Health services

The registered nurses on our Nurse Advice Line provide you and your family with helpful medical advice and free, confidential answers to many of your health care questions. Call anytime. We’re here 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In addition, our nurses can:

• Help you manage many of your basic health care needs
• Answer questions about your current medications or medical condition
• Discuss your health care concerns and help you decide the best way to handle them
• Offer improved access to VA services

Whole Health puts you at the center of care, rather than your illnesses or conditions. We work with you to develop a personalized health plan based on your values, needs and goals.

Our Whole Health approach empowers and equips you to take charge of your health, well-being, and quality of life. Whole Health goes beyond your illnesses, injuries, or disabilities, and focuses instead on your values, goals, and overall health. It includes self-care and complementary therapies that have evidence behind them along with conventional medical care.

Our Whole Health program includes:

• Personal Health Planning including development of mission, aspiration and purpose in addition to SMART goals for your care.
• Meditation and mindfulness training
• Virtual Healthy Teaching Kitchen
• Yoga and Qi Gong classes
• Massage and other manual therapies
• Whole Health Coaching
• Whole Health Partner Support
• Acupuncture and acupressure to help you manage pain without drugs
• Battlefield acupuncture or protocolized needling and Auricular acupressure
• Biofeedback
• Creative Arts Women’s Health group
• Whole Health Clinical Care and Consult Service including Functional Medicine evaluation

Learn more about VA Whole Health

Whole health class and event calendar  

• Women’s Health Creative Arts Group: contact Michelle Grevelding: Michelle.Grevelding@va.gov
• Healthy Teaching Kitchen: contact Monica Sathyamurthy: Monica.Sathyamurthy@va.gov 
• Women Veteran’s Healthy Teaching Kitchen: contact Hillary Cashier: Hillary.cashier@va.gov

For an appointment with a coach or for a class/workshop, call  or ext. 57485 

We provide emergency medical care 24 hours a day, every day. Our emergency room staff can help you with:

• Life-threatening illnesses and injuries that require immediate attention
• Urgent medical issues that must be treated right away
• Psychiatric evaluations

We assess your situation and condition to decide which outpatient geriatric services are right for you or a senior Veteran in your care, and then we coordinate your care. Our team of specialists provides geriatric services that include:

• Medicine and nursing
• Psychology, psychiatry, and social work
• Physical and occupational therapy

Learn more about VA long-term care

Our gynecologists focus on the female reproductive system and provide services that include:

• Mammograms for breast cancer, screenings for sexually transmitted disease, and Pap tests for cervical cancer
• Counseling and treatment for contraception, pregnancy, and infertility
• Osteoporosis screening for brittle bones
• Exams for abnormal uterine bleeding, pelvic pain, or various cancers
• Primary care checkups

Our pharmacy provides you and other Veterans with convenient, efficient service to make it easy to get your medications and medical supplies. You can:

• Pick up new prescriptions in person
• Refill prescriptions online and by phone or mail
• Safely dispose of medicines

Learn more about our pharmacy

Your VA primary care provider will work closely with you to plan for all the care you need to stay healthy and well throughout your life, including immunizations and vaccinations. They will also work with family members or caregivers who support you.

A strong network of family and internal medicine specialists and services can offer you the best possible care. Internal medicine doctors (internists) prevent, diagnose, and treat adult diseases. Doctors who specialize in family medicine provide primary health care to the entire family. Your primary care team can coordinate the many services you receive such as:

• Labs and blood work
• Mental health care
• Women's health care
• Radiology
• Social services
• Telehealth

We offer women’s health services to meet your specific needs such as disease screenings, mental health treatment, recovery from military sexual trauma, maternity care and female-specific medical equipment.

