VA pharmacists play a crucial role in helping you comprehend the proper use of your medications. VA pharmacists can provide direct assistance regarding your medications, including correct usage, expected effects, potential reactions and side effects. They can also advise on medication storage, food or activity restrictions and what to do if a dose is missed.…
Category: VA
Current Veterans Administration (VA) news and information
VA announces 2024 State of Innovation Report
For decades, innovation has fueled VA’s mission to deliver exceptional health care to Veterans. Early inventions, like the cardiac pacemaker, and recent innovations, like the radiotherapy bolus that helps protect cancer patients’ healthy tissue during treatment, serve as a testament to VA’s dedication to delivering high-quality health care. Since 2019, VHA’s Office of Healthcare Innovation…
Hero’s Hope program comforts Veterans in their final days
Cincinnati VA has introduced the Hero’s Hope initiative, an inspiring program dedicated to fulfilling the final wishes of Veterans in hospice care. By offering moments of joy, comfort and renewed purpose, this heartfelt endeavor aims to make a significant impact during Veterans’ final days. Dreamed of being a deputy sheriff Bob is deputized an honorary…
Care and research for Alzheimer’s and related dementias
Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) may face a heightened risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). Research shows that chronic stress from PTSD can accelerate brain aging while certain injuries to the spine can disrupt brain signals, both of which increase vulnerability to neurodegenerative conditions…
Check in on your health with MVP: Screen, detect, prevent
One of the most important things you can do for your health and longevity is take steps to prevent certain conditions from happening. Prevention, which works to keep you safe from and aware of the issues that may affect your path to healthy living, can take several forms. VA’s Million Veteran Program (MVP) is researching…
See how a clinical career at VA can make a difference for you
Every role matters in our mission to serve and support Veterans, and filling these critically needed clinical positions across VA means opportunities for you to not only make a difference in the lives of Veterans, but to find unity of purpose and the employment benefits you deserve. Whether you’re a physician, nurse, physician assistant, psychologist,…
PTSD Bytes – PTSD and chronic pain
In this episode of the PTSD Bytes podcast, host Dr. Colleen Becket-Davenport discusses PTSD and chronic pain with Dr. Jennifer Murphy, national director of VA’s Pain Management program and lead author for the VA’s Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain (CBT-CP) initiative and Dr. Katie Hadlandsmyth, clinical pain psychologist and health services researcher at Iowa…
Live Whole Health #244: Winning or losing
I’ve heard it said that there are only two things that motivate us—winning and trying not to lose. We get excited when we think we’re winning (“I got a great job,” “That was a fantastic meal I cooked,” “My daughter made the basketball team”) and anxious when we think we’re losing (“This traffic is going…
Coast Guard Veteran tells how VA Housing First changed his life
Coast Guard Veteran Grady Kendall shows how VA’s Housing First approach changes the lives of Veterans experiencing homelessness. He demonstrates this impact every day because it changed his life for the better when life knocked him down. Kendall enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1981, serving on the Coast Guard Cutter Westwind, an icebreaker…
27 “I CARE” awards in one year
Marc Robinson is a physician assistant working in primary care at a VA outpatient clinic in Cadillac, Michigan. In a single calendar year, he was recognized by Veterans, caregivers and coworkers with 27 “I CARE” awards. Marc Robinson I CARE awards recognize VA employees who have gone above and beyond in their role to care…
Baby shower a celebration of strength
Army Veteran Samantha Hoving (pictured above) was one of 49 women Veterans showered with love, gifts and support at Houston VA’s ninth annual Veteran baby shower in early October. Hoving, pregnant with baby number five, was thrilled to participate in the event. The baby shower was aimed at honoring women Veteran mothers-to-be in their third trimester…
Honoring Veterans: Navy Veteran Michael Clothier
This week’s Honoring Veterans spotlight honors the service of Navy Veteran Michael Clothier, who served from 1987 – 1991. Clothier was born in June 1965. After attending John Dickinson High School in Wilmington, Delaware, he matriculated at Hodgson Vocational School, where he discovered a love for electrical trades. He entered the Navy in October 1987…
