The Veterans Administration’s Office of Rural Health (ORH) has always supported strong community partnerships geared towards improving healthcare access for rural veterans. On January 7, 2014, the Northern Arizona VA Health Care System (NAVAHCS) and the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation (TCFHCC) signed a collaborative partnership agreement to establish a VA staffed Primary Care Telehealth Outpatient Clinic (PTOC).
TCFHCC located in Northeast Arizona on land known as the Colorado Plateau, serves a 6,000 square mile area and serves as a referral center for the western part of the Navajo and Hopi Reservations.
The VA team located in Prescott will work side-by-side with TCRHCC teams using health technology to co-manage veterans’ healthcare needs. Veterans will be able to schedule primary care appointments with their VA providers directly through the Tuba PTOC.
VA providers will be able to order ancillary services through the TCRHCC system and veterans will benefit as they will be able to have their lab work done, obtain medications, see a telemental specialist, and talk to experts on preventive healthcare. By being able to see available specialty services in the same facility, they will avoid the nearly four hour one way drive to the nearest VA Medical Center.
In addition, NAVAHCS supports the growth of Home-Based Primary Care (HBPC) that offers in-home care for veterans using an interdisciplinary team. The NAVAHCS HBPC team leads the VA system in program growth. Today, there are now over 240 veterans receiving comprehensive healthcare in their home within NAVAHCS/HBPC with plans to expand current programs in 2014.