Our women's health program offers complete health care for women Veterans of all ages. Our primary care providers specialize in women’s health. They work closely with specialists in gynecology, obstetrics, female urology, oncology, medicine, radiology, surgery, and breast illness. Our services for women Veterans include:

• Ultrasounds, mammograms, Pap and HPV tests
• Mental health care and counseling
• Lifestyle wellness services
• Menopause treatment, including hormonal therapy
• Family planning, contraceptive care, and infertility evaluation

Learn more and connect with a care coordinator

To make or change an appointments call the Women's Health Clinic at the location you receive services:

 

• Syracuse VA:
• Auburn CBOC:
• Binghamton CBOC:
• Massena CBOC:
• Oswego CBOC:
• Rome CBOC: option 2, option 2
• Tompkins/Cortland County CBOC:      
• Watertown CBOC:

 Health care services for Veterans are provided by VA providers or accredited community providers. Every woman Veteran has the right to a health care provide trained in women’s health.  Women may also request a female or male provider at their discretion.

We help Veterans on their recovery journey through outpatient and inpatient services. Our residential facility helps Veterans deal with substance abuse, homelessness, mental health, and unemployment through its 24-hour therapeutic and educational programs like:

• Rehabilitation
• Health maintenance
• Community support

Learn more about our VA treatment programs

Our medical center and clinics provide consultation, evaluation, and treatment for a range of issues that may impact your mental health or emotional well-being. Our confidential outpatient services include individual and group therapy for:

• Psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression
• Marriage and relationship problems
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Anxiety, addictive behaviors, and personality disorders
• Aggressive or self-harming behaviors

Learn more and connect with a support coordinator

We offer care for military sexual trauma in our mental (behavioral) health clinics. Military sexual trauma refers to sexual assault, sexual harassment, or other threatening, offensive, or unwanted sexual advances, activities, or remarks that you experienced in the military. Our goal is to help you improve your quality of life with strategies to manage emotions and memories related to your military sexual trauma.

Military Sexual Trauma Office: ension 51033. 

Services include:

• Counseling
• Psychiatric care
• Walk-in care

Learn more about military sexual trauma

National Domestic Violence Hotline - 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)

If you have symptoms of PTSD after a traumatic event, we can help. We offer assessment and treatment support such as private counseling, group therapy and medication. It’s never too late to get help.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident, or sexual assault. It’s normal to have upsetting memories, feel on edge, or have trouble sleeping after this type of event. If symptoms last more than a few months, it may be PTSD. We can help you with effective treatments and support services, like:

• Psychiatric and psychological counseling
• Services for Veterans who are homeless
• Treatment for addictive disorders
• Transition and care management for post-9/11 combat Veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), and Operation New Dawn (OND)

Learn more about PTSD

We work with behavioral health providers and community organizations to help you and your family during times of crisis. We offer:

• Suicide prevention care coordinators
• Suicide prevention case managers
• Gun safety locks

Learn more and connect with a care coordinator

Our Audiology and Speech Pathology clinic provides diagnostic and rehabilitative services, VA compensation and pension examinations, and screening for employee hearing conservation. We offer a full range of audiology and speech pathology services like:

• Hearing and balance evaluations
• Selection, management, and repair of hearing aids and assistive listening device assessments
• Evaluation, programming, and management of cochlear implants and bone-anchored implants
• Evaluation and treatment for auditory processing disorder
• Services that help with speech, language, fluency, voice, cognitive communication, swallowing, stuttering, and laryngectomy (surgical removal of the larynx, which contains your vocal cords)

Learn more about VA hearing aids

Our low vision outpatient clinic can assess your needs and provide a rehab plan tailored to your personal goals. Our team of specialists and social workers will work with you to find the right aids and services. Our clinic services include:

• Comprehensive eye exams
• Visual skills assessments
• Guidance on how to develop visual motor and perceptual skills
• Training to help you manage daily activities with your vision loss

If you’re diagnosed with cancer, our team will work with you, your primary care doctor, and other health care providers to develop a specialized treatment plan. We offer personal, compassionate, and expert care, with services like:

• Surgical removal of tumors and other cancerous tissue
• Immunotherapy, which helps your body’s natural defenses destroy cancer cells
• Chemotherapy, which uses powerful drugs to fight cancer
• Radiotherapy, which uses high-energy radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors
• Palliative care, to reduce pain and control other symptoms and side effects, like nausea

We perform noninvasive and minimally invasive tests and procedures that check, support, and improve your heart health. We’ll work with you to develop a personalized treatment plan and treat you with the most effective medications. Our services include:

