What are the unique elements of caring for people who are Veterans in integrated primary care? How can we best understand, asses and plan care in ways that best meet their needs?

Our goal in this training module is to ensure our integrating primary care physical and behavioral health care providers have the most current and relevant information to care for our Veterans. Providers will be best positioned to care for Veterans when they know who has served our Country. In many cases people are not asked, when scheduling with a primary care practice, to indicate if they are a Veteran. As a result, providers do not know to assess and care for people in ways that account for the unique health concerns often associated with having served for our country.

Frequently people who are Veterans experience disturbances in sleep, mood, and attention. Their health care needs are often highly complex – which can be complicated by a sense of discomfort due to their experiences during their time of service. Factors that add to the complexity can include layered trauma, from repetitive combat deployments, compounded by compromised cognition from traumatic brain injuries, sleep disturbances and pain from injury. It is critical that providers listen with the head and heart – to understand their Veteran patients’ as whole people.

Learning Objectives

After completing this module, the learner should be able to:

• Recognize the impact your interactions as a provider may have when you are working with your Veteran patients.
• Recognize ways to adapt your relationships and care delivery to every Veteran who seeks your care.
• Describe the specific ways you and your team can create a practice environment that puts your veteran patients at ease when seeking care.
• Know where you can seek information regarding the needs and challenges of Veterans seeking care in the non-VA primary care practice setting.

Who Should Complete this Module?

The information in this module is valuable for all integrated team members including physicians, clinicians, nurses, behavioral health providers, medical assistants, front & back office, and care managers.

The project described was supported by Funding Opportunity Number CMS-1G1-14-001 from the U.S Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The Colorado State Innovation Model (SIM), a four-year initiative, is funded by up to $65 million from CMS. The content provided is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of HHS or any of its agencies.