Director's Message July 7, 2023

The month focuses on informing people -especially the elderly- about how supplements should never be taken without consulting a health care provider. At VA Pacific Islands Health Care System (VAPIHCS), we want to provide the best care possible. To do that, we need to know about all the medications and supplements that you take, even if they are over the counter.

Your provider can help you decide which supplements are best for you in addition to helping you assess the safety of taking supplements with your prescriptions. We are here to help, but we can’t help if we don’t know what you’re taking. It’s recommended that you bring a list to each doctor’s appointment, or if it’s easier for you, just bring the bottles to your appointment.

Please ensure that your doctor knows about all the vitamins, supplements, and medications that you take.

My VA Images App

We are proud to introduce a new way for Veterans to communicate with their health care team without having to go to a VA location. It’s called “My VA Images,” and it allows Veterans to securely send pictures and video to their doctor for review. To get started with the program, your doctor must invite you. Once you have been sent a link, you can open it and go to the program. This will work on a smart phone or tablet. To use the app, you must have a way to verify your identity online though a secure authentication website. You can use Login.gov, ID.me, a premium DS Login, or a Premium My HealtheVet account. This is required to ensure that your private health records are kept confidential and safe.

Once verified in the App, you can share pictures and videos on a variety of medical concerns. Some examples would be skin conditions you would like your doctor to look at, personal guidance on how to perform rehab exercises, input on navigating obstacles in the home, and help using medical equipment. You can even use it to send progress updates on wounds that are healing or if you had an issue with using your Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine, you could send a video explaining your concern, and your doctor could reply.

You don’t have to be a technology whiz to use VA Images - once you sign in, the app will guide you through the process of sending a photo or a video so using it is both easy and convenient.

Use of the app is entirely voluntary. You can still go see your doctor in person for any concern. The app is not intended to replace visits to your medical care team, which you should still do at least once per year. However, if you have a quick question about a rash or another concern, this app allows you to handle the concern online if you prefer, instead of making an appointment with your provider.
If you would like to try using the App, please call us to make an appointment with your provider at 1-800-214-1306. Your provider can talk with you about it, and then send you the link to set up your account.

Toxic Exposure Legislation

In August of 2022, the President signed a law that allows Veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during their military service the ability to access expanded VA benefits. We have been holding events to sign up Veterans who are newly eligible. Our next event is in Guam on July 22 and July 23, 2023. We will be at Micronesia Mall at 1088 West Marine Corps Drive, Space 215AB, Center Court, 2nd floor (near the food court) from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on both days. This event will include PACT Act registration, vaccines, blood pressure checks, diabetic foot checks, VA Benefits Assistance, and health screenings. Veterans in Guam should come see us at this event if they are already signed up with us, or if they need to sign up. We hope to see you all there!

Thoughts from Chaplain Richie Charles

Although air travel has become a common feature of life in our modern era, it can be easy to forget the amount of skill it takes for pilots to safely navigate through the air. One of the ways a pilot’s skill becomes especially evident is in their ability to navigate safely through the clouds.

Many are surprised to learn that when flying through clouds, pilots often face reduced visibility just like passengers do. Fortunately, however, pilots do not rely solely on their unaided eyesight to fly through clouds. Instead, they depend on various instruments in the cockpit, such as airspeed indicators, altitude indicators, and altimeters, which provide crucial references for maintaining a stable flight amidst low visibility. Additionally, pilots receive guidance from ground-based air traffic control, ensuring safety through constant monitoring and communication. In moments of cloudiness and turbulence, pilots place trust in their flight instruments, which provide a more objective picture than what they can see with their unaided sight.

In our life, we sometimes experience our own clouds - clouds of discouragements, clouds of setbacks, clouds of obstacles. During these cloudy moments of our lives, it can be easy and tempting to allow what we see to define our reality, rather than what we believe to define our reality. But having positive, true core beliefs can keep us resilient during our own times of cloudiness, the same way aviation instruments keep pilots steady while flying through clouds.

Take for instance Thomas Edison, a brilliant mind who was initially deemed dull by his teacher.  He went on to invent the practical incandescent light bulb after many failed attempts and revolutionized various fields. Edison once reflected "I have not failed 10,000 times - I've successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work. Edison did not allow cloudy circumstances to limit what he believed to be true about his potential.

What are some of the core convictions that keep you steady during your times of cloudiness and turbulence?

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

Stay Informed

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