GWU has GERMS envy
Posted by: Juliana Brint in Vox Populi, tags: Alcohol, DC Schools, Georgetown, GERMS, GWU, Medical Amnesty
While our friends in Foggy Bottom may be outdoing us in terms of programming boards and on-campus comedians, there’s one thing they’re still envious of us about: GERMS.
The GW equivalent of GERMS is a “the Emergency Medical Response Group,” or EMeRG. Apparently EMeRG doesn’t have the same warm relations with the student body it serves that GERMS has.
Because of GW’s medical amnesty policies, EMeRG is required to transport anyone who is assessed for alcohol consumption to the GW Hospital. According to the GW Hatchet, which is doing a three part series on their school’s medical amnesty policies, the rule discourages people from calling EMeRG and creates hostility towards the program because of the medical bills that accompany the mandatory hospital visit.
The Hatchet highlights GERMS as an example of what EMeRG could be with a few policy tweaks:
The Georgetown student’s relationship with the volunteer GERMS group is worlds apart from the GW student’s relationship with EMeRG. Most importantly, GERMS is not required to transport all students that are assessed to the hospital. The amnesty policy of Georgetown is such that students don’t fear calling GERMS.
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From the article, “One of the suspect elements of transporting every assessed student to GW Hospital is how it benefits GW. There is a common narrative to the experience of many students who have gone through the EMeRG process. They are transported to the hospital, examined by a doctor or nurse for all of a few minutes and then told to sit and wait for the next several hours. Along with a severe hangover, they can expect a bill for the medical services, sometimes upwards of $400. Ultimately, GW gets paid for every person brought to the hospital.”
Sounds like a racket…
GWU doesn’t own the hospital, much like GU doesn’t own Georgetown Hospital. So, while it might be a racket, it’s to the benefit of a private compnay, not the University. Oh, and GERMS rocks!
Hell yea!