Martinsburg VA Medical Center Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Martinsburg Physicians Develop New Approaches To Rural Veteran Health Needs

A program at the Martinsburg VA Medical Center trains medical providers to better serve rural veterans, who often face a number of barriers to accessing health resources.

The Martinsburg VA Medical Center (VAMC) serves veterans across county and even state lines.

With such an expansive patient base, the medical center’s health care providers not only have to consider veteran needs, but also disparities in rural health care access — and the ways these experiences overlap.

That is where the VAMC’s local chapter of the national VA Rural Interprofessional Faculty Development Initiative (RIFDI) comes in. The voluntary program trains medical professionals to better serve rural communities, and the veterans who call them home.

Over a two-year period, the program provides physicians lectures, group discussions and project-based learning on rural health care.

So far, three cohorts have completed the program, and RIFDI is still admitting new cohorts of health care providers.

VAMC Deputy Chief of Staff Michael Zapor began the Martinsburg RIFDI program, and said that it helps fill gaps where disparities in veteran and rural health care access overlap.

Veterans living in the rural United States often have less access to stores, transit options and the internet, which limits the health care resources at their disposal, he said.

“When you’re talking about … ‘We’re going to leverage telehealth.’ Even that is not a silver bullet for everybody, because we’ve got some veterans who don’t have computers,” he said.

This requires health care providers to consider the needs of rural veterans across the region and develop strategies to better provide them with health services.

In response, RIFDI considers “innovative ways” to serve the local veteran community, Zapor said. This includes educating veterans on proper nutrition, and offering a mix of in-person and telephone-based services so veterans can choose the resources best suited to their lifestyles.

In developing these strategies, physicians also learn about the health care experiences of the patients they serve.

“We leverage all kinds of ways to be able to project that care out to the more rural remote veterans who may have more difficulty accessing it,” he said.

For more information about RIFDI, visit www.ruralhealth.va.gov.

**Editor’s note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Michael Zapor founded the VA Rural Interprofessional Faculty Development Initiative (RIFDI). Instead, he launched Martinsburg’s local RIFDI program. The story has been updated with the correction.

Black Nurse Community Calls For Culturally Informed Health Care In W.Va.

Black nurses in West Virginia can face fewer identity-specific resources and culturally uninformed workplaces. But groups like the Black Nurse Collaborative aim to change that.

West Virginians face an above-average risk of death from strokes, heart disease and even injury.

This leaves Black residents especially vulnerable, because they already face disproportionate risks in the U.S. health care system.

But Black nurses are coming together to provide better care for patients and new opportunities for Black professionals.

On Thursday, members of the Black Nurse Collaborative (BNC) set aside their scrubs for a visit to the Martinsburg VA Medical Center.

The group, which is based in Bowie, Maryland, provides Black nurses identity-specific professional support. This week, they came to West Virginia to hold a panel on inclusion and racial inequity in their industry.

Speakers’ stories often overlapped. Many recalled patients and coworkers doubting their qualifications simply because of their race.

Nurses already face a power imbalance in health settings, because doctors have more authority over medical decisions.

Together, these biases and professional barriers can make it hard for Black nurses to speak up when they disagree with something.

For Meedie Bardonille, president and founder of the BNC, that is a problem.

She said when a patient has a health care provider that looks like them, “it’s clearly documented from numerous studies that health care outcomes are positively impacted.”

“Whether you’re a male nurse caring for another male patient, whether you’re a Black nurse caring for another Black patient,” Bardonille said.

West Virginia is predominantly white. This means that Black nurses and patients are less likely to encounter people who share their racial and cultural experiences, both of which shape health care outcomes.

In West Virginia, medical officials are looking to make a change. Chief of Staff Ngozi Efobi said the Martinsburg VA is recruiting nurses from all different backgrounds, including historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

“I don’t know that historically an attempt has been made to meet them where they are,” Efobi said. “So we’re being very intentional about working with our fellow hospitals and universities, especially HBCUs, to just let them know that we’re here and that we’re interested.”

Through this, Efobi said the hospital center is making sure “we have a diverse population to take care of our diverse veteran population.”

Still, working in predominantly white places like West Virginia comes with challenges.

According to Bardonille, that is where professional support groups like the BNC come in. They help ensure Black nurses find resources and community, regardless of where they live, she said.

