People can get extraordinarily good care, as well as extremely bad, deadly care at VA Hospitals. I saw both sides of that at the Martinez, CA facility, while working there. Many questionable things happened; it was finally, ultimately all finally covered up by demolishing the affected wing of the building, under the guise of "seismic instability", as the excuse for public consumption. Some of the admin. staff were excellent at covering things up. The building actually had unremediable, filthy air ducts, which infected/affected both staff and patients, chronically; radiation contamination issues; etc...the other half of the same building was fine. Suffice it to say: It is in any patient's best interests to have their own patient advocate helping them through the system, who is aware, smart and able to be aggressive enough when needed, to make sure the person gets the best treatment. Staff likewise need advocacy to protect their human rights.
OTH, the one in San Francisco has had a great reputation.
i think the va's are a reflection of the skill and talent of the local workforce . indianapolis va is always a wonderful experience , ditto martinsville indiana satellite clinic .. i walked into martinsville clinic last friday with an ear infection concern and was seen on the spot by a nurse . 60 second wait in the waiting room ,..
PS to an earlier post. I got excellent care at the VA in Oklahoma City, OK which is my home town. I now live in Vancouver, WA and my daughter takes me to the VA in Portland, OR. The staff there is very helpful. They take time to explain your med, etc. I am very grateful for the VA. Verna
I can add another VA hospital to the list—East Orange, NJ. While it may be located in "not-the-best-area of" NJ, the care my dad has received there has been quite impressive. His prescriptions are also filled and shipped from East Orange.
Unfortunately, we live about 50 miles away, so it isn't exactly a convenient trip, so a visit to a specialist takes some planning ahead. For emergencies, our local Urgent Care Center has been wonderful (and they take Medicare). His physician is located at the VA clinic in Piscataway, NJ, which is also an excellent facility with good resources.
In addition, the myhealth.va.gov site is a great way to order prescription refills and keep in touch with Dad's PCP. All his health records are available at one click, and his medical team can refer to a centralized system to support his ongoing care.
I cannot even imagine the cost of his care and medication over the past year, had they not been provided by the VA. Since Dad is of modest means, this could all have negatively affected his physical and financial well-being in no small way. I am one insanely grateful daughter. Thank you VA.
I am an ex WAC who has gotten very good care at several VA hospitals. I was not wounded as we were not sent to war in those days. I was in during the Korean war. I was stationed in Landstuhl, Germany in 1952-1954. I was there when the hospital was built. I worked on the wards as a Medical tech, Also in an office later. I am so sad that our men and now women who are wounded in the wars are not treated better. I don't know who fault it is. Verna Jones Allen
It's nice to read that a VA hospital did the right thing by its patients. Having been treated by four VA Medical Centers since leaving active duty, my experience has not been the horror stories reported in the press. Most Veterans Medical Administration employees are there to help veterans and really show it. However, the Department of Veterans Affairs and its subordinate agencies like the Veterans Medical Administration are part of the executive branch of the federal government, making them highly bureaucratic. And there are horror stories about bad care, long waits, etc that are for real, depending on the medical center and the treating doctor(s).
Unfortunately, your brother-in-law ran into the first bureaucratic hurtle. In order to seek care at a VA Medical Center, a veteran must "enroll" at that medical center for care first. If a veteran walks into an ER at a VA Medical Center, that center should enroll him on the spot but that may mean that he needs to have his DD-214 or discharge papers with him at that time. Otherwise for non-emergent care, the veteran will have to enroll, get an appointment with a primary care provider, then be referred to a specialist within that medical center or outside in the community by the PCP. It can take time. If your brother-in-law wants to seek care at the VA Medical Center near where he "snowbirds," he really needs to enroll there as well as at the medical center in Buffalo. The VA is smart enough to understand what's going on with two sets of doctors in the system and can share records electronically between them all.
Despite my experience, sometimes a veteran will get what he pays for in terms of free medical care from the VA. While the VA has never let us down, our outside team of doctors are the ones who really address the scary or potentially life threating conditions. For instance, if I would have listened to my VA primary care physician, I may not be here to type this right now.
There are significant benefits for the elderly veteran, though, through the VA as part of the overall medical team that can translate into additional help in the home for the caregiver, aid and assistance payments, etc. Our advice is to keep this as part of your team but maintain at least some medical care outside of the VA through your medical insurance to ensure that you receive the best care and maintain your care options. It can be a challenge to maintain two different sets of medical professionals, especially if your VA Medical Center is a bit of a drive from where you live. However, taking my father-in-law as an example, we would have had many more options for in-home care had we been able to get him back down to the VA Medical Center where he'd been seen years ago.
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A VA Hospital to Be Proud Of
I saw both sides of that at the Martinez, CA facility, while working there.
Many questionable things happened; it was finally, ultimately all finally covered up by demolishing the affected wing of the building, under the guise of "seismic instability", as the excuse for public consumption.
Some of the admin. staff were excellent at covering things up.
The building actually had unremediable, filthy air ducts, which infected/affected both staff and patients, chronically; radiation contamination issues; etc...the other half of the same building was fine.
Suffice it to say:
It is in any patient's best interests to have their own patient advocate helping them through the system, who is aware, smart and able to be aggressive enough when needed, to make sure the person gets the best treatment.
Staff likewise need advocacy to protect their human rights.
OTH, the one in San Francisco has had a great reputation.
Unfortunately, we live about 50 miles away, so it isn't exactly a convenient trip, so a visit to a specialist takes some planning ahead. For emergencies, our local Urgent Care Center has been wonderful (and they take Medicare). His physician is located at the VA clinic in Piscataway, NJ, which is also an excellent facility with good resources.
In addition, the myhealth.va.gov site is a great way to order prescription refills and keep in touch with Dad's PCP. All his health records are available at one click, and his medical team can refer to a centralized system to support his ongoing care.
I cannot even imagine the cost of his care and medication over the past year, had they not been provided by the VA. Since Dad is of modest means, this could all have negatively affected his physical and financial well-being in no small way. I am one insanely grateful daughter. Thank you VA.
Unfortunately, your brother-in-law ran into the first bureaucratic hurtle. In order to seek care at a VA Medical Center, a veteran must "enroll" at that medical center for care first. If a veteran walks into an ER at a VA Medical Center, that center should enroll him on the spot but that may mean that he needs to have his DD-214 or discharge papers with him at that time. Otherwise for non-emergent care, the veteran will have to enroll, get an appointment with a primary care provider, then be referred to a specialist within that medical center or outside in the community by the PCP. It can take time. If your brother-in-law wants to seek care at the VA Medical Center near where he "snowbirds," he really needs to enroll there as well as at the medical center in Buffalo. The VA is smart enough to understand what's going on with two sets of doctors in the system and can share records electronically between them all.
Despite my experience, sometimes a veteran will get what he pays for in terms of free medical care from the VA. While the VA has never let us down, our outside team of doctors are the ones who really address the scary or potentially life threating conditions. For instance, if I would have listened to my VA primary care physician, I may not be here to type this right now.
There are significant benefits for the elderly veteran, though, through the VA as part of the overall medical team that can translate into additional help in the home for the caregiver, aid and assistance payments, etc. Our advice is to keep this as part of your team but maintain at least some medical care outside of the VA through your medical insurance to ensure that you receive the best care and maintain your care options. It can be a challenge to maintain two different sets of medical professionals, especially if your VA Medical Center is a bit of a drive from where you live. However, taking my father-in-law as an example, we would have had many more options for in-home care had we been able to get him back down to the VA Medical Center where he'd been seen years ago.