Black Hills VA’s new program helps veterans find the right medicine for them

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - It can be frustrating having to try multiple medications without knowing which one will ultimately be the best for you. One program through Veterans Affairs is looking to make that process more streamlined with its PHASER program.

PHASER, or Pharmacogenomic Testing for Veterans, was started in collaboration with Sanford and the VA to help veterans find the right medicine for them.

It consists of a blood test that determines what medicines your body is genetically pre-disposed to take or which ones it isn’t. A process like this might sound complicated, but it’s quite simple.

“So once the veteran gets the lab drawn it’s about a two-week turnaround till I get the results and then the veteran will also get the results mailed to them from the national VA office which can take about a month,” said Lisa Narveson a doctor at Black Hills Veterans Affairs.

Narveson says the main thing this program provides is peace of mind.

“Sometimes it’s nice to know maybe looking at the results why maybe medications didn’t work for you in the past. so a lot of people are just appreciative to have that information and it kind of makes sense to them why they had these side effects or why it wasn’t effective well the genomic panel is kind of giving us that information,” said Narveson.

One veteran shared this sentiment, saying she found it interesting to know more about what works well for her.

“What I liked about it is it wasn’t invasive it was just a simple blood draw. But I really like to know what you can find out with some of that stuff. The technology is cool and I actually learned a lot more than I thought I was going to,” said Jennifer Blake a veteran of the Air Force.

Right now this program is only available to veterans who receive care through Veterans Affairs. Those interested in signing up for the program can schedule the lab at their nearest VA.

Copyright 2024 KEVN. All rights reserved.