“You’re able to learn and hear from those individuals and experiences that can have a direct impact on your career,” Bardonille said. “More importantly, also the community that you’re seeking to serve.”

For Bardonille, providing culturally competent care means forging community with others who share your experience, and helping educate individuals who do not.

“You have to create your own table, bring your own chair and actually create the menu as well,” she said.

Veterans Notified Of Potential Disclosure Of Personal Information

More than 2000 veterans are being notified of a potential disclosure of some personal information.

Appointment notifications for 2,380 veterans at the Martinsburg VA Medical Center were sent out to the wrong recipients in November.

The potential disclosure involves limited information, and no social security numbers or other identifying information were divulged.

In a press release, the Veterans Health Administration said the error was caused when Xerox Corporation, under contract to VA, experienced a printing error. The appointment notification postcards were generated by an application that converts information in a patient’s electronic health record to an easy-to read format, then prints, seals, and mails the postcards.

The application printed postcards addressed to patients that contained appointment scheduling and reminders for other patients. This was due to a misalignment, or improper match, of the content with the name and address of the appointment postcard recipient. The error was not identified for five days, but corrected notifications have already been sent.

Veterans who have questions or concerns about whether their personal information may have been involved and who receive health care at the Martinsburg VA Medical Center can call 1-855-429-7502

The Martinsburg VA Medical Center serves more than 70,000 Veterans across the four states of West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Veterans From Martinsburg VAMC Participate In National Athletic Competition

Athletes from the Martinsburg VA Medical Center are representing the Eastern Panhandle as they begin competition in the National Veterans Golden Age Games in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The Golden Age Games is an annual event that helps older veterans stay active and makes sports accessible. The veterans involved with Team Martinsburg train all year as part of their personal treatment plans.

“We usually start up in October, and we train for our next games in May,” said team coach Michael Clark. “They get with their provider and they figure out what kind of goals they want. If it’s weight loss, if it’s more mobility, or if it’s just overall well being.”

The games are both a mental and physical positive for the veterans involved in the event. The team has seen its share of successes, but Clark says the overall goal is to improve the players’ quality of life.

“Veterans have a tendency to isolate themselves. We give them an opportunity to be a part of something that’s bigger than themselves,” Clark said. “It helps them with camaraderie, helps them with the social aspects of their life. And then if you’re healthy and you’re working out and you’re focusing on fitness, you just feel better.”

As part of the event, the athletes will compete in sports like badminton, track and field, and basketball. The games are a qualifier for the National Senior Games, the nation’s largest multi-sport event for those over 50 years old.

Those in the Martinsburg area interested in participating can talk to their primary doctor about a Golden Age Games consultation.

Martinsburg VA Medical Center Earns National Nursing Honor

The Martinsburg Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center received the Pathway to Excellence designation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, which is a subsidiary of the American Nurses Association.

The VAMC in Martinsburg remains the only health care organization in West Virginia to achieve this national certification, according to a news release. It was also the first VA facility in the country to receive it in 2011.

“The Pathway to Excellence re-designation means we have demonstrated our commitment to creating a positive nursing environment, with an emphasis on shared decision-making and safe patient care.” said Sandra Sullivan, chief Nurse Executive at the Martinsburg VAMC.

Medical centers must undergo rigorous reviews of facility practices, policies and culture to earn the award. The designation highlights that a medical center is committed to nurses and their contributions in the workplace.

The Martinsburg VAMC consists of the main medical center and seven Community Based Outpatient Clinics that work with more than 700 nursing staff.

Martinsburg is one of four VA medical centers in West Virginia. The other three are located in Beckley, Huntington and Clarksburg.

The Clarksburg VAMC was recently in the national spotlight when a former nursing assistant was sentenced to life in prison after she murdered seven veterans.

4 Deaths From Coronavirus At West Virginia VA Hospital

At least four people have died from the coronavirus at a Veterans Affairs hospital in West Virginia, the VA said.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs said on its website that the deaths have occurred at the Martinsburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The facility has 19 active cases of COVID-19, including seven veterans, 11 employees and one veteran employee.

Overall, the four VA facilities in West Virginia have had at least 61 confirmed virus cases, including 49 in Martinsburg, according to the website. Those facilities currently have a combined 22 active cases.

At least 54 people in West Virginia have died from the virus and around 1,360 have tested positive, according to health data.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the virus can cause severe illness or death. For most people, it causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up in two to three weeks.