"People are real dissatisfied with access, and rapid access appointments are less than entirely satisfactory," Zuromskis says. "But it gives students more leeway to get care quicker."

Chief of Medicine Dr. Charles Weingarten says he generally likes the rapid access system because it increases the likelihood that students will be paired up with their primary care provider. But he also says that large health problems, like a recent flu epidemic, occasionally overwhelm the appointment system.

"We work hard on access, and it's a struggle," says Weingarten. "When you do it on an appointment basis, you have a better chance of meeting with the primary care doctor in the system."

Some students have complained that their doctors are rushed during such visits. Weingarten acknowledges that the 15-minute time period can cause problems, but says he sees no easy way of improving it.

"There are tradeoffs," says Weingarten. "If we schedule 15-minute rapid access appointments, that puts the doctor under pressure."

Students have mixed views on rapid access. But many say the system could be worse, none more so than seniors who can still remember the constant chaos of the old walk-in clinic.

"At least since their improvements three years ago, it's been a much improved service," says Victor W. Hwang '93.

Similar health services at other universities have considered options in addition to rapid access. Officials at Yale say they are considering moving regular clinic hours ahead so a full staff will be able to greet students who come after dinner.

"We're thinking about maybe opening later in the morning and closing later at night," says Stephanie Trahan, manager of member services at Yale. "We test-ran it and the staff was happy with it."

Perhaps one of the largest boons for students has been the Harvard University Group Health Plan (HUGHP), HUGHP subscribers include faculty, staff and their families. This increases the patient population and allows UHS to include specialty services such as gynecology, surgery and orthopedics.

"That way lent a lot of strength to the student health service because it allows you to bring in a lot of special its and services you can't usually get at a university health service," Weingarten says.

But the HUGHP plan may also reduce student access to some of UHS's best physicians. Because students are not alone in the UHS community, many veteran doctors say they spend most of their time with older patients.

"I see fewer and fewer students the longer I'm here," says Dr. Mary Wolfman, a part-time primary care doctor and 19-year veteran of UHS. "It takes two or three months for a student to see me. I've been seeing the same HUGHP people and they stick around, so there's not the openings for the students."

UHS officials say that students who have chosen personal primary care physicians are the most satisfied with access to care. While he would not release specifics, Rosenthal points to an undergraduate poll completed last fall to support that claim.

The Crimson poll showed a some-what similar trend. In the survey, 46 percent of students with primary care doctors rated their care "very good" or "good," compared with 34 percent of those who didn't have personal physicians.