With almost a quarter of all Veterans in the United States residing in rural communities, ensuring they receive quality health care close to home is more important than ever. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) actively works to meet these Veterans in their own communities and promote opportunities for them to live happy and healthy lives. Let’s…
VA Homeless Programs: More than just housing
Helping Veterans move into a new home is only the first step for VA When you think of “exiting homelessness,” what comes to mind? To many, the process is reduced to a single, defining moment: a key exchanged, a door unlocked and a place to finally call home. But as anyone who has ever moved…
Live Whole Health #307: A little acupressure, a lot of peace
Has winter been a real headache for you? Now that we are springing ahead, you may also want to find a new routine for managing stress and headaches. This simple routine can help you care for yourself, and it’s right at your fingertips! This 8.5-minute video with Licensed Acupuncturist Steph Gregory from the VA Portland…
VA telehealth connects a Veteran to the Wheelchair Games
Staying healthy and connected with virtual care Linda Hutchinson’s dedication to service began in the Navy in 1984 and continues today as an advocate and president of the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) Southeastern Chapter. After sustaining a spinal cord injury related to service, Hutchinson, who now uses a wheelchair, found both health support and…
VA celebrates March and National Nutrition Month
Discover the power of nutrition for your Whole Health March’s National Nutrition Month offers us a chance to rethink old habits and begin with new, healthy changes that focus on our Whole Health. This year’s theme is “Discover the Power of Nutrition,” which helps us learn and discover how food and beverage choices can help…
From Vietnam to victory: A Veteran’s cancer journey
“Every time I got off that table, I was weaker and weaker, but there was always another set of hands right there” Walter Lohden enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1965. He served until 1972, spending three years in Vietnam, along the Demilitarized Zone near Dong Ha, Khe Sanh, Con Thien and Camp Carroll. “I…
Empower Veterans with a career in vocational rehabilitation
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is urgently hiring vocational rehabilitation specialists and counselors to help Veterans build fulfilling, independent lives after injury, illness, or service-related transitions. Combine your clinical expertise, career counseling experience, and compassionate advocacy to support Veterans as they navigate employment, education, and long-term recovery goals. For those drawn to mission-driven work,…
A century of service: Navy Veteran celebrates milestone birthday
100 years, one incredible journey Employees and fellow Veterans came together at the Birmingham VA Clinic to celebrate a special milestone: the 100th birthday of World War II Navy Veteran Therold Roberts. Grit and determination Roberts didn’t ask for a big celebration, but he said that if anything was done, he wanted it to be…
Not fighting alone: A Veteran’s journey with VA’s TelePain program
“TelePain led me from silently struggling to shared healing.” For years after leaving the service, Marine Corps Veteran William Anthony Zullo’s body had become a ledger of old battles—more than 20 surgeries, chronic pain in almost every joint and migraines so fierce they could drop him where he stood. On damp, gray mornings in his…
Telehealth study for physical therapy is recruiting Veterans
The VA Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center is currently looking to recruit 126 Veterans nationwide by October 2026 for a telehealth physical therapy program. This program provides high-intensity rehabilitation, coaching and social support to Veterans. The purpose of this program is to see whether providing physical rehabilitation through telehealth is effective in improving and…
Improving care delivery with immersive technology
VA Immersive implements immersive technology across VA facilities Many people associate virtual reality (VR) headsets and augmented reality with gaming or other forms of entertainment, but health care professionals at VA see them as an opportunity to use immersive technology to significantly improve Veteran care. VA Immersive is a program that works to implement immersive…
From uniform to unforgettable: An unbroken line, three generations of service
For some Veterans, putting on the uniform is a single, defining chapter of their lives. But for Army Veteran Steven Jiggetts, military service is a family inheritance, an unbroken story shaped by profound sacrifice, quiet dedication and a deep love of country that spans three generations. Jiggetts’s understanding of duty began long before he ever…