Just got done with surgery at the st louis va hospital and had a very good deal. All the people were great. And thanked me for my service. There are some really good people in the world
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Just got done with surgery at the st louis va hospital and had a very good deal. All the people were great. And thanked me for my service. There are some really good people in the world
My uncle has good things to say about them. He's a regular there.
Heal up quick and go fishing!
WILL DO, JUST NEEDED SOME TUNE UP WORK...ha THE GOLDEN YEARS
I go to the VA only for issues that are service connected. Most Drs I see are interns and are exceptionally courteous. The problem is not the care itself, but , getting the care takes forever. Took me two years to get to see a foot doctor.
I never see the same doctor twice at the VA, so there is no doctor/patient relationship verses seeing your local care provider.
It is not the doctor, it is not the nurse, but it is the jerks with the alligator purse.
Glad all is well RR.
Tom, I totally agree . it take along time to get things done. I had to write my State Rep awhile ago to get a biop of a growth in my throat that they said it would 4 months. after the email to my state Rep I got it in two days...
My father-in-law went to the VA in Louisville for cancer treatments. They gave him all the pain meds he needed, but the cancer was growing. We finally got him to see a specialist in Chicago. The staff up there said he had one of the most treatable forms of cancer. He died two days later.Quote:
Originally Posted by rocket rich
It took me 40 years to find out my medical records did not burn in the Louisville fire. The local va service officer (not connected to the Dept of VA) told me to just suck it up. I could rant all day, but most vets know what I speak of.
they treat me good
It can be a little on the negative side , I''ve had both most of my stuff isn't connected so I have co-pay's .now days they can do most on a outpatient which is only $50 no matter what
I go to a care center and Va Hospital here in Nashville. I don't have so much trouble getting in to see them. For me the trouble is getting them to do something. They just seem to take a real conservative approach to treatment. I went to them about 1 yr ago to check on nerve damage. The lady was sticking these long needles in my legs and back and then hitting me with electrical charges. Not really that fun and a few had me jumping... When we were done she stated that I did have some issues and to speak to my primary VA Dr. I did at my next scheduled appointment and he didn't even know what I was speaking about. When I spoke about them sticking me he though I was speaking of shots. In fairness he was just reassigned as my Primary care physician as the other one quit. I told me that he didn't even read my medical records ... Guess they are working on their annual bonus program.
Wish you a speedy recovery...
That's all them pills they feed you. haQuote:
Originally Posted by Billbob
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.
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.Quote:
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.
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.
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.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spoonminnow
I like the way you think!Quote:
Originally Posted by BoarBuster
Each of the agencies you mentioned is like a trying to transfer between companies. The VA is a different animal and once there - that's it! In fact the worst managers got sent to our hospital from other VA hospitals as a last chance and most leave the VA within a year or so.
Anyone can apply for positions in other VA hospitals that are posted and those that have been with the VA have priority (supposedly). I worked with a woman that has a master's degree in social work and she was passed over for that position in the same hospital because the management didn't like the fact that she had gone to the union to complain about harassment. The position was filled from outside the VA. She's still a receptionist after 10 years and works as a social worker on weekends outside the VA.
True, veteran's preference (part of the point system) does favor vets over civilian applicants for most government positions, but that is no guarantee of a job.
Well run companies that are nationwide have the same transfer options for employees. Humana, a hospital corporation that buys up hospitals, allows transfers from state to state within their system of hospitals. In all cases, a personal file is already available to help other managers in the review of candidates and a phone call between managers can determine employment outcomes. No guessing how one did at other jobs (most times).
Again, VA problems may be due in part because of underfunding, but what I've seen is blatant mismanagement and government waste to the tune of millions. Cosmetic changes don't cut it. There is no excuse for incompetence, apathy or both at higher levels were big annual bonus reward both. Many policies that should be changed aren't and only good management that address problems can make a difference.
A Fresh Look at the Veterans’ Scandal
http://www.burtfolsom.com/?p=2838&ut...tFolsom.com%29
Excellent article!
You would be shocked if I gave examples of the fraud and incompetence of VA hospitals near me that cost taxpayers millions and the bonuses that were still paid out to the tune of thousands of dollars annually to high paid individuals and specialties. Worse, you would be shocked at the poor care given veterans by truly bad doctors, few who get reviewed or fired. The good doctors in the VA know who they are and just shake their heads.
Investigations will not reveal the waste and no one will question the numbers or hold anyone accountable without an outside audit, no different than the incredible amount of subcontractor fraud in Afghanistan and Iraq.
I just got out of the Dayton Ohio VA Center for severe celluitus of my lower right leg. Am NOT saying that the delay being seen at the local clinics is NOT an inconvienence, it is. BUT the care I received during my 4 day stay at the Dayton VA Hospital was TOP NOTCH, and gladly told them so. If I have 1 REAL `complaint`, it`s that when joined in 1978, it was "guaranteed medical and DENTAL care for life". Then `Slick` Bill Clinton got elected (and NO, I did not vote for him either time !) So much for the dental care...
Lost my dad in a VA hospital, and I've never cast a shadow in another one. Lost an uncle and cousin in another VA hospital and what I witnessed was horrific treatment.
Its a known fact that if you can't make it working anywhere else you can make it working for the goverment. Becasue thats the biggest bunch of deadbeats around. I do admit there are a few good ones but they usually get in trouble for doing their job.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spoonminnow