From VA Secretary Memorial Day May 25, 2020

                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                           

 

View a video of this message here.

      Our country has been blessed with men and women whose sacrifices allowed us to flourish as individuals, as a society and as a Nation. On Memorial Day, we pause to remember, honor and express
our gratitude to all those Americans who lost their lives in uniform. The names of many of them are forever memorialized in our Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), State Veterans and American Battle Monuments cemeteries across our country and around the world.

      It is true that this Memorial Day is somewhat different. As we fight the Coronavirus pandemic, we do not gather as we normally would to honor our Nation’s heroes. But we can still remember and honor them by spending a quiet moment paying homage to their courage and sacrifice.
I also encourage all Americans to pay tribute to deceased Veterans by visiting the Veterans Legacy Memorial. This site contains a memorial page for each Veteran interred in a VA national cemetery. Starting Thursday, May 14, online visitors will be able to leave a “tribute” text in memory   and appreciation for a Veteran’s service.

      At the end of his second inaugural address on March 4, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln asked that we remember the obligations our Nation has to those who made the ultimate sacrifice during the Civil War.

 His iconic speech, etched in granite at the Lincoln Memorial, still guides those of us privileged to work at VA today:

      “With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the Nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan …”

 Those words are the basis of our VA mission to care for our living Veterans and their families. That is why, later this year, we will memorialize in bronze Lincoln’s charge to the Nation in all our VA cemeteries.

      From generation to generation, Americans have answered the call to duty from Bunker Hill to Baghdad. In small skirmishes and epic battles, Americans of every generation have stepped forward to fight for freedom when called upon. And, they are doing so today as they stand guard across our Nation and around the world.

      May God bless those we honor today, those currently serving America in uniform and all our Nation’s Veterans.

  Robert L. Wilkie

NOTICE: Must Wear Face Covering Visiting VA Facilities

All individuals entering a VA facility, whether employees, patients, or visitors are required to wear face covering for the duration of their time on campus. Face coverings are normally cloth and are not considered PPE. The face covering must cover the mouth and nose, fit snugly, allow for breathing without restriction, and be laundered daily. Be careful when removing your face covering and do not touch your eyes, nose, and mouth when removing your face covering and wash your hands immediately after removing your face covering.

We’re doing everything to protect our Veterans and employees as we move through this Pandemic.

 

Information on face coverings from the CDC can be found here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/diy-cloth-face-coverings.html

 

VA Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center and Clinics Health Care System (VA SORCC) is taking extra precautions aimed at limiting COVID-19 exposure risk to Veterans, employees, volunteers, and visitors.

Veterans who are concerned they may have symptoms of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019), flu or cold should call 1-541-826-2111 to speak to their team before coming to VA SORCC facilties or send a secure message through My HealtheVet.

Our Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program (RRTP) is continuing to provide treatment and accepting requests for admission that follow a rigorous screening process; however, we are reducing passes from our RRTP program to reduce community exposure. If you have any questions, please contact our RRTP admission team at (541) 826-2111 ext. 3210

Beginning Wednesday, March 23^rd VASORCC will be performing drive-through health screenings. All Veterans, employees, visitors, volunteers and contractors will be screened before entering VA SORCC facilities. Grants Pass and Klamath Falls clinics will be screening at the main entrance. This may lengthen entry times, so patients are advised to allow for that when arriving for their appointments.

The screening consists of three questions:

1. Do you have a fever or worsening cough or shortness of breath or flu-like symptoms?
2. Have you or a close contact traveled to an area with widespread or sustained community transmission of COVID-19 within 14 days of symptom onset?
3. Have you been in close contact with someone, including health care workers, confirmed to have COVID-19?

 
Visitor policies are as follows:

• A temporary “no visitor” policy has been adopted at all VA SORCC facilities.
• visitors to the Domiciliary, Residential Units, and inpatient units is no longer permitted. These units are being strictly monitored to protect patients deemed more vulnerable and at higher risk.
• For outpatient clinic appointments, we strongly encourage Veterans to limit family members to one while accompanying them to their appointment or immediate caregivers only and no children under 12 years of age.

