Monthly Archives: November 2016

As a national leader in oncology advancement and as the largest integrated healthcare system in the nation, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced an important and substantial partnership with the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) to prevent, screen and promote research to speed the development of treatments and cures for prostate cancer among Veterans. Announcement of the partnership was made during Launch Pad: Pathways to Cancer InnoVAtion, a joint VA/PCF summit held today that brings together world-class oncology experts, corporate and nonprofit partners to discuss research, big data, technology and clinical solutions to advance screening, diagnostics and care coordination for cancer and to promote the implementation of best practices across the VA healthcare system.

As a national leader in oncology advancement and as the largest integrated healthcare system in the nation, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced an important and substantial partnership with the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) to prevent, screen and promote research to speed the development of treatments and cures for prostate cancer among Veterans. Announcement of the partnership was made during Launch Pad: Pathways to Cancer InnoVAtion, a joint VA/PCF summit held today that brings together world-class oncology experts, corporate and nonprofit partners to discuss research, big data, technology and clinical solutions to advance screening, diagnostics and care coordination for cancer and to promote the implementation of best practices across the VA healthcare system.

Researchers at the Department of Veterans Affairs find both herbicide exposure and military service are associated with high blood pressure (hypertension) among Army Chemical Corps Vietnam era Veterans. Read the full story

Army Veteran Major Jeffrey Weinstock is very thankful this week for VA Telehealth. It saves him a 300-mile round-trip from Key West to Miami for a comprehensive hearing exam and new hearing aids Read the full story

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has received Hall of Fame recognition by the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCR) for achieving an 82 percent colorectal cancer screening rate, which exceeds the NCCR goal of 80 percent and the national average, which is in the 60 percent range. NCCR was established in 1997 by the American Cancer Society and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a national coalition of public, private and voluntary organizations along with invited individuals.

Veterans in Wisconsin spend a weekend at a special camp designed to help them learn about and deal with their diabetes. Veteran Steve Biever lost 56 pounds and thanks a VA nurse for saving his life. Read the full story

As part of its ongoing effort to engage and reach out to Veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs has launched a podcast titled ‘This Week at VA.’ The podcast will be produced weekly. Each episode will include information on benefits or products, interviews with Veterans, a highlighted Veteran of the Day and other helpful content. This week’s show features an interview with VA Secretary Robert A. McDonald.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced nine new strategic partnerships that will provide additional health care and support services for Veterans and their families. These new formal relationships are the latest in a series of strategic partnerships developed to bring the private and public sectors together with VA to enhance the Veteran experience.

Today, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs released a major update on the MyVA transformation, Secretary McDonald’s effort to transform VA into the top customer service agency in the federal government. This third edition of the program’s semi-annual report shows progress serving veterans with more services, in better time.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) launched a new Health IT initiative that enables VA to share medical records electronically with social security disabilty processors. This secure process will save time and money resulting in better service for Veterans and dependents who apply for social security disability benefits. The SSA requests nearly 15 million medical records from health care organizations yearly to make medical decisions on about three million disability claims. For decades, SSA obtained medical records through a manual process. This new national initiative puts in place an automated process to obtain Veterans’ medical records entirely electronically.