The VA Eastern Kansas Health Care System is visiting it’s local clinics and holding Town Hall meetings in order to hear from local veterans about how things are going and where they can improve. They held their first Town Hall in Junction City Wednesday evening at the Junction City Middle School.

A number of concerns were expressed during the town hall meeting including some involving how Veterans can access VA care. 

“It’s our resolve to look at the systems and the processes of entrance into the VA, the eligibility side of it and look at ways to be able to help them and make it easier for them,” said Rudy Klopfer, the Director of the VA Eastern Kansas Health Care System. “We’ve hired two Patient Navigators, one for Topeka, one for Leavenworth. Those Patient Navigators will then help those Veterans coming into the system, access and understand it.”

Klopfer also explained that a National Program will also be starting July 1st where newly enrolled Veterans will be receiving a personal phone call from a person within the VA to discuss all the benefits available to them. The person conducting the phone call will then be able to link the Veteran to a local hospital or clinic in order to schedule initial appointments.

It also came up during the Town Hall that not all of the local Veterans are aware of what the local clinic in Junction City can offer. Klopfer explained that it offers primary care and mental health care,”for certain. But we also have a Telehealth Coordinator that will work with our Physicians and Providers back in Topeka for Telehealth services. So Teleretinal, that’s for the eye, we’re looking at starting Teledermatology, we do Telemove which is weight management to help our Veterans who maybe a little heavier and want to decrease some of that weight.”

The Junction City Clinic also has Social Work staff on site. The Junction City Clinic is located at 715 Southwind Drive, on Junction City’s west side just off Hwy 77.