5.1 Student Assistance Programme
5.2 College Doctor
5.3 Medical Provision for International Students
5.4 Dental Care
The College’s Student Assistance Programme (SAP) offers Reuben students a 24/7 confidential call service, an online health portal, and a personal app. As well as using SAP for mental health support (see the Welfare Resources and People section of this handbook), you can use the Student Assistance Programme, day or night, for medical information, alcohol or drug issues, nutritional advice, medical factsheets, fitness advice and health checks. The service includes access to:
- Medical information form qualified nurses (via the telephone helpline, Monday-Friday 9am – 5pm)
- Online counselling and therapy via telephone
- Digital counselling, including CBT
Phone the helpline on 0800 028 3766 or find out more here on our website.
All members of the College are required to register with a local General Practitioner (GP) Doctor. In the UK your GP is your first point of contact for all non-emergency medical treatments including health and mental health conditions. Many problems can be treated by the GP, but if you need specialist care, the GP will refer you to an appropriate NHS Specialist.
You are strongly encouraged to register with the College Doctors, Dr Leaver and Partners at the Jericho Health Centre on or before arrival. If you decide to register with a different local GP you must provide the Academic Office with their contact details (academic-office@reuben.ox.ac.uk), so that the College may call them in the event of an emergency.
You can contact the GP for medical appointments with a doctor or practice nurse for any health (or mental health) concerns. This may include sleep disturbance, contraception and sexual health, medicines, vaccinations or managing a long-term health condition.
For further information about how the UK medical system works, see here.
Students coming from countries with reciprocal health arrangements with the UK are eligible for free treatment under the National Health Service (NHS). To find out if you are eligible for NHS services, please visit the UK Council for International Student Affairs website. Treatment for a medical emergency is free, regardless of status.
Most dentistry is provided by private practitioners in the UK (who can offer a range of clinical and cosmetic treatments). However, some dental clinics also offer NHS treatments. These are treatments that are considered “clinically necessary” for good oral health and are significantly cheaper than private treatment, but please note they are not free. If you are eligible for full NHS treatment, you should register with the College Doctor first, otherwise you may have to pay at the cost of a private treatment.
There are currently a limited number of practices open to new patients within Oxford. For further information on how to find an NHS Dentist in Oxfordshire see here.
