VA ECHCS Offers New Alternative to Veterans Who Must Travel for Infusion-Related Treatment

“The infusion clinic is a nurse-driven clinic,” said Jacqueline Perez, VA ECHCS Infusion Nurse Manager. “We treat any patient getting any medication either intravenously or by injection, especially if that patient needs to be monitored with that injection for a long period of time. We treat patients in all services.”

The main purpose of the clinic is to allow Veterans to come back into the VA from the outside community to receive oncology care, if they choose so, as part of the Close to Me Program (CTM), along with care for rheumatology, neurology, cardiology, gastrointestinal, oncology and other services within VA ECHCS. 

“We also administer IV fluids, other medications, immunotherapy, and here and at the Rocky Mountain Regional Infusion Clinic,” said Perez.

The CTM is a national VA program designed in 2021 at the Minneapolis VA Health Care System with the creation of the “Roving RN” Program, which was established to reduce travel time for Veterans, improve VA continuity care, increase access to VA providers and nurses and provide VA-centric care. 

This was done as many intravenous and injectable anti-cancer therapies offered by the VA are offered primarily in urban areas, inaccessible to Veterans in rural areas. Distance, travel time, caregiver support and other factors often limit Veterans’ abilities to attend appointments and anti-cancer therapy regimens.

“It is so much easier, less time consuming, less stressful,” said Susan Gartung, a U.S. Army Veteran, and Colorado Springs resident. “In the winter, I don’t have to worry about the weather. I don’t have to worry about if there’s a wreck on I-25 that’s going to shut down the interstate. I tried very hard to time my infusions up there to where I wouldn’t have to drive at certain times of day, and if I couldn’t time my infusions to not be in rush hour traffic, I wouldn’t go that day. When you only have one place to go, having more access to care, even on a smaller scale, opens up more appointments, opens up more availability.”

Perez agreed, reiterating that having an infusion clinic in the southern region of the health care system has been a boon for veterans who live in that region.

“We have a lot of patients that drive from Colorado Springs, we have patients that even come from Pueblo,” said Perez. “Not having to drive a roundtrip of four hours for their treatment would be beneficial to Veterans who live in those more out-of-the-way areas.”

Another issue for Veterans was limited infusion space and sterile compounding capabilities that would be suitable for Veterans and up to the rigorous standards of VA. 

The Lindstrom VA Infusion Clinic is one of many across several VA health care systems that have been started, with locations in areas such as Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City and several other metropolitan areas. 

“We currently have two nurses on and one nurse onboarding,” said Perez. “We have about seven patients a day. Once we have all three nurses, we can probably do about 15 patients a day.”

That access to care, that open availability can often translate into more positive experiences for veterans as the burden of travel is reduced, thereby reducing the financial strain and the anxiety associated with long-distance travel.

“There’s also that point where you can just tell,” said Perez. “We have a lot of vets who are very stoic, and kind of seeing that change, and knowing when to question what’s going on with them. I think they enjoy that and getting to know us, that patient relationship formed. But I think after a few times of just listening to them, they are opening up and starting to warm up to the staff.”

Gartung was also an Army nurse while active duty and worked at Evans Army Community Hospital on Fort Carson. This offers her the unique perspective from both that of a patient and provider when it comes to an infusion clinic in the Springs area.

“I’m grateful because I know what a benefit it is. And I know if I didn’t get this, even with insurance, what it would cost me, on the outside, I’m very grateful to come here and receive this level of care. It’s huge. It also probably makes me more aware because I was also a civilian nurse at Evans. So, I understand what it means to have access to care and availability. I get it from both sides. It’s a huge convenience for me to be able to get in my car and be at my appointment in 10 minutes as opposed to some days if I-25 is backed up, if 225 is backed up.”

With the Lindstrom infusion clinic getting more patients and staff in the coming months, the clinic is also looking at starting chemotherapy and medication treatment for oncology patients and amino therapy in 2026. 

For Veterans in and around Colorado Springs, who wish to have their infusion care through the Lindstrom clinic instead of travelling to the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center in Aurora, they will need to contact their provider for a consultation to have their medications redirected to the Lindstrom Clinic, or they can go to the VA ECHCS website for more information.