In thinking about what to write about for September, a lightning bolt hit me. What about women who are Veterans? We have more women in the American Legion and VFW who served when their country needed them. There are many more who are not members who also served. Whether you served five months ago or five decades ago, you may be eligible for services offered by the Veterans Administration.
In this area, Hines VA is committed to meeting the unique needs of Women Veterans by delivering the highest quality comprehensive health care to each woman, while offering her privacy, dignity and sensitivity to gender-specific needs.
In addition to the services that Hines provides, Women’s Health Care is also provided at the Community Based Outpatient Clinics in Aurora, Hoffman Estates, LaSalle, Kankakee, Oak Lawn and Joliet.
These locations offer comprehensive primary care, gender specific care, mental health services, nutrition services, social work services and Homeless program triage services: linking at risk and Homeless Women Veterans to resources in the community and within the Hines healthcare for Homeless Veterans Program.
Another resource available to our Women Veterans is a call center specific to their needs. They give information about services, resources and benefits. THE NUMBER IS 855-829-6636. The toll-free line is available Monday through Friday from 8AM-10PM ET and Saturdays 8AM-6:30PM ET. Call, chat and text are all available. The call center is run by women and many are Veterans.
I realize there is a lot of information that has been presented, but there are always people at the VFW and American Legion that can answer your specific questions or get the answers for you. More women are serving their country than at any time in our history. They were not clerk typists, they were in combat. They deserve the same respect our male Veterans do.
If you know of a Woman Veteran that would benefit from this information, please pass it along. Like most Veterans, I know they won’t tell you they need help. They risked coming home under a flag so it is the duty of us to make sure they get the help they need.