• Evaluating you for coronary heart disease, heart-valve disease, and heart defects
• Determining how well blood flows through your heart vessels or find the cause of your heart failure
• Treating your heart vessels with nonsurgical or minimally invasive operations that open and support them through balloon angioplasty or stent placement
• Noninvasively monitoring you for changes in heart rhythm, using electrocardiograms (EKGs or ECGs), portable Holt monitors, or ultrasound
• Performing surgical treatments like pacemaker implants or cardiac catheterization (inserting a long, thin tube into an artery or vein)

Chiropractic care restores, improves, and maintains your function, activity, and health. We work with your primary care doctor and other specialty care providers to provide a complete health care plan for you. We offer many treatments, like:

• Spinal manipulative therapy to relieve pressure on your joints, reduce inflammation, and improve nerve function
• Electrical stimulation therapy, which reduces pain by sending mild electrical pulses through your skin to help stimulate injured muscles or manipulate nerves
• Soft-tissue mobilization, which uses gentle pressure or massage to relax tense muscles, reduce scar tissue, or stretch connective tissue
• Flexion Distraction therapy for nerve impingement/disc/degenerative conditions.
• Ultrasound to reduce inflammation/promote healing.
• Patient education to teach techniques for active patient participation in the management of acute and chronic conditions.

If you’re eligible for VA dental care, we offer a full range of quality dental services like:

• Routine exams and teeth cleaning
• Restorative procedures, including fillings and crowns
• Comprehensive surgical care, including extractions (pulling teeth) and oral cancer screening
• Routine and advanced prosthodontic care, including bridges, dentures, and dental implants
• Routine and advanced periodontal care, including root canals, gum treatments, and supporting bone care
• Oral and facial reconstruction surgery to repair damage from traumatic injury or serious illness

We provide care for many medical and surgical skin conditions. Our dermatology services include:

• Medically necessary treatments for skin conditions like skin cancer and rashes
• Specialized treatments for acute (short-term) and chronic (long-lasting) skin conditions, like psoriasis, eczema, warts, and fungal illnesses
• Evaluation, biopsy, and treatment of cancerous or pre-cancerous skin conditions, like abnormal moles and lesions.
• Referrals for complex conditions
• Teledermatology (a telehealth resource), which gives patients quick access to expert opinions

We offer many medical and support services to help you manage your diabetes, like:

• Self-management, education, and support classes
• Insulin therapy and blood-glucose meter training
• Diabetes survival skills that include sick-day management, lifestyle changes, nutrition advice, and cooking classes

We diagnose and treat medical conditions in your esophagus, stomach, intestines, colon, and other parts of your digestive system. We can also test and treat other organs, like your liver, pancreas, and gallbladder. Our gastroenterology department provides services like:

• Colonoscopy, esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), which use an endoscope (a long, flexible tube with a small camera on the end) that lets us examine your digestive system
• Endoscopic ultrasound, which uses high-frequency sound waves to create images that help us diagnose and evaluate digestive and lung diseases
• Manometry study, which tests how well your esophagus is working
• Small bowel capsule endoscopy, which uses a tiny wireless camera that takes pictures as it moves through your digestive system
• 24-hour pH study, which measures how much stomach acid is flowing into your esophagus and helps us assess conditions like severe heartburn and acid reflux

If you and your family are living with HIV or hepatitis, our dedicated professionals can provide compassionate care and counseling. Our confidential services include:

• Hepatitis C screening
• HIV testing and treatment
• Medication (PEP) taken after potential exposure to HIV
• Specialty care referrals
• One-to-one patient education

Our laboratories provide a full range of clinical and diagnostic testing services. Our laboratory and pathology services include:

• Study of blood, urine, and other bodily fluids for illness management
• Testing for infectious diseases
• Cytopathology (study of unusual cells) and surgical pathology (study of tissue removed during surgery)
• Autopsy services

MOVE! is a weight-management program designed to help you live a longer, healthier life. With the help of your MOVE! care team, you can eat a healthier diet, get more exercise, reduce your health risks, and improve your quality of life. The MOVE! program offers:

• Weight-loss support groups to help you lose weight and keep it off
• Healthy eating tips and cooking classes
• Behavioral change strategies to help you live a healthier lifestyle

Learn more about MOVE!

