Director's Message August 2, 2024

We have worked hard to get the new CBOC ready to serve our Veterans throughout the Big Island. Many people worked hard to get the new CBOC ready to serve our Veterans throughout the Big Island. This new 12,500 square feet CBOC is a larger and more modern facility that allows us to expand and provide much-needed services to our Veterans. The Kailua-Kona CBOC will provide primary care, mental health, specialty care, telehealth, women’s health, and more.

VA Pacific Islands Health Care System (VAPIHCS) has made many meaningful improvements to our infrastructure in just a few short years. The opening of the Daniel K. Akaka VA Clinic in Kapolei was a triumph, and getting the Guam CBOC Annex under construction is a meaningful step to expanding care there as well. Now, with the opening of the new Kailua-Kona CBOC, it’s encouraging to look back at our progress and see just how much we’re doing to ensure that Veterans throughout the pacific islands will have access to the best possible quality of care, and that VAPIHCS will set the standard for safe, compassionate, and quality Veteran care throughout the pacific. 

We would like to invite Veterans to meet with us and see the new clinic at this event, to find out more about the PACT Act, VA care, and our new facility at an open house PACT Act Registration and Enrollment event on August 7, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The new clinic, located at 73-5618 Maiau Street, Suite 200, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740 is replacing our previous Kona CBOC at 35-377 Hualalai Road, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740. All patients from our previous clinic will be automatically transferred to the new facility. Veterans who have not yet enrolled in VA care may call 1-800-214-1306 and speak with our Enrollment and Eligibility Department to register. We look forward to serving you at our newest CBOC.

Summer Vet Fest

We are excited to announce the VA Pacific Islands Summer Vet Fest in celebration of the 2nd Anniversary of PACT Act. Summer Vet Fest is a casual and informative way to connect with others and for Veterans and their families to learn about the PACT Act, health care enrollment, and VA benefits. Enjoy food, music, and games. Veterans are welcome and encouraged to come with their family, caregivers, and friends. Join us on August 10, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the new Daniel K. Akaka VA Clinic at 91-1051 Franklin D. Roosevelt Avenue Kapolei, HI 96707-9670. 

Our Ohana Open Market will also be open between 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on August 10, 2024, for active-duty service members and Veterans who would like to pick up some cost-free groceries. This event is just one of many across the nation this summer to welcome Veterans to our clinics, and to inform and educate them about our services and programs. We look forward to seeing you there.

Thoughts from Chaplain Jewel Davis

Imagine being at a live tennis match watching a ball go from one side of the court to the other. Our eyes are focused, and our synchronized heads are pivoting left to right, right to left, as we intently track the ball’s movements. Next, imagine being in a band in which all players of an instrument are necessary to elicit the desired musical sound. Finally, imagine being seated at a dinner table and watching a server top it with a tantalizing display of delectable favorites that beckon us to taste and savor every mouthwatering bite.

Each of these activities involve those who are spectators, or participants. At times, we are the ones observing and bearing witness to an event’s unfolding. At other times, we play more active roles in which our participation produces intended outcomes. And sometimes, we’re both; spectators and participants.

As health care workers who observe and assess Veteran patients, taking note of their body language and watching for subtle cues that alert us to the unspoken, we have the privilege and capacity to seamlessly transition from the role of spectators to that of participants who not only give our full attention and assessment of situations, but we also provide informed interventions. With goals, for example, of optimizing Veteran care and enhancing their patient experiences, we render service-oriented treatment of dignity, respect, and efforts to understand our Veterans’ needs. We capitalize on strong principles that prioritize Veterans, their families, and caregivers. However, while attending to their needs, we also recognize the importance of our own self-care. That said, it’s okay to seize every opportunity to feed our insatiable appetites for continuous learning, growth, and development.

I close with this: caring for others involves observing and doing. It is not always a choice of either/or, rather, it is a rewarding blend of both/and. 

Blessing and Mahalo.

One Team, One Ohana!
Adam M. Robinson, Jr., MD, MBA, CPE 
Director, VA Pacific Islands Health Care System
VADM, MC, USN, (RET)
36th Surgeon General, USN

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