 
To help keep our Veterans and employees safe, we stronly encourage you to call your team prior to your scheduled appointment to determine if you are eligible to receive your care by telephone or video.

 Currently, the below services are temporarily on hold to help limit exposure of our high-risk Veterans in the community and on campus.

• Podiatry: tenotomy, toe-nail avulsion
• Orthopedics: joint injections
• Dental: only urgent procedures

 
VA SORCC has cancelled special events and/or activities and is temporarily ceasing all participation in public outreach events through April 30, 2020.

 We understands these actions may be inconvenient to some; however, these measures will help protect those who trust VA for their care and the employees who provide that care. Additional changes to our operations may be made as the situation changes.

 More information for Veterans is here: https://www.va.gov/coronavirus

For more information about COVID-19, visit the CDC Coronavirus Disease 2019 website.

“Stand Up to Stop Harassment Now!”

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is strongly committed to creating a Veteran-first organizational culture, rooted in VA's mission and core values, which engages and inspires employees to their highest possible level of performance and conduct.

VA is committed to a harassment-free healthcare environment for our staff, our Veterans and all visitors to our facilities. Dr. Richard Stone, Executive-In-Charge, is requesting that all facility employees publicly recommit to stopping harassment at all VA sites of care and are taking this opportunity to pledge that VA will “Stand Up to Stop Harassment Now!"

Harassment is a form of employment discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, (ADEA), and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, (ADA).

Harassment is unwelcome conduct that is based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. Harassment becomes unlawful where 1) enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of continued employment, or 2) the conduct is severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Anti-discrimination laws also prohibit harassment against individuals in retaliation for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or lawsuit under these laws; or opposing employment practices that they reasonably believe discriminate against individuals, in violation of these laws.

VA is committed to providing Veterans care in a safe and welcoming facility. Through staff training, VA is increasing the awareness of harassment and its impact and identifying what can be done to address the inappropriate treatment of Veterans and staff.

Harassment is disruptive to the overall Veteran experience and impacts access to care. Through action and accountability, all of us can significantly impact Veterans’ and all visitors’ experiences when they visit VA SORCC and our outreach clinics.

It is important that we together increase our efforts to ensure employees have a workplace environment that is free from intimidating, hostile, or offense behavior.

 
 

VA health care facilities to go smoke-free

VHA Modifies Policies to Increase Quality of Care to Veterans

WASHINGTON — As part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) commitment to provide excellent health care for Veterans, the department will implement a new policy restricting smoking by patients, visitors, volunteers, contractors and vendors at its health care facilities by October.

Although VA has historically permitted smoking in designated areas, there is growing evidence that smoking and exposure to secondhand and thirdhand smoke creates significant medical risks, and risks to safety and direct patient care that are inconsistent with medical requirements and limitations.  Accordingly, VA’s Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has collaborated with key stakeholders to update and recertify the policy to be consistent with the department’s commitment to Veterans and the community.

A recent VA survey revealed that approximately 85% of responding facility leadership support smoke-free campuses, and this new policy for patients, visitors, volunteers, contractors and vendors allows VA to ensure the health and well-being of VA staff, patients and the public.

“We are not alone in recognizing the importance of creating a smoke-free campus,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “As of 2014, 4,000 health care facilities and four national health care systems in the U.S. have implemented smoke-free grounds. This policy change coincides with additional VHA efforts to help us become the provider of choice for Veterans and the reason why Veterans will ChooseVA.”

VHA’s new smoke-free policy applies to cigarettes, cigars, pipes, any other combustion of tobacco and non-Federal Drug Administration approved electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), including but not limited to electronic or e-cigarettes, vape pens or e-cigars.

