University of Utah ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ and the VA Salt Lake City ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ Care System broke ground in a recent ceremony at the South Jordan VA Clinic. The VA announced it will build and expand its care facilities across the Mountain West, where veterans can choose to receive care in a new 38,000-square-foot clinic, its largest off-campus multispecialty clinic yet.
The 70-year-long partnership between University of Utah ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ and VA Salt Lake has a long and successful history, dating back to the conclusion of World War II. The construction of the clinic continues this legacy to better serve thousands of veterans in the growing southwest portion of Salt Lake County and northwest Utah County, providing everything from full-range primary care to behavioral health services.
Over the next decade, the number of veterans in Utah is expected to grow exponentially, with patients living in remote areas. The Mission Act of 2018, replacing the 2014 Choice act, is a far-reaching legislation that gives veterans greater choice, allowing them to seek world-class healthcare outside of the VA system – both sooner and closer to where they live. Thanks to this new legislation, veterans may choose U of U ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ physicians based at the South Jordan clinic to provide foundational healthcare, specialty care and ambulatory surgery services.
"The men and women who have, and are serving our nation in the military are an invaluable part of our community," said Michael Good, MD, CEO of University of Utah ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½. "As part of our mission, we are dedicated to continually improving individual and community health and quality of life." Good continued, "Today, the SLC VA System and the University of Utah are changing the model of VA-University affiliations in the ambulatory-care setting. This partnership is taking veteran care to the next level, and will serve as a new model for the nation."
The South Jordan VA clinic will be adjacent to U of U ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½'s South Jordan ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ Center and is set to open in late 2020.