All posts by Jeff Cavanagh

About Jeff Cavanagh

Jeff Cavanagh spent his freshman year at St. Petersburg Junior College back in the early 70s before enlisting in the United States Navy. Soon after, he attended Jacksonville University on a Navy ROTC scholarship. After college, he was commissioned and became a qualified Surface Warfare Officer spending the next 22 years honing his skills as a ship-handler and expert recruiter before retiring in 1994. Jeff expresses a deep sense of pride in St. Petersburg College due to connections that go back many years. His father, Tom Cavanagh, was a career Air Force fighter pilot and combat veteran who taught Geography and Western Civilization at St. Petersburg Junior College in the 60’s and 70’s.

Bay Pines VAHCS to Hold Veterans Town Hall Meeting July 12 Event to be Focused on Suicide Prevention

Events

The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System (VAHCS) will host a Veterans town hall meeting on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 from 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. The event will take place in the J.C. Cobb room located on the first floor of the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center (building 100) located at 10000 Bay Pines Blvd., Bay Pines, Fla. 33744. VA outreach services and program representatives wi…ll be available prior to the event starting at 3:00 p.m. to assist Veterans. Services available will include VA health care enrollment and eligibility; VA benefits assistance; and patient advocate services.

Unlike previous town hall meetings conducted by the Bay Pines VAHCS, the event will focus specifically on the issue of suicide among Veterans and ways the VA and the local community can collectively improve suicide prevention efforts. Veterans and their families, congressional stakeholders, Veteran Service Organizations, and concerned citizens are encouraged to attend the town hall to learn about suicide prevention services available through the VA and to share ideas about ways to better assist Veterans in need.

“One suicide is one too many. The VA and our partners, communities, families, and friends must do better on behalf of those who sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy,” said Suzanne M. Klinker, Director, Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, in an editorial published on June 9. Read the full editorial here: www.baypines.va.gov/pressreleases/20170609.asp.

“We must work harder together to expand available resources and access to vital mental health care services, create safety networks, educate and inform, eliminate bureaucracy and barriers, and intervene as appropriate to prevent suicides before they occur. This is not just the responsibility of our healthcare system or the VA at large – it is everyone’s responsibility,” she said.

This event is open to the media. For media inquiries or advanced information, please call Jason Dangel, Public Affairs Officer, at 727-398-9531, or email vhabaypublicaffairs@va.gov.

For updated information about the Veterans town hall meeting or to learn more about the Bay Pines VAHCS, please subscribe to receive updates via email at www.baypines.va.gov/news/e_news_subscribe.asp, or connect with us on Facebook, www.facebook.com/vabaypines, and Twitter, www.twitter.com/vabaypines.

VA Concussion Study

General News

Attention Veterans:

Are you a VA patient who has had a concussion and still is experiencing symptoms? Do you speak English and willing to use a smart phone app for an hour or so each week? If you can answer yes to all of these questions, you may be qualified to participate in a special VA research study being conducted by the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System and James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital.

Participating in this research study is voluntary. Qualified participants will be compensated for their time.

For more information and to enroll in this study, please contact Susan Horrigan, Research Coordinator, Bay Pines VAHCS at 727-398-6661, Ext. 15147.

Principal Investigator for this study is Dr. Heather Belanger, Clinical Psychologist, James A. Haley Veterans Hospital.

Customer Service Representative position available

Jobs

Attention: here is an entry level, Customer Service Representative position available at Clearwater office of the Social Security Administration located at 2340 Drew Street, Clearwater Florida 33765. Listed below is the hiring authority. Suitable candidates that meet this requirement, please forward their resume’s and a copy of their DD214 information so that interviews with them may be arranged starting this week.

