Veterans resources are expanding in Sumter

Late last year, Sumter's Community Based Outpatient Clinic, or CBOC, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' Columbia VA Health Care System, opened its doors after a significant expansion, ushering in more opportunity for Sumter-area veterans to seek quality health care close to home.

"The Columbia VAHCS comprises the Wm. Jennings Bryan Dorn VA Medical Center and seven community-based outpatient clinics located throughout South Carolina in Anderson, Florence, Greenville, Orangeburg, Rock Hill, Spartanburg and Sumter, serving more than 90,000 veterans annually in 36 of 46 counties in South Carolina," according to a news release. "The Columbia VA is a level 1b teaching hospital, providing a full range of patient care services, with state-of-the-art technology, education and research. Comprehensive health care is provided through primary care, tertiary care and long-term care in areas of medicine, surgery, psychiatry, physical medicine and rehabilitation."

At 407 N. Salem Ave, not far from Riley Park, this CBOC has served more than 5,000 veterans since November 2023 when it started operating at a larger capacity.

Valerie Brunson, director of Sumter County Veterans Affairs, told The Sumter Item before the expansion was underway that the North Salem location outgrew the number of patients it could serve, prompting not only the expansion on that property, but also the construction of Sumter's new Veterans Affairs Clinic at 245 Bultman Drive near the Sumter Mall.

According to former reporting from The Sumter Item, many retired military members remain in Sumter after their active service, and with the newly expanded CBOC and new VA Clinic, these veterans now have health care access right at their back door.

There was a ceremony celebrating the opening of the significantly larger CBOC at 407 N. Salem Ave. on June 14.

"The new clinic enhances the health care services available to veterans in the area, ensuring they receive the quality care they deserve," according to the news release. "We understand the importance of providing accessible and comprehensive health care services to our veterans, and the new Sumter CBOC plays a crucial role in this mission."

Sumter-area veterans have an array of resources available to them close to home thanks to the new VA Clinic and the newly expanded CBOC, and they're about to have even more resources to take advantage of with the new nursing home that is in its latter phases of construction.

Predicted to be completed in mid- to late October, the 104-bed facility is under construction on more than 70 acres at 915 N. Wise Drive, according to earlier reporting from The Sumter Item.

In 2019, South Carolina Department of Mental Health was directed to make a recommendation for a future location to place a state veterans' nursing home facility in the central part of the state.

In total, the project cost $71.4 million, a combination of federal money from the U.S. Veterans Administration and state matching money, said Tracy LaPointe, director of the S.C. Department of Mental Health's public information office. The Veterans Administration approved $28.8 million in reimbursable money, and the department received $42.6 million for the project in its fiscal year 2022 appropriations.

When the facility opens, veterans will reside in either single- or double-occupancy rooms. The facility is planned to have a chapel, barber shop, activities room, bistro, physical therapy room and pharmacy.

"State veteran nursing homes provide eligible veterans the residential care of professional nursing and custodial care staff when they or their primary caregivers are no longer able to provide the requisite assistance at home," Secretary of Veterans' Affairs' Todd McCaffrey told The Sumter Item last year. "The Sumter facility is a further example of South Carolina's appreciation and investment in sustaining veteran quality of life in our state. With nearly 400,000 veterans living in our state, nearly 45% over the age of 65, state veteran nursing homes extend a degree of comfort and dignity closer to home and honors that veteran's service to the nation, often in their time of greatest need."

According to LaPointe, eligibility for admission into a state veterans nursing home is as follows: a veteran served active duty with an honorable discharge, a veteran has been a resident of South Carolina for the previous 12 months, and a veteran meets Veterans Administration criteria for skilled or intermediate nursing home care. The operator of the facility will handle all admission requests.