VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System

VA ECHCS invites employees, veterans and non-veterans to participate in a Native American smudging ceremony at the Rocky Mountain Region VA Medical Center Chapel on Monday, May 18, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.  These events will occur on the third Monday of each month, unless it is a federal holiday, in which case, they will be held on the following Tuesday. Make sure to RSVP, and reach out to Ricky Lott in Chaplain Services at 720-723-6700 or by email at ricky.lott@va.gov

Driving to a Community Care appointment? You can get reimbursed for mileage. Make sure to get documentation from your provider before you leave. Learn more va.gov/eastern-colora…

Tornadoes happen, VA can help! For non-emergent medical advice, call or chat with VA Health Connect for virtual care. VA Health Connect Nurse Triage and Appointment Scheduling services are available by phone 24/7 nationwide. Prescription services are also available; call VA Health Connect for more information.

Discover Whole Health at VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System! Whole Health empowers YOU to take charge of your health and well-being by incorporating your goals, desires, and values into personalized care—shifting focus to "What matters to you?" Live your life to the fullest with our supportive programs. Learn more and explore classes: va.gov/eastern-colora…

Shared Medical Appointments are opening in multiple CBOCs across VA ECHCS. The Lindstrom, RMR, and Space Center clinics offer Diabetes and BP SMAs. Golden clinic has plans for a SMA later in the year, around August timeframe. A Shared Medical Appointment (SMA) is a healthcare model where multiple Veterans with similar conditions meet with a multidisciplinary team of healthcare providers. SMAs offer Veteran directed care with benefits like peer support, improved self-care, shared experiences, safety, nonjudgmental environment, and enhanced access to healthcare.

Shared Medical Appointments are opening in multiple CBOCs across VA ECHCS. The Lindstrom, RMR, and Space Center clinics offer Diabetes and BP SMAs. Golden clinic has plans for a SMA later in the year, around August timeframe. A Shared Medical Appointment (SMA) is a healthcare model where multiple Veterans with similar conditions meet with a multidisciplinary team of healthcare providers. SMAs offer Veteran directed care with benefits like peer support, improved self-care, shared experiences, safety, nonjudgmental environment, and enhanced access to healthcare.

The Combat Yoga class scheduled for today at 12:05 p.m., at the Golden Clinic is cancelled today due to inclement weather.

Come join us for Veteran Socials held at Logan House Coffee-Lowry, 7111 E. Lowery Blvd, in Denver, on May 15 and 19 and June 12 and 26, from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Friends, family, and caregivers are welcome. Let us know what you need and we can have some resources at future events. It can be anything from resources inside or outside of the VA. We look forward to seeing you there.

To our veterans, All VA ECHCS care sites are open and operating under normal conditions. The Executive Leadership Team and Emergency Management will continue to monitor conditions and provide updates as needed. We ask that veterans allow themselves extra time for their commutes to appointments.

The walk-in benefits office at PFC Floyd K. Lindstrom is closed today due to inclement weather. Personnel are not available to assist you in-person or virtually.

FINVET, the National Veterans Financial Resource Center, was created by the VA Office of Suicide Prevention because financial well-being is related to better mental health and lower risk of suicide. In line with the VA Suicide Prevention Strategy, FINVET takes a proactive approach to boost protective factors; making it easier for Veterans to find money resources, boost financial literacy, and navigate their financial journey. How does FINVET help veterans? •FINVET was created to help Veterans take control of their finances so they can live happier and healthier lives. •FINVET was designed specifically for Veterans as a one-stop website for finding the financial tools they need. •FINVET empowers Veterans to take charge of their finances through financial resources available to them. •FINVET connects Veterans to the resources, tools, and tips needed to meet basic needs, manage money more effectively, increase income, reduce debt, and protect money. •When Veterans feel less financial stress, they are much less likely to experience mental health symptoms. •Financial Well-Being = Better Mental Health •Visit the FINVET website to take the next steps in confidence, security, and peace of mind or check out this video on YouTube: youtube.com/watch?v=mmdmcT…

At VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System, we recognize that a warm, handmade blanket can bring immense comfort to veterans receiving inpatient care — whether for physical or mental health needs. We are seeking community volunteers to craft new, hand-knitted blankets (measuring 48x60 inches) for our hospitalized veterans. Your generous donation will offer both warmth and a tangible reminder of community support to those who have served our nation. If you are interested in donating one or more blankets, please contact Voluntary Service at va.volunteer@va.gov to arrange delivery. Thank you for helping us provide comfort and care to our Veterans.

