My Personal Experience with the VA Healthcare System has been excellent with the exception of two issues.
The current issue is that I am unable to get scheduled with a regular 'Doctor.' There is quite a bit of shuffling of 'providers' within the VA system that it is difficult to see the same one every time you have an appointment, if you can even get an appointment; which is the current scandal involving the VA Healthcare System.
When I returned to the VA system in 2009, after having walked away from it in the '80s due to their lack of concern for my health coverage, I found that it had improved a great deal. Of course my situation had changed as I was now in the category of 'service-connected' disability, which had taken over a year-and-a-half to get approved by the VA.
My care-provider at the time was excellent. He knew his stuff plus was a Veteran himself. Two years later, he reached his retirement age and took advantage of it. That's when there was no 'provider/Doctor' assigned to cover my ills. What had happened is that the VA knew my 'Doc' was retiring, but didn't seek to replace him until after he departed. That went on for several months, as I was shuffled around from 'Doc' to 'Doc.'
Eventually, the VA hired someone to take me and many other Vets on as his assigned group. That didn't even last a year, when he was assigned to another function within the agency. No was was given the task of covering for his former patients. This is still the case as I wait for an appointment with God knows who.
The other practices/specialties at our local VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) are superb. I have no qualms with the services they've given me. But most of them require a referral by my 'Doc' and I don't have one.
The influx of Veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan "wars" have overwhelmed the entire VA Healthcare system. It was not prepared to handle an increased volume as these conflicts dumped folks into the system. Nor, of course did Congress even consider care for these Veterans when they sent them off to fight the 'wars' they fund. Buy bullets, but care for the injured and maimed warriors . . . oops, sorry . . . . we forgot . . . and continue to do so. (We Vietnam Veterans know that all too well).
Granted the Grand Rapids area is about to have a brand-new clinic building opening later this year, but that facility is located at the south end of the county, and transportation could very well be a problem for some of my comrades. We'll see what is done to resolve this point.
So, overall, I am content with the healthcare I receive . . . but I have to wait my turn; just as they trained us to do during our military service . . . . "hurry up and wait" and "stand in line."
~~~
The biggest gripe I have with the VA Healthcare system is the lack of follow-up or communication which happened to me in May of 2012. Here is the description of the incident I wrote up at that time:
I
have had sporadic dizzy spells beginning in approximately 2000, and the
episodes have been increasing since then. Several times they have occurred
while driving. These spells have resulted in me losing my balance.
The
most recent episodes of losing my balance happened twice in a span of two days;
the first occurred on May 27th, 2012 when I turned around and
subsequently fell and painfully bruised my tailbone. The second episode was
more dire; On May 29th, I
lost my balance again as I was descending steps into my garage. (We were
preparing for a trip to Ann Arbor (U of M Cancer Clinic) for my spouse’s
appointment early on the 30th.) These episodes, I believe have
attributed to my loss of balance and now has resulted in physical harm.
I
was in great pain but needed to get my wife to Ann Arbor. So, we proceeded to
Ann Arbor despite severe pain. When we arrived, I got her situated in the hotel
room. I then drove to the Ann Arbor VA Hospital Emergency Room. I got there
about 8:00 – 8:30 p.m. (if I remember correctly).
I
checked in but they couldn’t seem to find any of my records, despite being in
the VA system since the mid 80s. They had me wait for about 30 to 45 minutes to
have an X-Ray. After the X-Ray, they sent me back to the waiting area to wait
for a doctor. I waited and waited and waited some more. Finally, at 1:30 in the
morning I told them I had to leave to get some sleep before taking my wife to
her cancer appointment. They took my name and phone number (again) and told me
that they would call if they noticed any injury. The next day (May 30th)
I did not receive any phone call. Nor did I hear from them on the 31st,
or the 1st, 2nd, 3rd or anytime at all. Eventually,
the pain was so impairing that on June 8th I called the Grand Rapids
VA Outpatient Clinic to see someone about the pain.
When
I talked with the representative at the GR Clinic and explained my issue, she
said I had to have X-Rays. I told her that I did in Ann Arbor (VA Hospital) on
May 29th. She looked it up and saw the report of the X-Rays. She
informed me I had a Distular Fibular
Fracture (or broken ankle). I had been hobbling around in great pain on
this foot for a week and a half without knowing I had broken the ankle. I was
livid. I was then informed that I had to go back to Ann Arbor or Detroit for
treatment, as the GR Clinic did not have the facilities for treatment of this
sort.
I
informed her that I could not do that as it was a 2½ hour drive to Ann Arbor, additional
time waiting for treatment and a 2½ hour drive back to Grand Rapids. With my
wife’s condition, that would be way too much to ask of my her. I asked if the
VA would pay for treatment outside of the VA. I was told, after a moderate
pause in the response, that I would have some paperwork to complete and have to
wait for approval. That was NOT acceptable under the circumstances with the
pain and the injury.
Consequently,
I called my local physician for assistance. He referred me to Orthopedic
Associates, with whom I had a consultation on June 12th. The doctor took an X-Ray and determined that surgery was necessary. On June 18th
the surgery was performed with a plate and eight screws implanted into my ankle.
As
a result, I was housebound for two weeks and incapacitated and off my
left leg for about 12 weeks. Additionally, I have incurred out-of-pocket
expenses for the office visits, surgery, medication and a knee walker to
provide some mobility. This has also decreased my ability to care for my wife
and she has had to care for both of us. There will additional expenses as my
case progresses.
In
addition to the VA covering my out-of-pocket expenses/co-pays, I would like an
apology for the lack of proper care and obvious indifference to my injury.
To this day, I've neither been reimbursed or received an apology for the 'pain' I've experienced as a result. I decided that it wasn't worth the grief and turmoil which it would take to have the scenario resolved, so to keep my blood pressure and temper under control, I've moved on. But I have a constant reminder of this snafu every time I step on my left foot.
I shake my head and remember the phrase . . . . "I'm from the Federal Government and I'm here to help you." Yeah, okay, thanks for your concern."
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