The following hiring authorities is what we can use to fi…ll up this hiring slot :

• Veteran’s Recruitment Appointment (VRA)
• 30 Percent or More Disabled Veterans
• Schedule A for Individuals with Disabilities
• Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs)/ VISTA Volunteers
• Non-competitive Appointment of Certain Military Spouses

Thanks Much
Humera Bari

District Manager
Clearwater Social Security Office
2340 Drew St
Clearwater, FL 33765
1-888-397-5678

Bay Pines VAHCS to Hold Special Event for LGBT Pride Month

Events, General News

The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System (VAHCS) will hold a special event to celebrate Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month on Thursday, June 15. The event will take place in the JC Cobb room located on the first floor of the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center (building 100). Doors will open at 11:00 a.m. and the formal program will start at 12:00 p.m.

The celebration theme is, “Viva La Vida! Live the Life!” Local businesses will be onsite to share services offered to the LGBT community. Information on healthcare services and benefits offered to the LGBT Veteran will also be available. Veterans, their families and friends, VA staff and volunteers, and other members of the community are invited and encouraged to attend.

“Our LGBT celebration is one of our monthly special emphasis programs focused on diversity, inclusion, and equal opportunity,” said Tonya Wieck, Equal Opportunity Program Manager, Bay Pines VAHCS.

“We take pride in serving all Veterans and strive to be a national leader in the provision of health care to LGBT Veterans while assuring care is provided in a sensitive, safe environment in all of our facilities,” she said.

In March, the Bay Pines VAHCS was designated as a “Leader in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality” for the fifth straight year by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), the educational arm of the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) civil rights organization. The designation was reported in the 10th edition of the Healthcare Equality Index (HEI), reflecting on a decade of progress in LGBTQ healthcare. A record 590 healthcare facilities actively participated in the HEI 2017 survey. Of those facilities, 45 were VA medical centers. Read more about the Bay Pines VAHCS’s HEI achievement here: www.baypines.va.gov/pressreleases/20170329.asp

To learn more about the Bay Pines VAHCS’s LGBT Pride Month celebration, please call 727-398-6661, extension 15086.

NOTE: This event is open for media coverage. For advanced information, please contact Jason Dangel, Public Affairs Officer, at 727-398-9531 or email vhabaypublicaffairs@va.gov.

Ending Veteran Suicide

General News

Editorial: Bay Pines VA Committed to Ending Suicide Among Veterans

By Suzanne M. Klinker

Director, Bay Pines VA Healthcare System

June 9, 2017

 

On May 31, the VA Secretary David J. Shulkin delivered his first “State of the VA” address highlighting the activity and direction of the Agency since his appointment in February. The address covered a wide range of topics, including health care access, community care and the Veterans Choice Program, accountability, and the quality of care provided to Veterans. In addition, he identified multiple Agency-wide priorities, such as reducing backlogs and getting more Veterans access to mental health care and suicide prevention programs.

While all of the priorities mentioned are important, I am writing to you today with a focus on suicide prevention. Suicide among Veterans is a sad and heartbreaking reality that occurs in every state, county, city and town across the country. Recent research suggests that 20 Veterans die by suicide each day, of which six were users of VA services.  This information is important as it shows that Veterans who actively engage in services provided by VA are less likely to commit suicide than those who are not.

One suicide is one too many. The VA and our partners, communities, families, and friends must do better on behalf of those who sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy. It is simply not tolerable or right to accept the status quo. We must work harder together to expand available resources and access to vital mental health care services, create safety networks, educate and inform, eliminate bureaucracy and barriers, and intervene as appropriate to prevent suicides before they occur.  This is not just the responsibility of our healthcare system or the VA at large – it is everyone’s responsibility.

We are very committed to suicide prevention.  In addition to the large number of mental health professionals the we employ across the healthcare system, we have a suicide prevention team dedicated to facilitating prompt delivery of care and responsiveness, and monitoring Veterans identified at high risk of suicide through innovative new programs like Recovery Engagement and Coordination for Health – Veterans Enhanced Treatment (REACH VET), and providing ongoing staff training. Using a new predictive model, REACH VET analyzes existing data from Veterans’ health records to identify those at a statistically elevated risk for suicide, hospitalization, illness, or other adverse outcomes. This allows us to provide preemptive care and support, in some cases before a Veteran even has suicidal thoughts.

