The Department of Veterans Affairs is interviewing caregivers for wartime veterans who need to be placed in a supervised homes ituation, but not necessarily a nursing home.
Irene Johnson coordinates the Medical Foster Home Program at the Cheyenne V-A. She says some veterans have mental or physical disabilities that make it difficult for them to manage their medications or eat properly.
“They do need supervision, they need structure. They just need somebody there that, if they had family, they would probably be managing just fine ... But these are veterans without family or with family that’s just unable to care for ‘em.”
Johnson says caregivers would feed veterans, and would receive between $1,500 and $3,000 per month. Prospective caregivers will need to submit to background checks and weekly monitoring by the program.
Johnson says she’s spoken with caregivers in other states who have enjoyed the work.
“Each one that I met with loved the ability to work from home, the ability to take care of a veteran. They really cared about their veterans. They became family members.”
More than 30 other US states have implemented a Medical Foster home programs for their veterans.
