A curated selection of tools and resources essential to equipping nurses to support the health and well-being of veterans.
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National Tools & Resources
Veteran Crisis Line
24/7, confidential crisis support for Veterans, service members, National Guard and Reserve members, and those who support them. You don't have to be enrolled in VA benefits or health care to connect.
American Academy of Nursing
Managed and designed by the American Academy of Nursing, Have You Ever Served in the Military? is an initiative to improve the health of Veterans. Nurses and other healthcare providers can access this pocket card, which lists the most common health concerns linked to military service, as well as questions the provider should ask the Veteran or his or her family member in order to obtain a more complete military medical history. This information assists providers in identifying possible health factors or illnesses related to service and decreasing the time between diagnosis and treatment.
U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs - Office of Academic Affiliations
Asking Veterans these questions will provide you with information helpful in understanding patients' medical problems and concerns, and in establishing rapport and therapeutic partnerships with military service members and Veterans. Answers may also provide a basis for timely referral to specialized medical resources.
I CARE by Dr. Heather Johnson and Dr. Catherine G. Ling and adapted by Dr. Alicia Gill Rossiter
Military children make tremendous sacrifices in support of a parent(s) military service. Over 2 million children have a parent who is serving or has served in the Armed Forces. While “resilient” is the word used to describe most military children, it is important that we recognize the stresses/stressors of military life—that military children serve too—in order to support and care for them.
U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs
The Community Provider Toolkit is a resource for health care professionals working with Veterans outside of the VA health care system. This site offers information and tools relevant to Veterans’ mental health and well-being curated especially for community providers.
Find resources about:
Asking about Military Experience
Working with Veteran Populations
Supporting Veteran Mental Health & Wellness
Navigating Veteran Benefits & Services
American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM)
Ensure you are equipped to identify and address the health consequences from possible military environment exposures in U.S. Veterans by earning certification in Military Environmental Exposures from ACPM.
National Center for PTSD
This section of the National Center for PTSD contains training materials as well as information and tools to help you with assessment and treatment. These materials are based on the latest research, much of which is conducted by National Center staff.
VHA
The Veterans Health Administration is America’s largest integrated health care system, providing care at 1,298 health care facilities, including 171 medical centers and 1,113 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics), serving 9 million enrolled Veterans each year.
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California Tools & Resources
CalVet
The California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) works to serve California veterans and their families to ensure that they get the state and federal benefits and services they have earned and deserve as a result of selfless and honorable military service.
Policy Campaigns
The White House
Joining Forces is a White House initiative to support military families, which includes: families of service members and veterans, caregivers and survivors.
HCVA
The House Committee on Veterans' Affairs is the authorizing committee for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The committee is responsible for recommending legislation expanding, curtailing, or fine-tuning existing laws relating to veterans' benefits.
Nursing Resources
Joans & Bartlett Learning
This book discusses the role of the military and veteran healthcare systems and provides insight and guidance on key topics, including defining military culture and how to apply that knowledge to provide informed treatment, transitioning from service to civilian life and the many challenges expected during re-adjustment and re-entry, recognizing and treating substance use disorders, identifying suicidal behaviors and warning signs, long-term care for elderly veterans, and many more topics unique to the health care of veterans and their families.
Springer Publishing
This book offers innovative teaching and learning strategies to build a base of knowledge related to nursing prioritization of veteran health care needs, filling a notable gap in nursing literature. It includes teaching strategies for the classroom and clinical setting that graduate/undergraduate nurse educators may employ to integrate veteran content into existing courses or to build a Veteran Health elective or topics course. It outlines key competencies and essential knowledge faculty and students need to teach and provide basic veteran-centered care. Also covered are the expansion of Veteran-to-BSN programs, current research on veterans transitioning to the classroom, and strategies to enhance learning within this student population and maximize their skills and leadership abilities.