Another important resource for Veterans is the Veterans Crisis Line (1-800-273-8255 press 1).  Veterans and those who know of a Veteran in crisis may call 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1, chat online at VeteransCrisisLine.net, or send a text message to 838255 to receive at no cost, confidential support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, even if they are not registered with VA or enrolled in VA health care.

Veteran suicide touches everyone – families, friends, communities, first responders, and those of us at VA.  I invite you to join me and other Bay Pines leaders for a special Veterans town hall meeting on July 12, 2107 where we, as a community, will address ways we can improve our suicide prevention efforts. The event will take place in the JC Cobb room located on the first floor of the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center (building 100) from 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

In the meantime, if you know Veterans who needs our help, please help us help them by connecting them with us and letting them know that help is available 24/7.  Whether through routine mental health appointments, visits to the emergency department, or telephone care through the Veterans Crisis Line, we do our very best to address any and all mental health needs, urgent and routine.  Thank you for your continued partnership and commitment to the health and well-being of America’s heroes.

Suzanne M. Klinker is director of the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System. The organization is one of the nation’s leading VA healthcare systems, employing more than 4,100 medical professionals and support staff dedicated to providing the very best care to Veterans residing in southwest Florida. Bay Pines is the fifth busiest VA health care system in the country with an annual budget of nearly $800 million.  It provides care for more than 108,000 Veterans in Charlotte, Collier, Desoto, Hardee, Highlands, Lee, Manatee, Pinellas and Sarasota counties.

NEW! Veteran Appointment Request (VAR)

General News

The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System now has a new tool for you to try called the Veteran Appointment Request (VAR). The new web-based app comes as part of several nationwide appointment scheduling improvements aimed to modernize VA’s scheduling system through the VistA Scheduling Enhancements project and new VistA Scheduling Graphical User Interface (VS GUI).
The Department of Veterans Affairs developed this web-based app to make it possible for Veterans enrolled in VA health …care to:
• Self-schedule primary care appointments for your assigned primary care provider
• View or Cancel existing clinic appointments
• Make requests for help scheduling primary care and mental health appointments at facilities where you receive care
VAR works on any compatible web browser, whether on your desktop or mobile device. To access VAR, visit the VA App Store: https://mobile.va.gov/app/veteran-appointment-request. The link also includes a user manual, quick start guide and answers to frequently asked questions to assist you with how to use the app.


If you need assistance using VAR, please contact:
• VA Mobile Solutions Help Desk:
o 1-877-470-5947, Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET, excluding federal holidays
Since the Veterans Appointment Request app allows access to your medical information, you will need to create a DOD and VA secure logon through the DS Logon System. For VAR access you will need a DS Logon Level 2 Premium Account. For more information on the logon process, please visit https://mobile.va.gov/dslogon. For help getting a DS Logon, please do one of the following:
• Call the VA Mobile Solutions Help Desk at 1-877-470-5947
• Call eBenefits support at 1-800-983-0937
• Visit the DS Logon “My Access Center” website at https://myaccess.dmdc.osd.mil/identitymanagement/help.do…
You can use VAR to view or cancel your primary care and mental health appointments any time of day.
We look forward to seeing you at your next visit.
Sincerely,
Your friends at the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System
Keep updated & let us know how we’re doing.

National PTS Awareness Month

General News
June is National Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS) Awareness Month, an important time to open up the dialogue about PTS so that those living with these invisible wounds do not feel alone in their struggle. According to the National Center for PTS, approximately 15% of Post-9/11 Veterans and 30% of Vietnam Veterans have grappled with PTS upon returning home.
The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee has worked closely with Congreswsman Gus Bilirakis to improve access to quality treatment and care for our nation’s heroes. This bill, known as the COVER Act, was signed into law last year and recognizes that one size does not fit all when it comes to mental health care for Veterans. The legislation promotes alternative therapies so that Veterans suffering with PTS and other mental health conditions have a range of options, like service dog therapy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and more.
PTS can happen to anybody who experiences a trauma, affecting about 8 million adults across the country. National PTS Awareness Month is a poignant reminder that seeking treatment for PTS is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength and commitment to a happy, healthy life