Starting May 4, labs at the PFC Floyd K. Lindstrom VA Clinic will transition to "By appointment only." The clinic lab will maintain its current operating days and hours, and any unused appointment slots would be able to be used to book walk-in veterans if the slots are free. However, the primary booking for the lab will be by appointment only. The clinic lab will maintain its operating hours of 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be four lab appointments available every 15 minutes throughout the day. Walk-in labs are still available as deemed necessary by a provider, or the Veterans Express team, but are reserved for case-by-case basis. To schedule an appointment with the lab, veterans would still contact the main scheduling number at 719-327-5660 and ask to speak with scheduling.

VA Eastern Colorado is recruiting veterans who are experiencing, PTSD-related nightmares to participate in a research study to help us understand if improving sleep quality, by reducing the impact of nightmares, can improve cardiovascular health. To be eligible for the study, veterans must experience repetitive nightmares related to PTSD and be between the ages of 22 and 88 years old. If interested, use your phone to scan the QR code in the image provided and complete the optional preliminary eligibility survey. For any questions, contact Claire Cox at Claire.Cox@va.gov.

To our veterans living in Aurora and the surrounding area, the NADA (National Acupuncture Detoxification Association) walk-in acupuncture clinic at the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center that is on Thursdays, from 10 a.m. to noon, will be closed tomorrow, April 30, due to planned provider leave. This is a one-day closure, and the clinic will resume its weekly schedule the following Thursday, May 7.

The planned weekend maintenance on the North Gate here at Rocky Mountain Regional Medical Center is scheduled to take place this weekend, starting at 6 p.m., on Friday, April 24, and lasting until April 26. All traffic off of Wheeling to the north entrance will be closed (PVN, SCI and North Dropoff) during this time as well. Due to this scheduled maintenance, use of the North Parking garage (PVN) on those weekends will be prohibited. Please do not leave your car in the North Parking Garage after 6 p.m., April 24. The South gate, underground parking garage, will be available those weekends for patients and visitors.

How does the transition from military to civilian life affect later mental health? Rocky Mountain MIRECC researchers & other VA colleagues took a closer look. Read more in this VA News story: va.gov/boston-health-…

Prosthetics no longer offers walk-ins for softgood devices such as OTS braces, compression stockings etc. The Softgoods Clinic changed to a scheduled appointment clinic only, in early 2025. In addition, new mandatory Orthotic, Prosthetic & Pedorthic Clinical Services (OPPCS) national consults have been implemented which changed the process for providing veterans prosthetics prescribed items. With the new process, once your provider enters a OPPCS Prosthetics consult, clinical staff reviews the consult to either triage for scheduling into one of the VA prosthetics provider clinics, or the consult is referred to a community provider close to the Veterans home. We apologize for any inconvenience with this change which may delay the time it takes to receive your soft goods device or orthotic brace during this transition.

Prosthetics no longer offers walk-ins for softgood devices such as OTS braces, compression stockings etc. The Softgoods Clinic was changed to a scheduled appointment clinic only, back in early 2025. In addition, new mandatory OPPCS national consults have been implemented which changed the process for providing Veterans prosthetics prescribed items. With the new process, once your provider enters a OPPCS Prosthetics consult, clinical staff reviews the consult to either triage for scheduling into one of the VA prosthetics provider clinics, or the consult is referred to a community provider close to the Veterans home. We apologize for any inconvenience with this change which may delay the time it takes to receive your soft goods device or orthotic brace during this transition.

Attention Alamosa Veterans and those living in the surrounding area. The Alamosa Community Based Outpatient Clinic is tracking a potential power outage due to possible high winds in the area on Wednesday, April 22, and Thursday, April 23. At this time, nothing has been canceled or rescheduled, and we will contact you directly if any changes become necessary. In the interim, VA Health Connect is available for scheduling, nurse triage, pharmacy services, and acute virtual visits. To connect, call our main line at 303-399-8020 and follow the prompts. To track outages for Xcel Energy customers, see this link for more information: co.my.xcelenergy.com/s/outage-safet… Thank you for your patience and understanding. Stay safe! #VAHealth #VeteranCare #AlamosaCBOC #ColoradoVA #VAUpdate