Our team of kidney doctors (nephrologists) actively manage all aspects of adult kidney disease, kidney and bladder stones, renal hypertension (high blood pressure caused by kidney disease), and mineral and bone disorders. We provide inpatient and outpatient services, like:

• Dialysis preparation and referral
• Home patient monitoring
• Kidney transplant evaluation
• Kidney disease education

We provide inpatient and outpatient services for chronic diseases and disorders that affect your brain, spine, and the nerves that connect them. Our neurologists read electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings, which measure the electrical impulses brain cells use to communicate with each other. We evaluate and treat many neurological illnesses and disorders such as:

• Neuropathy (nerve damage), myelopathy and other spinal cord injuries, and radiculopathy (pinched nerves)
• Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis
• Stroke, dementia, and degenerative diseases
• Other neurological conditions

Our registered dietitians can help you maintain or improve your health with good nutrition tailored to your needs. Through group, individual, and telehealth sessions, we provide nutrition education and counseling in areas such as:

• Cardiovascular and heart health
• Chronic kidney disease
• Diabetes (including gestational diabetes)
• Eating disorders and digestive health
• Pregnancy and postpartum nutrition
• Weight management

We offer comprehensive evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment for eye-related illnesses, injuries, and other issues. Our ophthalmology services include:

• Medical care for glaucoma, eye infections, and other conditions
• Surgery for cataracts, traumatic eye injuries, and other problems
• Treatment for eye conditions related to illnesses like diabetes or arthritis
• Plastic surgery to repair droopy eyelids, clear blocked tear ducts, and perform eyelid and facial reconstruction (oculoplastics)

Our optometrists provide many eye-related services and treatments like:

• Vision services and eye exams
• Treatment for diseases and injuries of the retina, cornea, and other parts of your eye
• Low-vision services for conditions like macular degeneration that can’t be corrected by glasses, surgery, or medication
• Special eye exams for diabetic patients

We use surgical and nonsurgical means to treat illnesses and disorders of the musculoskeletal system, which includes your bones, muscles, joints, cartilage, tendons, ligaments, and other connective tissue. We treat conditions like:

• Musculoskeletal trauma
• Degenerative illnesses
• Sports injuries

We evaluate, diagnose, and treat a wide range of ear, nose, and throat conditions, like:

• Nasal and sinus problems
• Obstructive sleep apnea
• Throat, lymph node, thyroid, and parathyroid tumors and other conditions
• Voice and swallowing disorders

Acute (short-term) or chronic (long-lasting) pain can make it hard to enjoy life, but effective pain management can help. Our experts work with you, your primary care physician, and other specialists to create a plan to help you manage your pain and improve your quality of life. Our services include:

• Chiropractic care to relieve pain without medication
• Prescribing and supervising your use of medications
• Teaching you skills that include meditation, mindfulness training, relaxation, yoga, and tai chi to help you manage your pain
• Providing physical therapy, acupuncture, massage, biofeedback, and other compatible therapies

Our palliative and hospice care services support you and your family as you cope with a life-threatening or terminal illness. Palliative care works to provide comfort, reduce suffering, and improve the quality of life for patients being treated for serious illnesses. Hospice care focuses on helping patients with terminal illnesses to manage the final stages of their lives. Our palliative and hospice care services include:

• Pain and symptom management
• Emotional, spiritual, and psychosocial support for you and your family
• Help with practical issues that include an advance directive (living will), health care power of attorney, funeral arrangements, and applying for VA death and burial benefits
• Education to help you and your family make informed health care decisions and know what to expect as your health declines
• Bereavement care to help surviving family members during the grieving process

Specialty services with:  Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech Language Pathology, Recreational Therapy, Rehabilitation Psychologists, Chiropractic Providers, Orthotist/Prosthetists, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians

Settings of care provided:  Acute Inpatient Rehab Unit (CARF Accredited), Outpatient clinics

