Thread: Va hospital

I worked for the VA for 20 years, I am a vet of four years (Vietnam era) and can speak first hand of the pathetic care given many patients who don't have decent primary doctors, most who wouldn't last a minute on the outside. The VA is a dinosaur that is unable to attract good management and those that do get management positions aren't worth the fat annual bonuses they receive annually. There are many dedicated VA employees, I was one, but have found out that management is impervious to whistle blowing / problem identification and solutyions unless it hits the media. False numbers are projected as a policy and national ratings organizations keep the VA looking good though rot exists beneath tons of paper work that says otherwise.

A solution to what is now supposedly a shocking revelation known for over forty years? How about our congressman doing something for veterans for a change than just providing lip service? How about protecting whistle blowers within the VA at non-management levels that see the waste and are willing to come forward?

Won't happen in my life time.
BTW, the VA discontinued my VA benefit when they said I made too much to qualify, yet I saw many a professional getting benefits that made over 200k.


This discussion should be moved to off topic.

I'm doing fine, but am getting a new PCP as mine is retireing . so it's s--t all over again. But I've been through it before so I know what's coming. But it's not a big problem. You have to admitted they do follow up better than Medicare doctor''s..

First let me Say Thank You to all who have served. I told my wife that I thought they should change the VA to where each vet recieved a card similar to a credit card. No longer would they go to a VA hospital. Instead they would be allowed to go to any hospital or Doctor and be seen. No co pay. The vet should be seen at the next available time slot and not put off for weeks or months.

Better yet - turn most VA centers into outpatient care/ testing facilities where tests are free to vets. The results could then be sent to non-VA primary doctors if needed. Test are expensive -MRI, CT, lab, nerve conduction tests, Xray and many other therapeutic tests as well as physical therapy/ prosthetic appliances (the best in the world!), social services, home visits by a nurse, pharmacy with mail delivery, etc., would help thousands of vets.

Many good VA doctors I've worked with either quit or retired early and I and their patients were very sorry to see them go. I've worked with radiologists that have felt it beneath them to serve veterans, especially at the salary they were making, and doctors like that need to be weeded out. You don't expect to make the same money as on the outside and rarely get cost of living increases, so the incentive is that you like what you do, are proud of it and the reward is the quality care you provide veterans.

I'm a Viet Nam vet. Yeah I am old but not so old that I don't remember what the Army was like. Later in 2004 I went to Iraq as a civilian. Kind of a last Horrah kind of thing. I stayed there 4 yrs returning in 2008. The differences I saw with the way the military was then and now were big changes. Just take the mess hall which are now called Dining Facility. Well for those who remember different ranks ate in different seating areas. EM and NCOs were segregated and Officers were also. They are not now and the food the soldiers get now is impressive. So much so the military is concerned with weight gain of its members.

Having said that I would say the only way you will fix things is to make the high ranking ones (Government Employees i.e. Congressmen, Senators, GS employees etc) use the same facilities the veterans are using. Then you will see improvements like you cant believe. I don't know if that will ever happen but it should. Same would hold true for retirement.

Originally Posted by Spoonminnow

I've worked with radiologists that have felt it beneath them to serve veterans, especially at the salary they were making, and doctors like that need to be weeded out. You don't expect to make the same money as on the outside and rarely get cost of living increases, so the incentive is that you like what you do, are proud of it and the reward is the quality care you provide veterans.

That may have been true about government workers salaries in the past but I don't think its true anymore. On top of that the government is one of the few employers who get a retirement package after working 5 yrs or more, special perks like every holiday under the sun off, continued training of every sort, often away from the work site, Comp time for sick days not used. Generous vacation allotments, access to special facilities and so one and job security. Most civilian jobs I know of don't have these benefits.

Salaries are 20% or more less. I was a med tech making $8000 per year less than my counterpart when I retired after 20 years.
Retirement under the new system is a joke. Fortunately I was under the old Civil Svc. Retirement system and made out.
9 holidays off.
No training unless funds were available. I submitted six different requests and was denied over a period of six years and those seminars pertained to my job.
Sick time. I gave back over 50 hours when I retired and the rate of reimbursement for time not used was not 1 to 1.
Regular folks like me lost vacation time if not used beyond a certain point of accumulation, annually.
Job security? Reduction if force happened occasionally just like in the military and I saw people let go. True, it is hard to get fired with union backing, but forget promotion or transfer.
Access to special facilities? You must be thinking of the service. The small hospital BX we had is not all it is cracked up to be and generic items were the norm that did not save you money. That's the only special facility one could shop at.

Also, you pay for health care, so much per month while working and it is not automatic when you retire. You have to chose a plan. I had to pay $500 per month for the last few years after retirement until medicare kicked in this month.

Unless you've worked for the VA, you need to find a reliable source of information.

Originally Posted by Spoonminnow

Salaries are 20% or more less. I was a med tech making $8000 per year less than my counterpart when I retired after 20 years.
Thats surprises me are medical workers WS or GS rated. When I worked with DOE & DOD personnel they certainly were not earning less. Unless they had a low rating.
Retirement under the new system is a joke. Fortunately I was under the old Civil Svc. Retirement system and made out.
Well I worked all my life and get no retirement. So I would accept a joke if offered to me.
9 holidays off. 9 is what most civilian employers give DOE and DOD personnel get all of them off which totals 12 I think.
No training unless funds were available. I submitted six different requests and was denied over a period of six years and those seminars pertained to my job.
Well depending on the work you performed some training is mandatory but OSHA or other governing agencies. Continuing education requirements are also a requirement on most specialized fields. Maybe medical facilities are treated differently but that would surprise me as they participate in bonus programs.
Sick time. I gave back over 50 hours when I retired and the rate of reimbursement for time not used was not 1 to 1.
Civilians accumulate 1 sick day a month typically and if not used as sick do not get anything back, ever ...
Regular folks like me lost vacation time if not used beyond a certain point of accumulation, annually.
Government employees are not regular by definition... Yes they lose if not used but all use so no loses and that only starts a while back because of government employees retiring with ungodly amounts of accumulated time on their books.
Job security? Reduction if force happened occasionally just like in the military and I saw people let go. True, it is hard to get fired with union backing, but forget promotion or transfer.
Your kidding right. Want a promotion Transfer. The government is the largest employer in the world. Layoffs happened in my industry every year. I have also seen where all government employees had to stay at home because of the recent sequesters and they were not paid for that time at home. Later however when the budget got worked out they were reimbursed for their loss of wages. No addition work hours were required. Thats happened twice that I know of.

Access to special facilities? You must be thinking of the service. The small hospital BX we had is not all it is cracked up to be and generic items were the norm that did not save you money. That's the only special facility one could shop at.

Also, you pay for health care, so much per month while working and it is not automatic when you retire. You have to chose a plan. I had to pay $500 per month for the last few years after retirement until medicare kicked in this month. Some government workers get medical. Military for sure and others do also but not all I guess. I don't know of any other civilian work for other than unions that get medical. you also didn't have to pay $500 you chose to or not just like the rest of us.

Unless you've worked for the VA, you need to find a reliable source of information.

I have not worked for the VA and was speaking of government workers in general which the VA i believe is a part of. Can you transfer out of the VA into DCMA, USACE, DOD, DOE, NRC, EPA or any of the other government agencies. Civilians cant. We have to apply and existing government workers are picked first before jobs are open to the public.