SPC College of Education Open House

Events, General News

The SPC College of Education is having an Open House event to showcase all of their degrees and certificates that they offer.   The event is open house format where students and parents can come anytime between 4 to 7 p.m.    Students can learn about any of the College of Ed programs, including their online programs, scholarships and financial aid, and we will have computers in the room to help students apply if they have not done so already.  We will also be promoting the General Knowledge (GK) test review session that will be held on June 16.    Information is below and here is a link to the event info on the COE blog.  J   https://blog.spcollege.edu/education-information/education-open-house-june-8/   

 

Two Job Openings at Admiral Farragut Academy!

Jobs

Admiral Farragut Academy

RESIDENTIAL LIFE INSTRUCTOR (2 vacancies; 1 of them specifically to serve female boarders)

This position is a live-in staff member responsible for maintaining a safe, supporting home-like environment for the

academic and personal success of boarding students in grades 8-12. The position is full-time throughout the

academic year, with summers off.

Key components of the job include:

● Building positive interpersonal relationships with each boarding student.

● Helping boarding students develop positive relationships with each other.

● Holding boarders accountable for their behavior.

● Promoting student involvement in campus life.

● Actively engaging with students through a variety of activities, including a variety of games, sports,

cultural events, movies, outdoor activities and life skills.

● Ensuring a safe and secure environment.

● Being a positive role model for the student body and peer staff members.

● Facilitating conflict resolution.

● Enforcing rules and policies of residential life and the school.

● Driving students to appointments, activities, etc. as needed.

Requirements:

● Associate’s Degree.

● At least two years of experience in a boarding-school environment.

● Valid driver’s license and a clean driving record.

● Ability to plan, organize and lead general indoor/outdoor activities.

● Ability and desire to work positively and productively with teenagers.

● Willingness to take on varied tasks that support the program.

● First-responder first aid training and Red Cross WSI a plus.

● Military experience a plus.

*An equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of

the job may be acceptable in lieu of those requirements listed above.

To be considered:

● Submit current réuméand cover letter via email to twallingford@farragut.org

About Admiral Farragut Academy: Admiral Farragut Academy is a private preparatory school with small

classes, a waterfront campus and a progressive approach to education. Located in beautiful St. Petersburg,

Florida, Admiral Farragut Academy is situated about 5 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico .

For more about Admiral Farragut Academy, go to https://farragut.org/

VA Assists Veterans with Disability Claims at Disability Workshop

Benefits, Events

 

 To enhance communication with Veterans, the VA is providing individualized VA benefits assistance beyond normal business hours at a Saturday outreach event. The St. Petersburg VA Regional Office will hold a disability claims workshop, specifically designed to make the claims process more accessible to Veterans. Veterans from all eras will be able to file a claim for disability benefits, submit medical documents if desired, and personally speak to a VA claims processor at the event. Additionally, they will be able to check the status of an existing claim or appeal.

Any Veteran interested in filing a new disability claim or checking the status of an existing claim or appeal is encouraged to attend the claims workshop at the St. Petersburg VA Regional Office from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm on Saturday, June 10, 2017. Also, in connection with the commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Vietnam War, we will thank Vietnam-era Veterans with a commemorative pin. Additionally, there will be detailed information and assistance available for Vietnam Veterans regarding Agent Orange/herbicide related disabilities.

To all Veterans and families, please plan on attending to learn more about the various VA benefits available. In addition to information on the VA disability claims process, experts will be on hand to discuss vocational rehabilitation and employment, home loan guaranty, and other VA programs. Veterans Service Organizations will also be available to provide support to Veterans.

Location information:

St. Petersburg VA Regional Office

9500 Bay Pines Blvd

St. Petersburg, FL 33708