COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
A Commitment to Caring for Veterans ANGELIC HEALTH PROVIDES SPECIAL PROGRAM by Margie Barham America’s veterans face healthcare difficulties that others do not. From PTSD, to substance abuse and to moral injury issues that haunt them throughout their lives, veterans present a unique set of needs. Recognizing veteran concerns, Angelic Health has partnered with the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization We Honor Veterans Initiative to respond to the increasing needs of those that served this country. This focused program offers guidance and resources for veterans and their families during the challenging time of a terminal or life-limiting illness. “We must look beyond the diagnosis and understand the history of these men and women as it relates to their experiences in military service,” says Krystyna Cechulski, MSW, who heads up the We Honor Veterans Initiative at Angelic Health. An Army veteran herself, Cechulski is passionate and well-versed in the trepidations that veterans confront at the end of life. She serves as a resource guide and educator for hospice nurses, home health aides, social workers, professional support staff and volunteers, healthcare facilities and the public on how to recognize and treat veteran-specific concerns. Recognizing the military service of individual patients with pinning, certificate and flag presentations provides an opportunity to thank our veterans face to face. Angelic Health offers holistic support which includes working with veterans organizations within the community. “We find that many veterans and their families are unaware of the resources available to them,” explains Cechulski. “We connect them with services and programs that can help their situation. The way we provide quality end-of-life care to our veterans is to learn more about them and address concerns surrounding isolation, trauma and their illness.” Each era of service presents its own specific concerns. It’s important to understand that there were and continue to be many concerns about the association between the illnesses and symptoms veterans report and their exposure to toxic agents, environmental and wartime hazards, and preventive medicines and vaccines they received. In addition to physical health issues, the experiences of veterans including death, torture and mutilation, and both civilian and military atrocities contribute to mental health issues such as PTSD, depression, anxiety, substance abuse, homelessness, anger issues and suicide. While military veterans all have similar maladies from exposure to nuclear, chemical or biological agents, trauma from the use of artillery and assaults on the mind and body, each theater of war presents specific problems. Veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq (Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom) have breathing issues, high-altitude illness, percussion, burn and blast injuries, infectious diseases and multi-drug resistant infections. 16
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