Our physical medicine and rehabilitation doctors and therapists focus on whole-body health. They can help you manage your pain, increase your independence, and improve your quality of life with services like:

• Personalized therapy for your rehabilitation
• Medication, stretching, and massage for short-term pain relief
• Tone/spasticity (abnormal tightness)  management
• Strengthening exercises and movement therapy to increase fitness and prevent future pain
• Recreation therapy to create coping and social skills
• Adaptive sports
• Occupational therapy to improve coordination and balance, and help you manage life skills and everyday activities
• Assessment and treatment of speech, language, and swallowing disorders
• Electrodiagnosis/EMG (nerve and muscle) testing
• Chiropractic care and adjustments
• Fitting of specialized footgear, bracing (orthotics), prosthetics devices and amputee care

Physical therapy, occupational therapy and kinesiotherapy can help restore movement and function if you have been disabled by injury or disease.

If you’re living with or recovering from an injury, illness, or chronic condition that limits your mobility and independence, we can help. Our physical, occupational, and movement therapists combine therapeutic exercise, counseling, education, and training to help you improve your health and quality of life.

Our services include:

• Pain relief and joint mobilization
• Movement and exercise therapies to improve your strength, endurance, balance, and coordination
• Mobility assessment and training with wheelchairs, scooters, and walking devices
• Life skills training and activities to help you maintain the highest level of independence and functionality
• Aquatic therapy to manage chronic pain
• Evaluation and treatment for a wide range of medical, orthopedic, psychosocial, and neurological conditions
• Pelvic floor/incontinence therapies
• Vestibular services for those with balance and vestibular dysfunction
• Drivers rehabilitation assessments

Our podiatry specialists evaluate and treat a wide range of injuries, diseases and disorders that affect your feet and ankles—from ingrown toenails to inflammation to diabetic foot ulcers.

After years of walking, running, marching, jumping, rappelling, and parachuting, many Veterans experience trouble with their feet and ankles. We can help treat those problems so you can continue to enjoy an active lifestyle. Our podiatry services include:

• Arthritis care for inflamed, swollen, or damaged joints
• Foot and ankle fracture treatment; repair of cartilage, torn tendons and ligaments
• Injections to reduce pain and swelling
• Joint arthroplasty (surgical repair or reconstruction) and replacement
• Minimally invasive surgery and post-surgical rehabilitation
• Foot health maintenance procedures (bunion removal, resurfacing, and nail trimming)

Our specialized rehabilitation program network serves severely injured Veterans and service members who have multiple combat- or civilian-related traumatic injuries. We offer:

• Physical, visual, and cognitive rehabilitation
• State-of-the-art prosthetics
• Psychological and psychosocial services
• Ongoing case management services

We provide and help you use medical aids, hearing aids, state-of-the-art adaptive home equipment and other equipment to help you preserve and increase your mobility and independence.

VA is the world’s largest and most comprehensive provider of sensory aides and prosthetic devices. Veterans enrolled in the VA health care system and referred by a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician can receive a full range of services and equipment like:

• Artificial limbs and surgical implants, including artificial joints and pacemakers
• Wheelchairs and other medical devices
• Aids for Veterans who are blind, have low vision, or are hearing impaired
• Adaptive equipment and modifications to make your vehicle or home more accessible
• Other devices and services to help increase your mobility, dignity, and independence
• Clothing allowance for Veterans with devices that damage their clothing

We offer radiology and imaging services to diagnose and treat many medical conditions. Our services include:

• X-ray
• Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA)
• Ultrasound
• Computer tomography (CT)
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

• Nuclear medicine

• Interventional radiology

We provide long-term care to help you and your family when you’re dealing with a disability, chronic (long-lasting) illness, terminal illness, or serious health issues related to aging. Our long-term health care services include:

• 24/7 nursing and medical care
• Physical therapy
• Help with daily tasks like bathing, dressing, making meals, and taking medicine
• Pain management and palliative care to relieve suffering and improve quality of life for people with serious illnesses
• Hospice care to provide comfort and compassionate care for people in the last phases of an incurable illness
• To learn more about the different types of extended care that VA provides, see our guide to long-term services and support.

