RGU:Union Advice & Support has put together some advice to assist and inform RGU students regarding student health matters. There is information on the following topics:
If you have any questions or concerns related to Covid-19 and RGU's response, visit Covid-19: Advice for Staff, Students and Community on the RGU website.
For more information on student support services, particularly student mental health support, visit RGU:Union Advice & Support: Support Services.
If you have just moved to Aberdeen, you should look to register with a GP. You can find GPs near you by visiting NHS inform. Some medical practices might not be able to take on new patients so be aware that you might need to contact several.
Remember, if you move house/flat/accommodation (especially if moving to another part of the city), you may need to register with a new medical practice.
If you are currently not registered and need to see a GP, you can ask to be seen as a temporary resident if you're staying in the U.K for a short period (between 24 hours and 3 months).
If you have not registered with a dentist, then you should do so as soon as you can. You can find a dentist near you by visiting NHS inform. When you've found a local service which provides NHS treatment, ask them if you can register as an NHS patient.
After you have registered with a dentist, you will be able to receive a dental check-up. If you need treatment, the dentist will explain your options, including what treatments can be done on the NHS, let you know how much it will cost, give you a treatment plan and tell you when you should return.
If you are currently not registered and need to see a dentist, you can still get care from an NHS dentist but they will have to agree to see you as an occasional patient (occasional patients don't have access to the full range of NHS treatment).
If you are experiencing a non-life threatening emergency and need medical assistance and you cannot contact your GP/surgery (outside of normal working hours), then you should call NHS 24 on 111
NHS 24 provides urgent health advice and can be accessed for out-of-hours support (i.e. when your GP/medical practice/dentist is closed).
The majority of calls to the service are made at the following times:
- Monday - Thursday (18:00 - 08:00)
- Friday through to Monday (18:00 - 08:00)
For more information, visit NHS 24.
Studying at university and moving to a new city can be challenging and RGU:Union aims to ensure that students are protected throughout the transition to and journey through university life.
If you are worried about your mental health, talking to trained mental health advisors can help you manage mental health concerns. Peer Support and RGU:Nightline are two great student-led mental health services for students to discuss mental health concerns, the latter of which operates an out-of-hours anonymous listening and support service.
RGU also has a Counselling & Wellbeing Centre which supports students with a range of mental health issues, for example: adjusting to university life, anxiety, depression, stress etc...
Students can also contact Samaritans or Breathing Space Scotland and/or call NHS 24 on 111 for support (visit NHS inform for further mental health advice and support).
RGU:Union knows that being away from home for the first time and getting to meet lots of new people is great fun, but it’s important that students understand the importance of sex.
Sex can have a major effect on a person’s emotional and physical wellbeing. Student safety and welfare is one RGU:Union's top priorities, and whilst we encourage a fun social atmosphere, we also aim to protect students and to help educate them. Each year, we run a number of campaigns and events to celebrate sex as well as promoting safe sex!
If you have any questions about sexual health or require any support, we encourage you to visit Grampian Sexual Health Services which contains information about available services, such as:
- Emergency and routine contraception (including coils and implants).
- STI/BBV testing and treatment.
- HIV Pre- and Post-Exposure Prophylaxis.
- Abortion and HIV care.
There is also information available about booking an appointment, contraception and general sexual health information.
Contraception
The first step to safe sex is protection and RGU:Union wants to make sure all students are safe and protected! We provide a discreet contraception service for all genders at our RGU:Union Office on Union Way. We have a range of condom sizes, as well as femidoms and lube.
RGU:Union provides contraceptive products free of charge.
Click here to order contraceptive products.
It is estimated that the average woman spends around £13 a month on period products which is a huge outlay when you have a low income and levels of period poverty have surged during the coronavirus pandemic.
In collaboration with RGU’s Department of Estates and Property Services, RGU:Union have been able to utilise a Scottish Government scheme to ensure RGU Students have increased access to sanitary products, delivered to any home (UK) address, free of charge. For more information on the Union's free sanitary product scheme, please email periodpoverty@rguunion.co.uk.
RGU:Union provides sanitary products free of charge.
Click here to order sanitary products.
Regularly drinking more than 14 units of alcohol (6 pints of beer/10 small glasses of wine) per week risks damaging your health (according to the NHS).
Drinking alcohol is not considered a safe activity. However, drinking less than 14 units per week (i.e. 1 pint of day for 5 days out of 7) is considered low-risk drinking.
If you drink alcohol regularly, try to keep associated health risks at a low level by:
- Not drinking more than 14 units per week regularly.
- Spreading units over 3 or more days if you regularly rink as much as 14 units per week.
- Having a few drink-free days each week.
- Not drinking alcohol at all if you're pregnant (or if you think you could become pregnant) to keep risks to a baby to a minimum.
The risk of developing mental-health issues and illnesses increases if you regularly drink more than 14 units per week, such as:
- Cancer (mouth, throat and breast).
- Stroke.
- Heart disease.
- Liver disease.
- Brain damage.
- Nervous system damage.
Remember the less you drink, the lower the associated health risks!
Session Drinking or Binge Drinking (when you drink too much alcohol and too quickly on one occasion) can increase your risk of accidents, injury, loss of self-control, violence and even death. This type of activity may be more prevalent when at university, and so aim to reduce associated health risks by:
- Limiting how much you drink.
- Drinking slowly.
- Drinking with food.
- Alternating between alcoholic drinks and water and/or non-alcoholic drinks.
If you need support with drinking, you are encouraged to reach out for support. Alcohol & Drugs Action (ADA) is a registered Scottish charity which provides advice, information and targeted interventions on all alcohol and drug-related issues in Aberdeenshire. They have a great support network with a lot of advice and information to give, and you are encouraged to reach out to them for support should you need to.
Contact RGU:Union Advice & Support via the below links or via the chat-widget on this page. If you wish to help improve our service, provide feedback by completing our questionnaire.
This page has been updated for academic session 2021-2022.