Intermountain Health to Manage USU Student Health & Wellness Center

The Student Health and Wellness Center on Utah State University’s Logan campus will transition from university management to being run by Intermountain Health.

The change was announced on May 1, and Intermountain will begin providing all health care services on July 1. The shift is taking place over the summer while demand for care is lower, so new processes and systems will be fully in place for the fall 2023 semester.

“When making this decision, our focus was on continuing a high quality of care for students while also using tuition dollars in the most cost-effective way,” said Robert Wagner, USU’s executive vice president and chief operational officer. Student tuition pays for most of the health and wellness center budget.

The university began a review of SHWC in fall 2022 and issued a request for proposals at the end of that semester. In April 2023, Intermountain Health's medical group was selected to manage the center.

“Intermountain Health is proud to expand our long-standing partnership with Utah State University,” said Jana Huffman, assistant vice president for Intermountain. “The Student Health and Wellness Center has as a great legacy, and we hope to be able to enhance the healthcare services provided to the students.“

Representatives from the USU Student Association were involved during the process, and the final decision was discussed with the USUSA Executive Council on April 25.

“The students asked great questions, and in the end, they expressed their support,” Wagner said.

He noted that while SHWC hours and its availability of on-site medical services are expected to remain consistent, Intermountain’s status as a large health organization will give students more immediate and seamless access to additional services, such as after-hours telehealth.

The center’s staff will transition from USU to Intermountain. As part of its proposal, Intermountain presented a plan for this process, which was discussed with SHWC employees on May 1.

“The human resources departments from USU and Intermountain have been working closely together to make this transition as seamless as possible for employees,” Wagner said.

For more information on the SHWC, visit usu.edu/aggiewellness/shwc.