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Following the spectacular reception of the inaugural “American Humane Association Hero Dog Awards” – taped before a live audience on October 1, 2011 – American Humane Association and Hallmark Channel are pleased to announce that nominations are officially open for the second annual installment of the program.

Dog lovers are encouraged to visit www.herodogawards.org to nominate their heroic canines in any one of eight categories:

• Law Enforcement/Arson;
• Service;
• Therapy;
• Military;
• Guides;
• Search and Rescue;
• Hearing;
•  and Emerging Hero Dogs, a category reserved for ordinary pets who do extraordinary things

After all the nominations are in, each category will be narrowed down to one finalist through online voting. The eight category winners and their human companions will be flown to Los Angeles for the main event, the 2012 American Humane Association Hero Dog Awards, on October 6th at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where the winning American Hero Dog will be announced.

The Hero Dog Awards celebrate the powerful relationship between dogs and people and help to raise much-needed resources to support the vital work of American Humane Association – the nation’s voice for the protection of children and animals. In 2011, American Humane Association’s charity partners, which include The Pine Street Foundation, Guide Dogs for the Blind, Dogs for the Deaf, National Fire Dog Monument, U.S. War Dog Association, National Search Dog Alliance, Canine Companions for Independence, and Paws & Effect were granted a total of $50,000 as a result of the Hero Dog Awards. Cesar(R) Canine Cuisine made a $200,000 donation to American Humane Association, which the organization will put toward supporting the role of therapy dogs in helping Americans in need.

Enlisted military soldiers earned the top spot as the nation’s most stressful job, while medical records technicians ranked as the least stressful, according to the 2012 CareerCast.com Job Stress Report, an annual survey of 200 different professions that measures work environment, job competitiveness and risk.

The five most stressful jobs all involve peril and significant hazards. They include firefighters, who take on dangerous and complex fires, often coming in contact with poisonous gases or other hazardous materials; airline pilots, who face potential terrorist attacks and midair collisions; military generals, who are responsible for the lives of many others and often work in hazardous, stressful environments; and police officers, who enforce laws and are tasked with catching criminals.

CareerCast.com’s 10 Most Stressful Jobs of 2012

1. Enlisted Military Soldier – Average Income $35,580
2. Firefighter – Average Income $45,250
3. Airline Pilot – Average Income $103,210
4. Military General – Average Income $196,300
5. Police Officer – Average Income $53,540
6. Event Coordinator – Average Income $45,260
7. Public Relations Executive – Average Income $91,810
8. Corporate Executive (Senior) – Average Income $165,830
9. Photojournalist – Average Income $40,000
10. Taxi Driver – Average Income $22,440

CareerCast.com’s 10 Least Stressful Jobs of 2012

1. Medical Records Technician – Average Income $32,350
2. Jeweler – Average Income $35,170
3. Hair Stylist – Average Income $22,760
4. Dressmaker/Tailor – Average Income $26,560
5. Medical Laboratory Technician – Average Income $36,280
6. Audiologist – Average Income $66,660
7. Precision Assembler – Average Income $31,250
8. Dietitian – Average Income $53,250
9. Furniture Upholsterer – Average Income $29,960
10. Electrical Technician – Average Income $56,040

For detailed information on how CareerCast.com ranks jobs by stress level, see their 2012 Jobs Rated Stress Methodology. Visit www.CareerCast.com to view the least stressful jobs and most stressful jobs.

Vets Prevail is an innovative new online mental health tool that is tailored specifically to today’s veterans, helping ease transition to life after military service and tackle post deployment re-adjustment challenges.

Employing cutting edge technology, the program creates engagement through dynamically tailored interactions. The core content is rooted in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, the standard of care for treatment of symptoms related to PTSD and depression. The program incorporates interactive multimedia e-learning lessons, peer support, diagnostic self-assessments, and proprietary software for scheduling and tracking user activities, thoughts, and feelings.

Vets Prevail was founded by veterans and developed over a period of 18 months through the collaboration of mental health researchers and clinicians at top universities and hospitals with the backing of the National Science Foundation and The McCormick Foundation.

Read the NY Times story on Vets Prevail from last year, and follow the story of Cpl. Ricoh Danielson, who was encouraged to get the treatment he needed after finding Vets Prevail online: Veterans Reaching Out For Help Online.

Are you Woman Warrior Proud? As a female officer, you can join MOAA today for $17, and receive a special gift with your membership!

Enter promo code: E1110WMVET

The Department of Veterans Affairs has released a series of videos in which women Veterans describe their experiences serving in the military, ranging from their significant contributions to national safety and security to the challenges they faced during their service and after returning to civilian life.

