With that kind of assessment, it seems as if Harvard students are on target with what the real problems are at UHS.

Records obtained by The Crimson from the State Board of Registration in Medicine show that UHS doctors have had no complaints filed against them and have faced no disciplinary action in the past 10 years.

The same records show that none of the doctors have made a malpractice payment in the past 10 years. State court records show only two malpractice suits since 1990. Of the two, one was dismissed in 1994 while the trial of the other is still pending.

"When a complaint is filed by a hospital institution, a professional organization, a government agency, or fellow doctors, and we investigate such a report but don't send it to a hearing, then such information is kept confidential," says Charles Moore, public information officer with the board.

"On the other hand, complaints, even dismissed complaints filed by patients, are public information," Moore adds.

Such complaints are absent from the records of the UHS doctors.

The Problems

While the doctors' records may be spotless, some students say problems with UHS still exist.

"The problem isn't the doctors--it's that I've never been able to reach a doctor," says Kerlen Chee '98. "There have been times when they try to diagnose me over the phone."

"It's understandable since they have a lot of people to see, but they shouldn't blow people off when they call," Chee says. "There's a reason why they call. It couldn't hurt to just squeeze someone in for a few minutes."

Other students expressed concerns specifically about UHS's mental health services.

"A lot of it has to do with the attitude of the receptionists and all of the bureaucracy," says one Quincy House sophomore who has used UHS's mental health services over 10 times during her Harvard career.

"The receptionists at the mental health services just don't have any idea what the patients are going through," she says.

"When I call for help, I expect the person on the other end to talk me through it," says another sophomore, whose close friend has used UHS's mental health services in the past. "I'm only an undergrad; I'm not trained in mental health services."

"My friend needs help and in the middle of the night, there doesn't seem to be anyone to turn to," the sophomore adds. "There seems to be no structure to help out, but we're in a very stressful college environment where it's not a surprise if students need the help."