BRATTLEBORO — It's been nearly 2½ years since the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) opened a Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) in Brattleboro.
While more local veterans received health care in Brattleboro, rather than driving to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in White River Junction, not everyone has gotten the message yet.
So on Oct. 19, the clinic used the occasion of the recent hiring of a new medical director, Dr. Richard Orlan, to hold an open house for local veterans and veterans organizations to get the word out about the services available in Brattleboro.
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, one of the major advocates in Congress for community-based health care for veterans, visited the clinic during the open house to highlight his efforts to bring health care to Vermont's veterans, no matter where they live.
The Brattleboro clinic, located in the Exit One Industrial Park, serves as a satellite of the VA's White River Junction facility. It provides primary care, mental health counseling, electrocardiograms, laboratory tests, and preventive services.
“A big reason why this clinic [in Brattleboro] is here is because of the hard work of Bernie Sanders,” Orlan said.
Throughout Vermont, according to the VA, about 8,600 veterans now receive care from five CBOCs in Brattleboro, Colchester, Rutland, Bennington, and Newport.
Orlan, 54, lives in Westminster and is board-certified in internal medicine, geriatrics, and hospice and palliative medicine. He is also a pharmacologist. He had been a primary care physician at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, and was the medical director for Thompson House, Pine Heights, and Vernon Green.
When he found out from a friend earlier this year that the VA job was open, Orlan didn't hesitate. He applied, was hired, and started work in July.
“Health care is in flux, and I figure this is the best place to still directly care for patients while staying in this community,” he said. “A lot of my patients here I had at BMH. Plus, it is not hard to take care of patients in this system. There is a trust, and a tradition of providing the best care anywhere.”
With an aging veteran population, Orlan said he found his skills as a coordinated care manager arranging treatments for older patients fit what the VA needed in Brattleboro.
“There is a real shortage of primary care doctors all over the country, and it's tough to get someone to come to Vermont,” he said. “I had been down in Florida and decided to come back north about five years ago. My wife and I love being here.”
Health care for women veterans
Earlier in the day, Sanders had marked the opening of a Women's Comprehensive Care Center at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction.
According to the VA, there are more than 3,000 female veterans in Vermont, but there never had been an outpatient care center until now. The White River Junction clinic is about 4,600 square feet, and provides care for women that previously needed to be given at private health care providers because the VA hospital was designed primarily to serve male veterans.
Sanders said he has supported the VA medical system because, as he put it, “while our government has a whole lot of responsibilities, we can not and must not turn our backs on the men and women who defended their country. The VA has to deal with some serious challenges, but if I have anything to say about it, we are not going to balance the federal budget on the backs of our veterans.”
Brattleboro American Legion Post 5 commander Richard Guthrie said Friday that he was surprised to hear how many local veterans are still going to White River Junction, or to the VA hospital in Northampton, Mass., to get care.
“Old habits die hard, I guess,” he said, “but we're trying to get the word out. The guys who have used [this clinic] have nothing but good things to say about it.”
The Brattleboro CBOC is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays except Tuesdays, when the clinic is open from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Its telephone number is 802-251-2200.