Learn more about VA long-term care

If you are trying to quit smoking or want to stop using tobacco, we can help you with support, resources and programs.

You can quit smoking or chewing tobacco. Our goal is to provide support and strategies to add to optional nicotine replacement therapy prescribed by your primary care doctor. These include:

• FDA-approved medications to manage nicotine withdrawal and the urge to smoke.
• Counseling in person or by phone
• Tobacco Cessation Quitline for individual counseling and strategies
• SmokefreeVET text message program for daily advice and interactive support
• Stay Quit Coach mobile app to help you quit smoking and stay smoke-free

Learn more about how to quit

If you have a spinal cord injury or disorder, our specialists provide coordinated care throughout your life. We work to help you achieve your goals for independence, productivity and quality of life.

At the Syracuse VA Medical Center, we offer a nationally renowned Spinal Cord Injury and Disorders program. Our highly skilled team delivers comprehensive, multidisciplinary care to Veterans facing the unique medical challenges associated with SCI/D.

These challenges include, but are not limited to:

Pressure Injuries and skin problems

Bowel, bladder, and sexuality

Autonomic Dysreflexia

Sexual Health and Intimacy

If you are having surgery, we make sure that your procedure and follow-up care are safe and high-quality.

We provide a wide range of surgical services, like:

• General surgery
• Anesthesia
• Cardiac surgery (heart and major blood vessels)
• Neurosurgery (brain, spinal column, and nerves)
• Orthopedic surgery (bones, muscles, ligaments, joints, and tendons)
• Organ and tissue transplants

Get your toxic exposure screening 

All Veterans enrolled in VA health care can receive a toxic exposure screening at an upcoming appointment or sooner by contacting a Toxic Exposure Screening Navigator. All enrolled Veterans should receive the screening at least once every five years.

It’s a quick 5-10 minute screening to identify any potential exposures to toxins during your military service.  Depending on your response, you may be connected to support and resources, including a review by your primary care team. .

Potential exposures could include:

• Open Burn Pits/Airborne Hazards. Learn more:  Air Pollutants - Public Health (va.gov)
• Gulf War-related exposures. Learn more: Gulf War Exposures - Public Health (va.gov)
• Agent Orange. Learn more:  Agent Orange - Public Health (va.gov)
• Radiation. Learn more:   Radiation - Public Health (va.gov)
• Camp Lejeune contaminated water exposure. Learn more: Camp Lejeune: Past Water Contamination - Public Health (va.gov) 

Learn more about the PACT Act

The PACT Act is a new law that expands VA health care and benefits for Veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances. Learn more at The PACT Act And Your VA Benefits | Veterans Affairs

1. Learn more: Military Exposures - Public Health (va.gov)
2. https://news.va.gov/110809/fast-facts-toxic-exposure-screening/
3. https://www.warrelatedillness.va.gov/WARRELATEDILLNESS/education/toxicexposurescreeninformation.asp
4. https://www.va.gov/files/2022-11/VA%20Exam%20Screening%20Differences%20V11.8.22%201245hrs.pdf

We evaluate, diagnose, and treat a wide range of urology diseases and conditions that include kidney stones, erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence, prostate cancer, and more. We provide you with medical care, surgery, and minimally invasive procedures for health issues that affect:

• Kidneys
• Bladder
• Ureter and urethra
• Male reproductive organs

Our expert team diagnoses and treats diseases and conditions that affect arteries, veins and blood circulation.

Our vascular surgeons treat illnesses of your arteries and veins. Our surgeons can treat these problems with medication and exercise. Vascular illness causes include:

• Arteriosclerosis and/or atherosclerosis (caused by the buildup of plaque in your arteries that restricts blood flow to your organs and tissues)
• Aortic aneurysm and aortic valve disease
• Deep vein thrombosis and blockage by a blood clot or fatty deposit
• Varicose veins
• Vasculitis (inflammation of your blood vessels)
• Varicose veins
• Trauma or injury

If you’re a caregiver for a Veteran, you can get support by contacting one of our caregiver support coordinators.  If the Veteran you care for incurred or aggravated a serious injury in the line of duty on or before May 7, 1975 or on or after September 11, 2001, you may be eligible for additional benefits, including a monthly stipend, training, and health insurance coverage if you are not already covered.

