VA Caregiver Support Line Celebrates 5 Years of Service!

Added February 2, 2016

The VA's Caregiver Support Line (CSL) is pleased to announce that it has now been providing support to Caregivers for five years. Over 220,000 callers have reached out to the CSL since it began operations in February 2011.

Staffed by licensed social workers, the Support Line is available to provide supportive counseling, education on topics related to caregiving, and help to connect caregivers to local supports and services to assist them in their caregiving role, including a referral to a local Caregiver Support Coordinator located at every VA medical center nationwide. To further support caregivers, the Caregiver Support Line also facilitates telephone education presentations several times each month for caregivers, with a focus on self-care.

Operation Family Caregiver

Operation Family Caregiver (OFC) is a free and confidential program for adult family members or friends caring for a military service member or post-9/11 veteran with visible and/or invisible (such as post-traumatic stress) injuries or adjustment concerns. Coaches from OFC meet one on one a caregiver in a place of the caregiver's choosing, including via Skype and/or a phone session.

WII Compensation and Benefits Handbook

The Department of Defense Compensation and Benefits Handbook for Wounded, Ill, and Injured Members of the Armed Forces is a useful reference source for service members in any of the three aforementioned categories. This Handbook was designed to answer as many question wounded, ill, and injured warriors may have. It is intended as a quick reference for wounded, ill, and injured warriors and their loved ones during rehabilitation and reintegration.Many of the answers to these questions will depend on specific, personal circumstances.

Caregiver Respite Program

Wounded Warriors Family Support (not affiliated with Marine Parents' Warrior Support Team™ or the Wounded Warrior Project) aims to provide support to the families of those who have been wounded, injured or killed during combat operations. The families of our casualties suffer in many ways: some financially, some psychologically, .

Caring for a wounded veteran can be demanding physically, psychologically and financially. Oftentimes caregivers are spouses or family members who have many other responsibilities, such as work, managing bills and taking care of children. Caregivers of veterans often spend long hours caring for their loved one, feel high levels of stress and neglect their own personal health.

Wounded Warriors Family Support's Caregiver Respite Program provides respite and supplemental services nationwide to the caregivers and families of wounded war veterans. Our program aims to ensure that family members who were thrust into the role of caregivers are provided with the support they need to keep their families intact while keeping themselves healthy.

Wounded Warriors Family Support respite services include providing secondary caregiver assistance, respite aid for remote areas and short-term temporary relief in the form of child care and other services. The program also provides assistance in enrolling in the Department of Veterans Affairs Caregiver Support Services and other agencies offering resources and support.

FMLA for Service Members, Caregivers, and Family Members

On November 17, 2008, the Department of Labor (DOL) published its final rule to implement the first-ever amendments to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), signed into law by President Bush in January 2008, which provide new military family leave entitlements and to update the regulations under the 15 year-old FMLA. The final rule will improve communication between employees, employers, and health care providers to make the law operate more smoothly, and provide needed clarity for both workers and employers about their responsibilities and rights under the FMLA leave. The Final Rule does not reduce the law's coverage for workers who need FMLA leave. Updating and clarifying the regulations will reduce uncertainty and provide greater predictability in the workplace for everyone.

Yellow Ribbon Fund, Inc.

The Yellow Ribbon Fund's Family Caregiver Program provides support for the family members and close friends who sacrifice so much while caring for your injured, ill, and wounded warriors.

The program's free programs and services provide support during the entire recovery process. They include:

• ootings and retreats that empower caregivers and connect them with other caregivers for mutual support
• stress-relieving massages and spa visits
• kid-friendly activities to strengthen family bonds
• organizations offer
• career mentoring
• help finding resources and navigating the military and VA bureaucracies
• free hotel stays, rental cars, and taxi rides at Walter Reed & Ft Belvoir