatty doc who would not stop talking to me mid pap smear. I realize she’s trying to get me to relax, but I prefer to avoid the small talk, when both you and I know we both don’t care about the fantastic, special Lifetime dramatization she saw recently, so I’d prefer it to be strictly professional — get in and get out.
— The time a nurse was incredibly amused by my green scarf, that I wore because it was in the dead of winter. She couldn’t believe how long it was (it was over 6 feet long). She was so amused, that she took one end, and paraded it around the office to show the other nurses and staff members, while I begrudgingly held the other end and followed her for about 10 minutes during this show and tell episode. It was kind of embarrassing, but I’m glad my winter gear could bring her such amusement.
Anyway. I’ve never had to wait long, check-​in was always a breeze, and the nurses and staff and doctors are usually very nice (but chatty).
I am no longer a student here, but I have considered selling my soul to academic bureaucracy just so I can continue going to HUHS. Then I remembered what it’s like to be at Lamont during finals. Almost, though…

HUHS Vision Care center is pretty sloppy. They have made many administrative errors with my prescriptions just by being sloppy. It takes months to get appointments, they are very inefficient and resolving straightforward issues (like getting contact lenses) somehow requires many appointments.

I’m still a huge fan of general care at HUHS, as well as most of the specialists, but the OB-​GYN department needs a few lessons in customer care and bedside manner. I’ve had less than satisfying experiences with two doctors, a nurse practitioner, and a receptionist over there. I’m sure it’s fine if you know exactly what you’re in for or what you want, but God forbid you have any questions…
Unfortunately, this type of care is integral enough to my general healthcare that I’m going to have to take away one star. Too bad.

HUHS is an AMAZING resource for the Harvard community. It’s one stop health shopping. During my time as a student I have taken advantage of top-​notch primary care, inoculations, nutrition services, mental health services, gotten a broken tooth fixed, and prescriptions filled, all in this one building. Every person I’ve been in contact with has been extremely professional and caring, which is not often seen in university health centers. I am no longer using Harvard health insurance, but when I suspected I had shingles and didn’t yet have a new doctor, HUHS agreed to see my and filled and refilled my Vicodin prescription (which was MUCH appreciated). I cannot say enough words about how incredible of a resource this medical center is for those affiliated with Harvard.

I am part of there HUGHP insurance and get my health care and my 4 year olds health care there. I also work with all the doctors and can say we have some of the best doctors in the area working with us. In no other realm would I have one of the head pediatricians for Childrens Hospital as my childs pediatrician but that what I have at the Health Services! One of the heads of Childrens taking care of my child! When I had to have surgery I got an appt right away with the chief of surgery for Mt. Auburn! All the doctors here do there best to give the best care!