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REACH VA
Share PrintREACH VA, a caregiver behavioral program involving education, support, and skills building (problem solving, cognitive reframing, stress management), helps caregivers manage their stress and the Veteran’s care. It is targeted to their needs and structured through a protocol. Any caregiver is eligible but REACH VA focuses on caregivers of Veterans of any era with dementia, SCI/D, MS, ALS, PTSD, as well as post 9/11 spouses. REACH VA has four sessions (more if needed) over two to three months by trained and certified Program Coach by telephone, telehealth, or face to face. A six (or more) session Telephone Support group option is also available. As part of the Mission Act, each VA facility now has at least one staff member trained in REACH VA and Telephone Support Groups, supported through the Caregiver Support Program.
Origin:
February 2011, Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, Jr. VA Medical Center (Memphis)
Adoptions:
185 successful
Awards and Recognition:
Rosalynn Carter Leadership in Caregiving Award, 2008 Special Aging Award for REACH VA project by U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, published in the Recognition of Excellence ... Rosalynn Carter Leadership in Caregiving Award, 2008 Special Aging Award for REACH VA project by U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, published in the Recognition of Excellence in Aging Research committee report under the Department of Veterans Affairs and National Institute on Aging (NIA)/National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Partners:
Caregiver Support Program
Recent Updates
Overview
Problem
Solution
- Employee Education System (EES) brochure for REACH VA training for staff FY 22 REACH VA Brochure approved
- Employee Education System (EES) brochure for Support group training for staff FY 22 Telephone Support Brochure
Files
Results
- Article on REACH VA outcomes Archives of Internal Medicine - Translation of a Dementia Caregiver Support with comments
- Article on REACH VA implementation into VA and 4-session outcomes Gerontologist 2016 REACH VA Moving from Translation to System
- Article with outcomes from REACH VA for caregivers of Veterans with PTSD Effect of a Behavioral Intervention on Outcomes for Caregivers of Veterans with PTSD
- Article comparing REACH VA and REACH II costs Impact of the REACH II and REACH VA Dementia Caregiver Interventions on Healthcare Costs
Files
Metrics
- Caregivers of Veterans with PTSD who participated in REACH VA reported significant decreases on the Zarit Burden Inventory-4, the PHQ-2 depression inventory, and the General Anxiety Disorders-2 scale, and an hour/day decrease in time spent providing care (from 11.3 hours to 10.3 hours).
- REACH VA caregivers of Veterans with dementia who participated in REACH VA reported significant decreases on the Zarit Burden Inventory-4, the PHQ-2 depression inventory, and the General Anxiety Disorders-2 scale, and 1.6 hour/day decrease in time on duty (from 20.4 hours to 18.8 hours).
Diffusion tracker
Does not include Clinical Resource Hubs (CRH)
Multimedia
Images
Caregiver Notebooks have information and strategies to help caregivers manage their coping and Veteran care and safety. They are provided to each caregiver. Written at a 5th to 9th grade reading level, Notebooks focus on dementia, post 9/11 spouses, SCI/D, MS, ALS, PTSD, or Veterans of any era.
REACH VA Coaches work with caregivers to deliver the REACH VA programs. Coaches can be from any discipline and work in any area of the medical center. Coaches typically deliver the program over the telephone.
Caregivers are frequently responsible for every aspect of their loved one’s lives. REACH VA helps to make caregiving easier.
Videos
Video describes all the programs provided by the Memphis Caregiver Center including REACH VA.
Implementation
Timeline
-
Beginning
Training -
Within two weeks
Consultation call -
Within three weeks
Complete role play -
Within four-five weeks
Enroll caregivers
Core Resources
| Resource type | Resource description |
|---|---|
PEOPLE |
|
Files
- Article about REACH research VA Research Currents -Parental Support Aug 2018
Links
- Article about telephone support groups Easing reintegration: telephone support groups for spouses of returning Iraq and Afghanistan service members
- Article on REACH VA costs Impact of the REACH II and REACH VA dementia caregiver interventions on healthcare costs
Risks and mitigations
| Risk | Mitigation |
|---|---|
| Staff are adding this duty on to their other duties and may not have capacity to implement fully. They are not always able to sustain enrolling multiple caregivers or continuing to enroll caregivers because of capacity. | 1) Train and certify multiple people in different areas to deliver the program; they could be working with Veterans with the same diagnosis or different diagnoses. 2) Make a REACH VA funded position in a facility to take facility referrals of caregivers |
| Coding for workload credit | There are several options that are possible for the individual and telephone support group versions of REACH VA. If you would like to have further information on how to code, contact us. |
| Caregiver electronic health record charts and documentation. Currently although separate caregiver charts are recommended by VACO, all facilities do not open them and instead put information in the Veteran’s chart. There is no national REACH VA EHR note. | Caregiver Support Program staff routinely open caregiver electronic health records. For advice, contact your local CSP team or your Business Office. A national REACH VA EHR template is in the works. |
Contact
Comment
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Email VhamemREACHVA@va.gov with questions about this innovation.
About
Origin story
Original team
Stefanie Alexander, MS
Program Coordinator
Sylvia Zuber, MS
Data Coordinator
Jeff Zuber, MS
Data Analyst
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