The three- to five-minute videos are part of VA’s ongoing “Rethink Veterans” campaign to increase awareness of women Veterans and their vital roles in our nation’s history. The videos can be viewed at www.womenshealth.va.gov or on YouTube.

The four stories just released were recorded during the July 2011 Women Veterans Summit in Washington, D.C. Women from all eras, conflicts, and service branches were invited to share their experiences. VA plans to release several video vignettes over the next few months.

The first four videos include an Army Reservist who served nine years stateside before deploying to Iraq post-9/11, a Vietnam War era nurse who returned from combat with a new sense of family, a Navy Veteran who advocates for expanded roles for women in the military, and Brigadier General Wilma Vaught, the first woman to deploy with a Strategic Air Command bomber unit. The videos are meant to increase awareness of women’s roles in the military among VA staff and the public.

Women Veterans make up 1 percent of Veterans, 15 percent of active duty service members and nearly 18 percent of guard and reserve forces. As the number of active duty women increases, so does the number of women Veterans using their VA benefits. VA is working to enhance access and services for women Veterans at all VA facilities and change VA culture to be more understanding and accommodating of women Veterans.

For more information about VA programs and services for women Veterans, please visit: www.va.gov/womenvet and www.womenshealth.va.gov

The Department of Veterans Affairs has launched a campaign to increase awareness about Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and services provided by the VA for Veterans and Servicemembers recovering from TBI and co-occurring complex injuries.

The campaign debuted with a 25-minute documentary highlighting individual stories of recovery for some of the most severely injured and wounded Veterans through the VA Polytrauma System of Care at the Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center in Richmond, Va. The documentary and other videos can be viewed at www.polytrauma.va.gov.

“The stories of true courage and determination are an inspiration to all who watch this documentary,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “The stories go beyond their injuries resulting from combat or vehicle accidents by highlighting their heroic roads to recovery, aided by VA’s system of care. I encourage everyone to take the opportunity to watch the video.”

VA has released a series of products to promote awareness of TBI and services available to Veterans, including public service announcements featuring Golden Globe, Emmy, and Screen Actors Guild SAG Award winner and Academy Award nominee Gary Sinise.

The pieces highlight the fact that effects of TBI can range from mild to severe, lasting for a brief or prolonged period of time. Treatment is available and VA provides specialized services to support Veterans and Servicemembers through evaluating and diagnosing TBI, related problems, and enabling their recovery. More information about TBI and VA’s Polytrauma/TBI System of Care is available at www.polytrauma.va.gov.

The Hallmark Channel’s “Emeril’s Table” features a group of service men and women, representing the Navy, Marines and the Coast Guard as they’re served some of Chef Emeril’s favorite southern fare airing November 11th at 11am ET/10am C for Veterans Day.

Chef Emeril starts off with his Oven Fried Catfish served with his sweet succotash, “kicked up” Collard Greens and Garlicky Cornbread. Emeril cut the calories but not the flavor with this classic southern meal!

In this photo from Hallmark Channel’s “Emeril’s Table,” Chef Emeril Lagasse welcomes a group of sea service men and women, representing the Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard to his table for some lightened-up southern fare. Seen left to right: Chef Emeril Lagasse, T.J. Milani (Navy), Amber Simpkins-Hightower (Marines), Charles Leo Demichele (Navy), Genoveva Acevedo (Marines), Matthew Anson (Coast Guard). (Photo credit: Anders Krusberg/Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia)

Find recipes for Emeril’s lightened southern favorites after the jump: OVEN FRIED CATFISH WITH SUCCOTASH, QUICK COLLARD GREENS, GARLICKY CORNBREAD.
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The Department of Veterans Affairs is taking its internal culture-change message to the public with a new video about the vital role women play in the military and the importance of providing women Veterans with high quality health care.

VA’s Women Veterans Health Strategic Health Care Group recently completed a 60-second public service announcement (PSA) that challenges viewers to rethink pre-conceived notions about women Veterans.

This dynamic video features images of women in service to our country: they drive supply trucks, participate in reconnaissance missions, walk safety patrols, and operate helicopter machine guns.

The number of women using VA has doubled in the past decade, and that increase is expected to continue into the next decade.

More than half of the women using VA health care have a service-connected disability. These range from combat PTSD to missing limbs. The PSA gives a sampling of the service-connected disabilities women Veterans must cope with on a daily basis.

The PSA was developed for nationwide release from a new employee orientation video-available at www.womenshealth.va.gov-created as part of VA’s ongoing efforts to change its culture to be more understanding and accommodating of women Veterans and honor the important service they have given our country.

