The 9 Line

A new year is here and for a lot of people, that means a renews drive to get healthier as part of a New Year's resolution.  For some people, it is a resolution to exercise more, for others it is eating healthier.  But, as motivated as people can be to stick with their resolutions, by the time February rolls around, many people have already lost the drive to continue.  However, did you know that th...

On August 10th, President Biden signed into law a piece of legislation to address the healthcare challenges brought on by Veterans being exposed to a range of toxins through military service.  That law is what is known as the PACT Act, and aims to expand VA health care and benefits for Veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances.  The Act adds to the list of health cond...

November 11th is Veterans Day, when we come together as a nation to recognize Veterans and the role they've played through history in making America the country that it is today.  Here are the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System, our Veterans are our mission and reason for existing, and we honor our nation's Veterans every day of the year by delivering high-quality healthcare in the ways that bes...

Sleep might be the one thing that can make or break your day before it is even started.  Get a good night's sleep, and it sets you up for a good day ahead.  Have a poor night of sleep, and chances are you'll be cranky, unfocused, and unproductive.  That's why the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare system has a group of folks dedicated to making sure Veterans can get a great night of sleep through diagn...

If you ask people what's one thing that gets taken for granted in our everyday life, some people would respond with the creature comforts we enjoy. Things like having lights on in your house, hot water to wash clothes and dishes and air conditioning to keep your house cool.  In a hospital setting, those things aren't just a creature comfort, they are vital to being able to providing quality health...

Fall means many things...the temperature starts cooling off, football comes back on TV, and the yearly flu shots start hitting the pharmacies around the country.  This flu season has the potential to be a very interesting one as COVID wanes and life gets back to normal for many people.  However, COVID still lurks and many of the measures taken to guard against COVID have fallen by the wayside, pot...

We do our absolute best to make sure we can meet all the healthcare needs of our Veterans, but sometimes there is a specific service we can't provide and we have to send one of our Veterans out into the community to get their care.  But how exactly does that system work?  What's the deciding factor on what Veterans can get what care in the community, and when?  That's where our Community Care team...

It's always a joyous occasion whenever someone celebrates a birthday or anniversary, and here at the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System, we're in a celebratory mood as we quickly approach the 10 year anniversary of the opening of our North Las Vegas Medical Center.  Opening our North Las Vegas Medical Center was an important step in our continuing mission to provide America's Veterans with the b...

As a Healthcare System, we need to be prepared to not only deal with a health emergency that a Veteran may have, like a heart attack or a stroke, but we also have to be ready to deal with any situation life my throw at us like a natural disaster or a pandemic.  Since March 2020, we've been confronted with the many challenges of the COVID-19 Pandemic, and one of the reasons we've been able to deal...

Healthcare has evolved rapidly and in unexpected directions over the past two years, and the kinds of services we deliver to Veterans and they way we serve them has changed just as rapidly and unexpectedly.  It goes without saying the COVID-19 Pandemic has impacted day-to-day healthcare services, but it has had far-ranging effects on how we staff those services and how we plan for our future. On t...

When you think about Mental Health or Behavioral Health inside of the VA, many people will think about helping Veterans overcome PTSD issues related to service.  However, here at the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System, we also offer some help that a lot of people probably don't think of when they think "mental health" and that's helping Veterans with interpersonal relationships with a spouse or...

Technology has always been something that promised an easier, more convenient life.  From the fantasy of flying cars in the 1960s, or the real application of how the Information Superhighway changed how we go about many tasks in the late 1990s and early 2000s, integrating technology has not only held promise, but excitement as well.  Here at the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System, we're constant...

If you've ever been inside one of our medical facilities, chances are very good you have seen, or even had an interaction with, one of our many volunteers.  Working in areas ranging from hospitality and our information desk, to clerical and even printing duties, our volunteers are absolutely vital to ensuring everything we do runs smoothly.  Before COVID, the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System h...

For some Veterans coming to the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System isn't just a quick trip around the corner.  Sometimes they come from many hours away due to the size of our catchment area, and sometimes they're here for a very long time and their families need a place to stay.  That's where the Fisher House comes into play.  Located on our campus, the Fisher House is a 16 room lodging facility...

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and statistics show that one in three women and one in four men will be subjected to some form of sexual assault during their lifetimes.  Sexual Assault, and how the military and Veteran populations deal with it, has become a hot-button issue in many corners of American society as the focus turns towards rooting out predators and giving those who have exper...

There are many professions and industries that have simulators to allow staff to practice high-pressure or important scenarios in a practice environment.  Airline pilots have very involved simulators that let them see what it is like to suffer any number of technical failures without putting lives and aircraft at risk and police have simulators that let them see what it is like to deal with potent...

The VA strives to provide care to patients that is safe, high quality, and centered on the needs of the patient.  But care like that doesn't just happen naturally, it takes a tremendous effort from a multitude of people to ensure the safety of our Veterans.  It involves not only the people who directly see a patient, but also supporting staff like our housekeepers and even the Veteran themselves....

Homelessness is an issue that impacts every major city in America, but for a variety of reasons from weather to infrastructure, Las Vegas has the fourth highest rate of Veteran homelessness in the country.  There's also a lot of factors that contribute to an individual falling into housing insecurity, such as loss of employment, economic pressures, or even addiction.  All of those factors mean tha...

When you think of a hospital, you may think of doctors, nurses, and medical examinations.  Chances are you probably don't think a hospital would have its own police force.  However, even though the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System has our own police force, our officers aren't out busting crime and solving mysteries.  They're primarily here to ensure a safe environment for both patients and pro...

Every day, 17 Veterans take the actions to end their own life.  While this number is a decrease in years past, it is still entirely too high and a main reason that suicide prevention is one of the VA's highest priorities.  One of the key facets to this battle is fighting the loneliness and isolation a lot of Veterans feel both during the holidays and as weather changes, and also the transition fro...

2021 has been a year of many hopes, and many challenges for the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System.  We've seen the hope brought by the COVID-19 vaccines, and the resurgence of COVID through the Delta variant, in addition to a record number of unique Veterans to our facilities and any number of patient care success stories we've shared with you throughout the year. On this episode of The 9 Line,...

No matter how motivated you are to eat healthy and provide your body with the nourishment it needs, there are so many factors in today's society working against the right kinds of diet.  Convenience of unhealthy food, massive portion sizes, and using food as a means to help eliminate stress are just a few of the reasons why today's Americans have issues maintaining a healthy diet and weight.  In a...

More than 34 million Americans currently smoke in some form, and according to the Centers for Disease Control, smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease, disability and death in the United States.  Acceptance of smoking in public has seen a dramatic decline in recent years, as more and more places become smoke free environments.  But just because smoking is less accepted in public spaces...

There are plenty of resources and clinics here at the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System devoted to physical and mental health of Veterans, but one of the pillars of the Whole Health model we use here is that of spiritual health.  Spiritual health of Veterans is attended to by our small cadre of Chaplains, and with close to 300 religious preferences among the Veterans we serve, our Chaplains are...

Whole Health is VA’s cutting-edge approach to care that supports Veteran health and well-being. Whole Health centers around preventative education and finding out what matters to a Veteran, not what is "wrong". This means a Veteran's health team will get to know them as a person, before working  to develop a personalized health plan based on their values, needs, and goals.   On this Episode of The...