For all caregivers, we can:

• Help you get caregiver assistance available through VA
• Provide progressive needs planning to help you manage degenerative conditions
• Match you with services and benefits
• Connect you with local resources and programs
• Listen to you when you struggle

Learn more and connect with a support coordinator

We help Veterans who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless due to financial hardship, unemployment, addiction, depression, or transition from jail. Contact one of our care coordinators to get help with:

• Immediate food and shelter needs, including both transitional and permanent housing
• Job training, life skills development, and education
• Justice system navigation and community reentry from jail
• Financial support to prevent homelessness
• Addiction and depression treatment
• Health and dental care

Learn more and connect with a support coordinator

We promote the health, welfare, and dignity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ+) Veterans and their families. We focus on ensuring a safe, welcoming, and affirmative environment when providing you with sensitive and high-quality health care services like:

• Hormone therapy
• Substance use and alcohol treatment
• Testing and treatment for HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI)
• Mental health care
• Psychosocial assessments for gender-confirming surgeries and hormone therapy

Learn more and connect with a support coordinator

If you’re a minority Veteran, we can help you get the services and benefits you need. Our Minority Veterans Program serves all Veterans who are Black American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American (including American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Island Americans). We work to:

• Help the medical center address minority Veterans’ needs
• Meet minority Veterans’ needs in the local community
• Identify barriers and create a more accessible environment for minority Veterans
• Inform minority Veterans of VA benefits, services, and programs

Learn more and connect with a support coordinator

Our patient advocates work hard to make sure you receive the best possible care at our health care facilities. They can:

• Help you get answers or address concerns with your care team
• Advocate for patient and family rights
• Serve as advocates for minority Veterans, women Veterans, and Veterans with disabilities
• Offer specialized help to former prisoners of war and Veterans transitioning from Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), and Operation New Dawn (OND)

Learn more and connect with a patient advocate

If you were exposed to toxic chemicals or other hazards during your military service, we offer you a free exam. This exam helps you identify potential health risks and helps us monitor issues so we can better serve you.

This free, voluntary, and comprehensive health exam involves an exposure and medical history, laboratory tests, and a physical exam. We will discuss your results in a face-to-face meeting and follow up with a letter. The registry evaluation, which does not verify exposure, is separate from VA’s disability compensation process. You may be eligible to participate in one or more of these health registries if you served during these time periods:

• Ionizing radiation (1940s to 1960s)
• Agent Orange (1960s and 1970s)
• Airborne hazards and open burn pit (1990s to present)
• Gulf War (1990s to present)
• Depleted uranium (DU) (1990s to present)
• Toxic embedded fragments/shrapnel (2000s to present)

Learn more about VA Health Registry

If you’re returning from military service, we can help you readjust to civilian life and get started with VA health care. We can also help connect you with programs like mental health services and education and career counseling.

We can help you readjust to civilian life if you’re returning from military service, on active duty, or an activated National Guard or Reserve member. Talk to one of our care coordinators about how to best use your health care benefits.

• Polytrauma care (if you have multiple traumatic injuries)
• Counseling and rehabilitation
• Mental and behavioral health services
• Family benefits counseling and assistance
• Referral assistance

Learn more and connect with a coordinator

My HealtheVet is a web-based tool you can use to manage your care and improve your health from your computer or mobile device. You can access your personal health records and use tools to manage your care through our My HealtheVet online system. You can also use My HealtheVet to refill your prescriptions, track appointments, and read informative health articles. If you need help using My HealtheVet, you can contact our coordinator by phone or in person. With My HealtheVet, you can:

• Ask questions and exchange secure online messages with your VA health care team
• Check your lab and test results
• Refill your prescriptions, track delivery, and view a list of your medications
• Keep track of your VA medical appointments and get email reminders
• View, download, or print a copy of your VA medical records
• Enter or update your personal information

