Psychiatric Services

The UNF Counseling Center provides psychiatric consultation and medication management to students whose presenting issues suggest that evaluation by a psychiatric professional would be appropriate or helpful. When psychiatrically indicated, a student may be given a prescription for medication to treat their clinical symptoms (e.g., depression, anxiety). Often, students are encouraged to participate in counseling in addition to taking medication.

Availability of Psychiatric Services

Psychiatric services at the Counseling Center are limited both in availability and in regards to what medications our providers are able to prescribe. Students interested in psychiatric services are encouraged to contact the counseling center early in the semester and must complete an initial consultation prior to receiving services.

If our providers are unable to accept any new patients, the student will be given the option of being placed on a wait-list, to be contacted when our providers are able to accept new patients. Additionally, students may request community referrals for psychiatric providers in their local area. We ask that students have their health insurance information available if they are interested in obtaining referrals to community providers who may accept their health insurance.

Prescription Medication Guidelines

The Counseling Center does not regularly prescribe any scheduled drugs (e.g. Benzodiazepines, Stimulants Sedatives, or Sedative-Hypnotics). These are medications that have a high potential for abuse recreationally, and dependency both physically and psychologically.

We do not prescribe medical marijuana at the UNF Counseling Center. If you have been diagnosed with a medical condition that you feel qualifies for medical marijuana, it is recommended that you consult with your primary care provider about a prescription.

Additionally, in order to provide psychiatric services to students who have been identified with ADD/ADHD, we have established the following guidelines.

• Only non-stimulant medications will be provided by the Counseling Center. Our providers will not prescribe stimulant medications, including but not limited to Focalin, Ritalin, Vyvanse, Adderall and Concerta.
• If you have an established diagnosis of ADD or ADHD, the Counseling Center will first need a copy of the related comprehensive assessment and diagnostic report for your file, prior to providing medication.
• If you do not have a documented diagnosis of ADD or ADHD, the Counseling Center requires a comprehensive assessment to clearly establish this diagnosis, prior to providing medication, and will be happy to refer you to a local provider who may provide such an assessment.
• Medication records will be requested from previous providers. It is imperative that the client follow our recommendations which include attending follow-up appointments both for therapy and medication management. If a prescription for a controlled substance is lost or stolen, there must be a police report or the prescription will not be replaced.