About us

About the Fargo VA Health Care System 

The Fargo VA Health Care System provides Veterans and their families with innovative health care, trains America’s future health care providers, and conducts important medical research. We offer access to a wide variety of health care specialists, procedures, and tests, to include the following:

• Primary Care (Walk-in Clinic, Pain Management, Women Veterans Health, Internal Medicine, and Family Practice), 
• Compensation & Pension Examinations, 
• Emergency Medical, 
• Inpatient (Mental Health, Hospitalists, Pharmacy), 
• Specialty Medicine (Bariatric, Neurology, Nephrology, Hematology, Oncology & Infusion Services, Cardiology, Respiratory Therapy, Pulmonology, Rheumatology, Infectious Diseases, Endocrinology), 
• Diagnostic Laboratory & Pathology (Pathology, Histopathology), 
• Diagnostic Imaging (Nuclear Medicine, Radiology, 
• Interventional & Diagnostic Radiology, Computerized Tomography, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging), 
• Mental & Behavioral Health (Psychology, Psychology, Pain Psychology, Marriage & Family Therapy, Counseling, and Vocational Rehabilitation), 
• Surgical Care (Anesthesia Pain Clinic, audiology, Optometry, General Surgery, Osteopathy, Dermatology, Orthopedic Surgery, Urology, Podiatry, Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology, Endoscopy, Vascular Surgery, Gastroenterology, Dental, Wound Care), 
• Extended care and Rehabilitation (Hospice & Palliative Care, Physical, Occupational, Recreational, and speech therapies, 
• Prosthetic & Orthotic (In-Person & Mobile), 
• Pharmacy (Pharmacoeconimcics, Diabetes, Pain, Clinical Pharmacy, Anticoagulation), 
• Whole Health (Acupuncture, Chiropractic, Massage, Nutrition Services, Reiki, Tai Chi, Yoga, Clinical Hypnosis, chaplain), and 
• Telehealth.

Health care and services

We provide you with health care services at 12 locations across North Dakota and Northwest Minnesota.

North Dakota locations: Fargo VA Medical Center, Fargo VA Community Resource and Referral Center, Grand Forks VA Clinic, Bismarck VA Clinic, Minot VA Clinic, Williston VA Clinic, Dickinson VA Clinic, Grafton VA Clinic, Devils Lake VA Clinic, Jamestown VA Clinic

Minnesota locations: Bemidji VA Clinic, Fergus Falls VA Clinic

To learn more about the services each location offers, and the services our mobile clinic provides, visit the VA Fargo health services page.

Fargo VA HCS is a part of Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 23

The Network serves more than 440,000 enrolled Veterans residing in the states of Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and portions of Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Health care services are delivered through an integrated system of nine hospitals, sixty-three community-based outpatient or outreach clinics, eight community living centers and four domiciliary residential rehabilitation treatment programs. The Network employs over 15,000 full-time employees and has an annual operating budget in excess of $5 billion.
Learn More about VISN 23

Research and development

At the Fargo VA Health Care System,  we conduct research to discover knowledge, develop VA scientists and health care leaders, and create innovations that advance health care for Veterans and the nation. We offer Veterans the opportunity to participate in and benefit from our work. Our goal is to use research to promote better health and health care for all. 

Major research areas include: 

• Positive and negative pneumococcal urinary antigen in pneumonia vs COPD
• Localization of the RAGE receptor in melanoma specimens
• Use of Methenamine to prevent recurrent UTI’s vs long term antibiotic use
• Rapid molecular assay testing adults for GAS presenting with symptoms of acute pharyngitis
• Age, education, and GED interpretations in relation to raw cognitive testing scores
• Military sexual trauma (MST) and personality trait exploration 
• Disparities in health care utilization between American Indians and Alaskan Natives (AIAN) and Caucasian Veterans 
• Association of blood pressure variability (BPV) with factors of ageing and nursing care setting
• Effect of SARs-CoV-2(COVID-19) on surgical and postsurgical morbidity and mortality
• Impact and association of Covid-19 vaccination and surgical outcomes
• Comparative effectiveness of ceftriaxone 1 gram vs 2 grams in obese patients
• Vitamin D deficiency testing and screening in adult population
• Factors influencing Veteran return for delayed completion of ADHD and cognitive testing

We also participate in ongoing national and regional research projects, like: 

VA Women’s Health Research Network – Serves as a national resource for VA researchers and program office leaders to accelerate women Veterans' health research toward having evidence-based impacts on practice and policy.

Million Veteran Program – Promotes genomic (human gene) and health discoveries and maintains the world’s largest DNA database.

Teaching and learning

Our Fargo VA Medical Center is a teaching hospital that provides a full range of services, with state-of-the-art technology as well as education and research.  Our residents receive training in many medical specialties and subspecialties, including internal medicine, psychiatry, and surgery.  We also offer associated health training in nursing, social work, dietetics, and pharmacy.

Our primary affiliation is with the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, but we also partner with other universities and professional schools throughout the United States.  We’re proud of our partnerships with top institutions and organizations that support the educational mission of the VA.

Fast facts

• VA Fargo was awarded the National Clinical Pharmacy Practice Clinical Pharmacy PACT Platinum Practice Designation in Jan 2025
• The Fargo VA Healthcare System Patient Safety Program received national recognition in 2024 in sharing its best practices at the 25th National Center for Patient Safety Symposium in Orlando. The Patient Safety Manager and High Reliability Lead shared their best practice on collaboration with incorporating lessons learned from event reporting into weekly leadership briefings.
• The Fargo VA Health Care System Emergency Department ranks among the top 5% of healthcare providers for delivering a quality patient experience. For the third consecutive year (2022, 2023, and 2024), the VA Fargo Emergency Department has been awarded the Press Ganey Human Experience (HX) Guardian of Excellence Award, qualifying it for the Human Experience (HX) Pinnacle of Excellence Award.
• Fargo Compensation & Pension has been recognized by the Office of Disability and Medical Assessment (DMA) as a consistent high performer in VISN 23.
• The National Clinical Pharmacy Practice Office has identified Fargo, VA, as a CRVA COPD CARE Strong Practice Site in 2024.
• VA Fargo was awarded the National Clinical Pharmacy Practice of Best Practice for COPD Care in 2023 
• VA Fargo developed a simulation "HRO Escape Room" to accompany the NCPS team training which has received national attention throughout VHA.

Accreditations and achievements 

Our facilities and programs have received accreditation from:

• Hospital, Behavioral Health, Home Care and Lab program accreditation through The Joint Commission.
• Long Term Care accreditation through Ascellon
• Office of Inspector General: Healthcare Facility Inspection
• Office of Inspector General: Care in the Community 
• Blood Bank accreditation through the American Association of Blood Banks 
• CARF accreditation of RANGE, HUD-VASH and HCHV programs
• Accreditation with the American Board for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetics & Pedorthics, Inc. (ABC)