Learn more and register for My HealtheVet

We use the latest in secure digital technology to set up remote visits with our health care providers. We offer video conferencing, home telehealth services, and store-and-forward telehealth that lets you securely send your health information to experts at VA facilities. We offer telehealth visits with providers in:

• Mental health
• Retinal care (eye)
• Bariatric surgery (visit remotely with your weight-loss surgery team before and after your operation)
• Dermatology
• Rehabilitation
• Primary care

Learn more about telehealth

Vocational Rehabilitation Services (VRS) offers therapeutic assistance to Veterans with barriers to employment who are committed to setting vocational goals and addressing identified barriers. VRS helps Veterans to explore career options and understanding the qualifications of these goals with consideration to their unique interests and needs. Our Mission is to provide Veterans with guidance, skills, resources, and therapeutic support to develop and achieve their professional goals.

Benefits of Working & Vocational Rehabilitation

• Professional Identity
• Improved Quality of Life
• Independence
• Physical/Mental Wellness
• Access to Employer Benefits
• Financial Security
• Sense of purpose
• Socialization
• Opportunity to learn skills
• Structure & Routine

Services Available by Clinically Trained Counselors

• Counseling on a 1:1 basis to work towards unique professional goals
• Career Exploration & Career Development
• Vocational Testing & Assessments
• Transitional Work Experience: work hardening experience as clinically appropriate
• Supported Employment supports for Veterans with serious mental illness
• Documentation Preparation, Job Seeking, Transition to Work, & Job Maintenance Supports
• Education & Vocational Planning & Support
• Self-Employment Supports
• Benefits Counseling
• Group Education Opportunities
• Opportunities to Mock-Interview with Community Employers

Eligibility & Referral Process

• Must be eligible for services and registered with Syracuse VA Medical Center Healthcare
• Have a medical diagnosis of physical, mental, emotional, substance use, or homelessness that creates a barrier to employment that you want to actively work on overcoming
• Get a referral from a prescribing provider (primary care provider or psychiatrist)
• Once a referral is received, you will be assigned to a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

Specialized Programs

Compensated Work Therapy (CWT) is a recovery-oriented, vocational model in the continuum of the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) work restoration services authorized by 38 USC Section 1718.

            CWT Transitional Work (TW)

            CWT Supported Employment (SE)

            CWT Community-Based Employment Services (CBES)

Vocational Assistance: a set of assessment, guidance, counseling, and other related service that may be offered to groups or individuals.

To learn more about VHA Vocational Rehabilitation Services please visit https://www.va.gov/health/cwt/ 

To learn more about VBA Veteran Readiness & Employment please visit https://www.va.gov/careers-employment/vocational-rehabilitation/

Whole Health puts you at the center of care, rather than your illnesses or conditions. We work with you to develop a personalized health plan based on your values, needs and goals.

Our Whole Health approach empowers and equips you to take charge of your health, well-being, and quality of life. Whole Health goes beyond your illnesses, injuries, or disabilities, and focuses instead on your values, goals, and overall health. It includes self-care and complementary therapies that have evidence behind them along with conventional medical care.

Our Whole Health program includes:

• Personal Health Planning including development of mission, aspiration and purpose in addition to SMART goals for your care.
• Meditation and mindfulness training
• Virtual Healthy Teaching Kitchen
• Yoga and Qi Gong classes
• Massage and other manual therapies
• Whole Health Coaching
• Whole Health Partner Support
• Acupuncture and acupressure to help you manage pain without drugs
• Battlefield acupuncture or protocolized needling and Auricular acupressure
• Biofeedback
• Creative Arts Women’s Health group
• Whole Health Clinical Care and Consult Service including Functional Medicine evaluation

Learn more about VA Whole Health

Whole health class and event calendar

• Women’s Health Creative Arts Group: contact Michelle Grevelding: Michelle.Grevelding@va.gov
• Healthy Teaching Kitchen: contact Monica Sathyamurthy: Monica.Sathyamurthy@va.gov 
• Women Veteran’s Healthy Teaching Kitchen: contact Hillary Cashier: Hillary.cashier@va.gov

For an appointment with a coach or for a class/workshop, call  or ext. 57485