Go2 Foundation
Are you looking for a lung cancer “battle buddy”? VHA partner GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer can help
Army Veteran Julio Sanchez, who called the nonprofit GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer’s HelpLine after his 2019 lung cancer diagnosis, was directed to GO2 Foundation’s Phone Buddy program, which pairs lung cancer patients and survivors for emotional support. Mr. Sanchez called his Phone Buddy his “battle buddy” when he was featured on GO2 Foundation’s Veteran Spotlight blog and Lung Cancer Living Room video series (see Mr. Sanchez’s video here). “That personal connection helped me immensely because he was already in the same foxhole engaging the lung cancer opponent I was facing,” Mr. Sanchez explained.
Miranda Goff, manager for support services at GO2 Foundation, is one of the voices on the other end of the HelpLine. She said that for Veterans like Mr. Sanchez, this sense of a shared experience is valuable.
“I do have Veteran [volunteers] who are more than happy to talk to other Veterans about how they navigated the diagnosis, how they coped with it,” Ms. Goff, who has been working on the HelpLine since May 2018, explained.
In June, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VHA) announced a partnership with GO2 Foundation, which aims to increase awareness about lung cancer screening options and improve outcomes for Veterans impacted by the disease. This partnership, which was facilitated by VHA’s Office of Community Engagement (OCE), adds to the lung cancer and lung disease supportive services VA and the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) already offer.
The HelpLine and Phone Buddy programs are resources that Veterans can take advantage of at any time. Most people who call, Ms. Goff said, have recently received new information about a diagnosis or potential diagnosis and are looking for more information.
“You don’t actually have to know what you’re calling about, it’s much more of a conversation about the things we do,” Ms. Goff said. If GO2 Foundation doesn’t offer a particular service, HelpLine staffers will reach out to GO2 Foundation’s network to find a resource.
Ms. Goff said that she and other HelpLine staffers share information about VA and VHA resources with the Veterans who call the line. She has directed Veterans who call the HelpLine to the VA smoking cessation app and other smoking cessation resources, and has educated Veteran callers about the Veterans Crisis Line and other VA mental health support.
She is proud, Ms. Goff said, to: “Just to be able to really help provide another layer of service for Veterans who have done so much for our country, to help them during a time of need.”
Georgeanna Bady, OCE health systems specialist who helped facilitate this partnership, said: “It’s rewarding for our team at OCE to work on projects that we know improve quality of life for Veterans, especially because many Veterans are so affected by lung cancer. We’re thrilled that GO2 Foundation is a new partner in the fight against lung cancer mortality in the Veteran community.”
OCE is VHA’s resource for establishing and growing nongovernmental partnerships that benefit Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors. For more information on OCE’s partnership work, please visit VA.gov/healthpartnerships.
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Posted December 11, 2020
