Yuma's VA clinic has grand opening Jan. 10

The Southern Arizona VA Health Care System will hold the grand opening of its VA outpatient clinic in Yuma from 1 to 3 p.m. Jan. 10.

Tours of the new health care facility, 3111 4th Ave., will follow a formal ceremony.

The new clinic, which began seeing patients in August, is located in the former Miller's Outpost store at the Big Curve Shopping Center. It will provide primary medical care to more eligible veterans living in Yuma, Pima, La Paz and surrounding counties.

The new facility has 15,000 square feet of space that will also have a pharmacist and mental health counseling. It replaces the 3,925-square-foot clinic that shared a building with the Bureau of Land Management at 2555 E. Gila Ridge Road.

In addition to its current services, the clinic will eventually offer a greater range of care, including optometry, audiology, physical therapy and radiology services, as well as a dietitian and assistance with prosthetics.

The new clinic will be co-located with a Rural Health Care Coordination Center and will manage programs like Care Coordination Home Telehealth and Home Based Primary Care, which provides primary care service for homebound and homeless veterans.

Telemedical services in several areas such as cardiology and psychology will be available. Telemedicine allows veterans to meet with specialists in Tucson using real-time, two-way audio/video connections.

Information regarding the Yuma clinic or other services offered through the Southern Arizona VA Health Care System is available at www.tucson.va.gov or www.facebook.com/VATucson.

There are about 19,700 veterans in the Yuma area, not all of whom go to the VA for care. Only about 3,700 veterans receive primary care at the Yuma clinic. Yuma still does not have enough veterans to sustain a hospital here, according to Veterans Affairs.

James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854. Find him on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/YSJamesGilbert or on Twitter @YSJamesGilbert.