About Columbia Health
Last reviewed: 5/19/2025
Columbia Health offers a broad range of on campus services including routine and urgent medical visits, short-term mental-health counseling, sexual violence prevention and advocacy services, disability services, along with educational and skill-based health and wellness programs. These services are available to students, as part of the Columbia Health fee. (diagram of Columbia Health units)
All offices are located on the Morningside campus (map of Morningside locations, with footnote about SVR and DS CUMC locations).
Medical Services is a comprehensive, primary care practice that can meet the majority of your medical needs while you’re at Columbia. In addition to preventive and primary care Medical Services offers nutrition counseling, gynecological and IUD placement, sports medicine, travel medicine, allergy shots, immunizations and even acupuncture. For most students, appointments can easily be made on the Columbia Health website health.columbia.edu
Counseling and Psychological Services offers short-term therapy, medication management, and support groups on different topics including trauma, eating disorders, mindfulness, and managing academics. CPS clinicians are highly trained, represent a broad variety of cultural backgrounds and professional experience, and offer treatment in more than a dozen languages. (illustration of representing different languages).
Sexual Violence Response is a confidential support resource for students. Professional staff and volunteers provide crisis counseling, intervention and advocacy. SVR operates a 24 hour, 7 days a week helpline where you can seek confidential support (show Helpline number: 212-854-HELP(4357)). SVR also provides prevention education and outreach, through innovative workshops, trainings and co-sponsored events.
Disability Services facilitates access for students with disabilities by coordinating accommodations and services. Disability Services works with students with all types of disabilities including physical, psychiatric, sensory, and learning disabilities, and students with chronic medical conditions. Visit the Columbia Health website for information on how to register.
Alice! Health Promotion focuses on building and supporting a campus environment where healthier choices are the norm. Alice! offers health and wellness programs to promote good sleep habits, cope with stress, understand responsible alcohol use, support healthy sexual activity, and much more. Visit Go Ask Alice!, our online health Q&A resource, to find answers to your most personal health questions. goaskalice.columbia.edu
For more information about Columbia Health or to make an appointment, please visit us online.
health.columbia.edu, facebook.com/columbiahealth, @columbiahealth on Instagram
Take advantage of these campus resources – after all—your health is up to you!
Be well, Columbia Health
Mission
Columbia Health advances the well-being of the Columbia University community and the personal and academic development of students.
Vision
Columbia Health envisions leading University efforts to equitably advance well-being for the communities we serve.
Values
Respect
We are empathic; affirming and appreciating differences while demonstrating compassion and understanding for all.
Integrity
We adhere to the standards of our professions and are committed to being ethical, principled, accountable, and trusted colleagues, practitioners, and leaders.
Integration
We provide continuing opportunities for collaboration and broad campus involvement while leveraging our expertise across disciplines to contribute to learning and success.
Quality
We embody excellence, innovation, and creativity by continuously evaluating and improving programs and services.
Belonging
We promote the sense of acceptance, inclusion, and embracing the identities of all.
About
Columbia Health provides services to Morningside, Manhattanville, and, Teachers College students (including affiliates) with select services also provided on the Medical Center campus. Our team has more than 200 individuals, including medical providers, therapists, psychiatrists, disability specialists, health promotion specialists, nutritionists, peer counselors, support staff, and administrative professionals.
Led by Senior Vice President Melanie Bernitz, Columbia Health senior staff oversee the following areas:
- Administration, led by Michael McNeil
- Alice! Health Promotion, led by Alic Czachowski
- Counseling and Psychological Services, led by Richard Eichler
- Disability Services, led by Colleen Lewis
- Medical Services, led by Urmi Desai
- Sexual Violence Response, led by La’Shawn Rivera
Columbia Health is fully accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC). All Columbia Health providers are credentialed in accordance with state and federal mandates, as well as AAAHC requirements. Columbia Health is recognized by the AAAHC as a Patient-Centered Medical Home. The services provided by a Medical Home are patient-centered, comprehensive, accessible, and organized to meet the needs of the individual patients served. Within the patient-centered Medical Home, patients are empowered to be responsible for their own health care.
