McClatchy Washington Bureau

CONWAY -- Joe Quarterman sits easy in his recliner as registered nurse Beth Yarnell checks his blood pressure and then puts her stethoscope to his lungs, heart and stomach to hear what's going on inside.

"That was Cream of Wheat you heard," he says as Yarnell withdraws the stethoscope from atop Quarterman's stomach. "It don't make much noise."

Quarterman, 77, can relax at home during Yarnell's regular visits because he is one of 25 veterans accepted into a new Home Based Primary Care program initiated earlier this year by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Quarterman, who lives alone outside Conway, suffered the first of three strokes last year and stopped driving then. He also has diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, making him a perfect candidate for the home-based care.

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