Honoring and Supporting Our Veterans: How the Cleveland VA Medical Center is Advancing Veteran Care in Northeast Ohio

A day for reflection and gratitude, every Veterans Day we honor the brave men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces. It’s a time to celebrate their courage and sacrifice, and acknowledge that their return home marks a new chapter in their service, not the end of it.

For many veterans, the journey home can bring new battles, such as living with physical injuries, managing chronic health conditions, and the invisible wounds of war, each impacting their reintroduction into civilian life. Access to high-quality, compassionate, and comprehensive healthcare can make all the difference in helping veterans reclaim their strength, their well-being and their sense of purpose.

Here in Northeast Ohio, that mission is carried forward every day by the Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center of the VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System (VANEOHS). From world-class hospital care and mental health support to groundbreaking medical research and holistic wellness programs, the Cleveland VA continues to set the standard for veteran healthcare.

As we reflect on the meaning of Veterans Day, it’s important to recognize the progress being made to care for those who have served us. Let’s take a closer look at how the Cleveland VA Medical Center is transforming care through innovation, accessibility, and a deep commitment to the health of every veteran.

Examining the Impact of the Cleveland VA Medical Center

In Northeast Ohio, the Louis Stokes VA Medical Center is an anchor for veteran healthcare and a model of excellence across the region. Its commitment to veteran care is reflected in its most recent rankings and advancements.

In September 2025, the Cleveland VA Medical Center announced it earned a five-star rating as part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) hospital quality ratings. This distinction is based on the evaluations of five major areas: mortality, safety of care, readmissions, patient experience, and timely and effective care.

VANEOHS also earned a five-star rating for its Cleveland VA Community Living Center, marking eight consecutive quarters of earning this designation.

These positive ratings are more than numbers. They reflect the Cleveland VA’s dedication to delivering exceptional care while continuously finding ways to serve veterans better.

Several key advancements in 2025 demonstrate this ongoing commitment:

• Expanded and modernized emergency department: The emergency department at Louis Stokes VA Medical Center now features increased capacity and enhanced security to streamline triage and assessments, helping reduce wait times and improve patient flow.
• Remodeled primary care clinic: The expanded facility better supports the Patient Aligned Care Team model, which focuses on coordinated, team-based, and patient-centered care.
• Enhanced mental health services: VANEOHS added 48 mental health professionals across various outpatient clinics, expanding access to behavioral health and integrated care. 
• New VA advanced manufacturing and technology application center: VANEOHS opened a new center that will support VAs across the country with assistive technology, medical modeling, eyeglass manufacturing, 3D visualization, and other clinical applications that directly benefit veterans.

In a region where many veterans face challenges such as limited transportation options and shortages of medical specialists, having a local facility that delivers this level of performance is meaningful. It not only brings high-quality care closer to home but also builds trust that is essential when veterans seek the help they deserve.

Improving Veteran Emergency Care Access Through the COMPACT Act

One of the most meaningful advances in veteran care access is the COMPACT Act. Implemented by the VA, the act aims to avert veteran suicide by increasing access to emergent suicide care for an acute suicidal crisis at a non-VA facility.

Under the act, veterans can present to a VA or non-VA emergency department for care, even if they are not enrolled in the VA health system. After initial emergency care, eligible veterans may receive up to 30 days of inpatient or crisis residential treatment and up to 90 days of outpatient care.

Locally, the VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System has created a Community Partner Resources Hub to help emergency-care partners in Northeast Ohio understand how the act works. Even more important to this region, the Hub provides guidance for community hospitals and emergency departments to report and coordinate with VA to prevent veterans from being caught in delays or denials simply because they showed up at a non-VA facility.

This is important because an emergency mental health crisis doesn’t wait for paperwork. For a veteran in rural or suburban counties of Northeast Ohio, knowing that the nearest emergency department is recognized under the COMPACT Act means fewer barriers when it matters most.

The VA Whole Health Approach

The Whole Health model used by the VA puts the veteran’s values, needs and goals as the main focus. This holistic approach to healthcare is embraced by the VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System and allows their health team to get to know patients as a person, before working to develop a personalized health plan.

What does Whole Health mean in practice? It means offering ways to engage across mind, body and spirit beyond standard medical care.

The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System is a leading, award-winning organization in the Whole Health arena. In 2025, it was awarded the national “Live Whole Health Award” for its VA2K Walk & Roll event, which engaged over 1,000 participants comprised of veterans, staff and community members, and raised funds for homeless veterans.

One of the most compelling local innovations connected to the Whole Health initiative is a beekeeping program for veterans, in partnership with the Cleveland Botanical Garden and Youth Bee Works. The program allows veterans to participate in an eight-week learning course on hive care, honey harvesting and wellness through nature connection.

This kind of program shows how care is expanding beyond hospital walls. It’s about community, purpose, resilience and wellness. For veterans, finding meaning and connection can be as important as managing symptoms. By integrating these kinds of programs, the Cleveland VA is showing leadership in veteran care.

Whether a veteran is hoping to change careers, reduce stress, or wake up with less pain, the Whole Health process can be a helpful solution. Learn more by talking to your healthcare provider or participating in a Whole Health course.

Innovation Through Collaboration

Another example of how the Cleveland VA is advancing care is their commitment to innovation through cutting-edge research and technology, both of which have direct impact for veterans locally and nationally.

Two standout collaborations:

• A joint collaboration between Case Western Reserve University, The MetroHealth System and the Advanced Platform Technology Center and Cleveland Functional Electrical Stimulation Center to launch the first customization of the existing Cleveland Open Source Modular Implant Innovators Community (COSMIIC) System. This fully implantable neurotechnology platform is made available to researchers and startups as “open source” and enables standing and walking in people with incomplete spinal cord injury.
• A unique wireless, catheter-free, insertable bladder pressure sensor developed within the Advanced Platform Technology Center within Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center was used in bladder care for its first patient at Cleveland Clinic in early June 2025.

These collaborations illustrate that veterans in Northeast Ohio are connected to world-class research and technology. This level of innovation in a local VA enhances recruitment of specialized clinicians, fosters academic partnerships, and positions the region as a hub for the advancement of veteran health.

Continuing the Mission of Care and Commitment

As we honor our nation’s veterans, it’s important to recognize not only their past service but also their continued strength, resilience and pursuit of well-being.  

The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System continues to advance care, improve access and expand health treatments that include addressing a person’s whole health and driving medical innovation to benefit veterans across the county.  

But the work does not end there. Strong partnerships with community hospitals, academic institutions, local nonprofits and veterans themselves are vital to ensure that care continues to evolve and improve. Together, we can build a future where every veteran receives timely, compassionate and comprehensive healthcare, close to home.

At WellLink, we are proud to stand alongside the Cleveland VA in strengthening community health, supporting hospital systems and fostering innovation that will define tomorrow's care.

This Veterans Day, let’s reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that the veterans of Northeast Ohio receive the care they deserve, when and where they need it.