To learn more about health risks associated with smoking, visit the Surgeon General’s website at https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/reports-and-publications/tobacco/index.html or https://smokefree.gov/.

VHA has extensive resources and programs to assist Veterans in their smoke-free journey. They can be found at  https://www.mentalhealth.va.gov/quit-tobacco/.

For additional information about the policy visit: https://www.va.gov/vhapublications/ViewPublication.asp?pub_ID=8242

#Be There: For Our Nation’s Veterans Suicide Prevention

Suicide prevention is the top clinical priority for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and VA has adopted a public health approach to suicide prevention.

 

The goal of VA’s suicide prevention efforts is to ensure that wherever Veterans receive their care, through VA or in the community, that it be from a well-trained provider and within a community that respects and supports their strengths, skills, and experiences as a Veteran. This means using prevention approaches that cut across all sectors in which Veterans may interact, and collaborating with Veteran Service Organizations (VSOs), state and local leaders, medical professionals, criminal justice officials, private employers, and many other stakeholders.

Year-round, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) empowers communities to act to support our nation’s Veterans. Each community across the country plays a role in supporting Veterans, but as an individual you may not know what to do or where to start.

You don’t need to have special training to support the Veterans in your life, and we can all do something to help a Veteran who is going through a challenging time. Even seemingly small actions can have an enormous impact: Preventing suicide begins with just the willingness to #Be There.

Who is considered a Veteran?

The federal definition of a Veteran is any person who severed honorably on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States. In 2015 Veterans made up approximately 8%of the US population and 14% of all deaths by suicide that year were Veterans.  Suicide is a public health issue that affects people across the county, Veteran or civilian, but its effects are felt significantly in the Veteran population.  The VA has embarked on a comprehensive public health approach to reducing Veteran suicide rates.

 Why are suicide rates higher for Veterans?

Most suicide risk factors and protective factors are the same for Veterans and civilians but there are some experiences and characteristics that are related to military service.

Some of the shared risk factors between Veterans and civilians include physical and mental illness, substance use, chronic pain, life transitions, and bereavement. Shared protective factors include social connectedness, positive coping skills, access to mental health care, and having a sense of purpose.

Veteran-specific risk factors include transition-related challenges, posttraumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and experience with firearms. Veterans’ protective factors include resilience and having a sense of belonging.

 According to the most recent Centers for Disease Control (CDC) data suicide rates are climbing for the entire U.S. population – Veterans who do not use VHA health care have higher suicide rates than Veterans who seek care.

What should I do if a Veteran I know is in trouble?

VA uses the S.A.V.E. model to act with care and compassion when you encounter a Veteran experiencing a mental health crisis – the acronym helps remembering the important steps involved in suicide prevention:

S – Signs of suicidal thinking should be recognized.

A – Ask the most important question of all. “Are you thinking about killing yourself.”

V – Validate the Veteran’s experience.

E – Encourage treatment, and Expedite getting help.

 

If you have identified warning signs or symptoms of a Veteran being in mental health crisis or suicidal asking them if they are having suicidal thoughts is a very important protective step. It allows the Veteran to talk openly about suicide.  As a person responding to someone in crisis, recognize the situation is serious and you may need to call for additional help.  Do your best not to pass judgement and reassure the Veteran that help is available.

 

What should I do if I think a Veteran is suicidal?

• Do not keep the Veteran’s suicidal behavior a secret
• Do not leave him or her alone
• Try and get the Veteran to seek immediate help from his or her doctor, mental health provider or the nearest hospital emergency room
• Call 911
• Call the Veterans Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1

For more information, training and/or volunteer opportunities please contact your nearest VA or Vet Center by using www.va.gov/directory.

VA – Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center and Clinics & the Community Based Outpatient Clinics in Grants Pass and Klamath Falls offer mental health services.  For more information on the services provided www.southernoregon.va.gov. or call 541-830-7585

 

VA Suicide Prevention Coordinator Find your local SPC at VeteransCrisisLine.net/ResourceLocator.