VA offers funded research opportunities to nurses. This research focuses on identifying, testing, and/or implementing nursing interventions that enhance health and prevent disease in veterans across the care continuum. The VA Nursing Research Advisory Group provides national guidance on these activities.

Special research populations of interest are veterans with:

• Deployment-related health disorders
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Substance use disorders
• Mental health disorders
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Amputations
• Aging and age-related changes
• Underserved, high-risk populations
• Stroke
• Chronic illness
• HIV
• Spinal cord injuries
• Sensory disorders and loss, especially blind rehabilitation

Within these populations of interest, the VA nursing research agenda includes:

• Maximizing the physical, mental, and social functioning of veterans and improving their quality of life
• Improving patient safety and health outcomes through nursing practice
• Evaluating patient care delivery models and nursing systems of care
• Evaluating models for translation/implementation of evidence-based practice