In addition to new employee orientation, VA is spreading its culture-of-change message to current employees through posters, conferences, and e-mail messaging. VA health care providers are all given the opportunity to participate in a ground-breaking mini-residency program in Women’s Health for Veterans. This program has already educated more than 1,100 VA providers on the latest knowledge in gender-specific health care.

For more information about VA programs and services for women Veterans, please visit: www.va.gov/womenvet and www.womenshealth.va.gov. Read the full press release from the Department of Veterans Affairs online.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is recognizing Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October by asking all female Veterans to talk with their health care providers about appropriate breast cancer screenings, such as regular mammograms.

Both men and women can develop breast cancer, though male breast cancer is rare. In women, breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death and the odds that a woman will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime are one in eight.

The good news is that the overall five-year survival rate from breast cancer is nearly 90 percent. If the cancer is caught while it is still located only in the breast, the survival rate increases to nearly 99 percent.

A regular mammogram, or x-ray of the breast, is one of the most effective ways to detect breast cancer early. VA excels at breast cancer screenings, outperforming private health care systems, with 87 percent of eligible women receiving screening mammograms. However, VA is concerned that every woman get appropriate screening.

Veterans can talk with their VA health care providers. The VA directory, www.va.gov/directory, helps Veterans find their nearest facility.

Non-Veterans can find local screening resources through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s early detection program at www.cdc.gov/cancer/nbccedp.

In line with national guidelines, VA encourages all women between ages 50 and 75 to get mammograms every two years. Women ages 40 to 50 and those older than 75 should talk with their providers about the risks and benefits of having mammograms and make a decision based on their individual risk factors.

Breast cancer risk factors include getting older, having a close family member with breast cancer, being overweight or obese, previous radiation therapy/exposure to the breasts or chest, not exercising, and having certain gene mutations. Having these risk factors does not mean that a woman will develop breast cancer, but they should be brought to the attention of her health care provider.

Get more info on breast cancer from the Centers for Disease Control. Read the full release on promoting breast cancer awareness through the VA on the Department of Veterans Affairs Website.

Veterans who served aboard U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships operating on the waters of Vietnam between January 9, 1962, and May 7, 1975, may be eligible to receive Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation for 14 medical conditions associated with presumptive exposure to Agent Orange.

An updated list of U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships confirmed to have operated on Vietnam’s inland waterways, docked on shore, or had crewmembers sent ashore, has been posted at http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/shiplist/list.asp to assist Vietnam Veterans in determining potential eligibility for compensation benefits.

VA presumes herbicide exposure for any Veteran with duty or visitation within the country of Vietnam or on its inland waterways during the Vietnam era. Comprehensive information about the 14 recognized illnesses under VA’s “presumption” rule for Agent Orange is also located on the webpage.

For questions about Agent Orange and the online list of ships, Veterans may call VA’s Special Issues Helpline at 1-800-749-8387 and press 3.

The Agent Orange Claims Processing System website located at https://www.fasttrack.va.gov/AOFastTrack/ may be used to submit claims related to the three conditions added to the list of Agent Orange presumptives last year (Parkinson’s disease, hairy cell and other chronic B-cell leukemias, and ischemic heart disease).

Veterans claiming other conditions may file online at VA’s My-eBenefits web site at: https://www.ebenefits.va.gov/ebenefits-portal/ebenefits.portal. They can check the status of their claim with a premium account (confirming their identity), and use a growing number of online services.

Read the full press release from the Department of Veterans Affairs online for additional information on how to submit claims.

The Armed Services YMCA (ASYMCA) launched “Operation: Lighten the Load,” a campaign designed to raise awareness, understanding and appreciation of the heavy burden of military life for service members and their families alike, and what others can do to make life easier for those who are dedicated to serving our nation.

The campaign hub is www.operationlightentheload.org, where service members and military families are encouraged to upload videos of their “military life” stories and how the programs and services of the Armed Services YMCA help make their lives easier. They are stories of hope, strength and sacrifice that show just how great their commitment is to our country – and just how much they deserve the support of the neighbors, communities and organizations like the Armed Services YMCA. Volunteers and supporters are also encouraged to share videos of why they’ve made a commitment to help “Lighten the Load.”

Selected stories will be chosen to appear in a public service announcement for the Armed Services YMCA, airing Dec. 30, 2011, during the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl on ESPN. The stories will also appear on the jumbotron inside Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas during the game.

Soldiers, military families, volunteers and civilians will also be encouraged to share their stories or show their gratitude and support via Facebook and Twitter, using the hashtag #asymca.

Edith and Samuel love craft time at ASYMCA-FLW! from ASYMCA on Vimeo.