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The Riddler

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First time ever going to a VA hospital.  Had to bring a friend to an appointment.  I know they get a bad rap because of delays but from an outsider perspective? They treated the patient with respect and the bonus was they treated me with respect and all I did was give a ride. I am happy to see our veterans getting good care at West Roxbury VA.  Hope this is the same story for our SOL Veterans at other VA's.  

Edited by The Riddler

 

 

 

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I have using getting health care through the VA for roughly 15 years now. There's been a couple of times they saved my life.....literally. There's been other times that it's been an absolute nightmare trying to get care through the BS they do. 

A lot of the problems stem from the administration running that particular facility. I've been to three different facilities, and the differences between the three were astounding. By far the Richmond, VA facility was the best. Had a procedure scheduled to possibly have a stent put in. Had to check in the evening before then I was supposed to actually do the procedure the next morning. That meant an overnight stay in a local motel....ok will do. Did the check in.....nurse checked BP/ vitals, EKG, and immediately sent me to their ER. Hadn't been feeling good for about a week.....not really bad....just "off" you know? They admitted my arse and had me in 6am the next morning putting a stent in. Didn't realize I was having as bad of trouble heart-wise as I was. Oh crap. By 8am they had put in a stent....by 10am I kid you not felt better than I had in a few years. Saved my ass folks. I was two steps from a heart attack.

Hampton VA. They've changed directors three times in the last five or six years. At times they SUCK. Other times they're great. Once again it's the administration causing the problem. 

Durham, NC VA does pretty damn good. Great thing is they have a major teaching hospital (Duke) right across the street. Lot of Dr.'s from Duke also work the VA there.

One of the things that suck about the VA. Just like any other government run branch getting rid of ****** people is damn near impossible. It's easy to tell the difference between the ones that care about us vets....and the POS leeches just there for a paycheck. I've seen a few Dr's I wouldn't let treat a turd. I had one ER doc that damn near cost me my leg last year after I fell on the ice. Reported her ass on the White House Vet hotline after no response from their director. For once the system worked....she's gone.

People can talk all the **** they want about Donald Trump too but this is one vet that can say for sure he's getting some things done improving the VA system. Thank you Mr. President.

Edited by 2mcfisher48
"LIFE'S TOUGH......IT'S EVEN TOUGHER WHEN YOU'RE STUPID." John Wayne

 

"Just as the laymen leave medicine to doctors and electronics to engineers, so people who are not qualified to think should leave all thinking to the experts and have faith in the experts' higher authority. Only experts are able to understand the discoveries of modern science, which have proved that thought is an illusion and that the mind is a myth."

Atlas Shrugged

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31 mins ago, Dave588 said:

I think most of va gets a bad rap for administration. And facilities are better staffed in rural areas than urban 

A LOT of that "bad rap" is well deserved....and the majority of it the facility administration is to blame.

 

"LIFE'S TOUGH......IT'S EVEN TOUGHER WHEN YOU'RE STUPID." John Wayne

 

"Just as the laymen leave medicine to doctors and electronics to engineers, so people who are not qualified to think should leave all thinking to the experts and have faith in the experts' higher authority. Only experts are able to understand the discoveries of modern science, which have proved that thought is an illusion and that the mind is a myth."

Atlas Shrugged

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5 mins ago, 2mcfisher48 said:

A LOT of that "bad rap" is well deserved....and the majority of it the facility administration is to blame.

 

Agreed! Have a good friend that now lives at VA hospital in Elsmere De. A loooong story. I never cease to be amazed at incompetence,indifference of staff there and frankly surprised they've never killed him with their ineptness. There are good nurses,doctors there that try to make changes,but they get burned out in less than a year getting steamrolled by the system and upper level administration.

They transfer out when they've had enough or made to transfer if waves are made for change.

My friend has a seeming never ending supply of new specialists,doctors that need to be brought up to speed that brings a lot of inconsistencies in his care. You never know what you'll get with next replacement. Some of the nurses there should be made to endure the same kind of care they give their patients,makes me angry,fist clenching angry

.My 2c,rant over,venting...

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First time to the VA hospital in Wilmington was five and a half years ago. Was totally impressed and the doctor who examined me put my bad shoulder down as service connected. I walked away figuring that it was done and would be taken care of. Been fighting with the VA ever since and in November 2018 a judge ordered in my favor. That was thirteen months ago and still nothing. In touch with my congressman last July who thumped his chest and said that this was taking entirely too long and his office was going to get involved. That was five months ago and still nothing. 

I know someone here posted that Trump did good things with the VA. So far all I have seen is Obama's picture came off the wall and Trump's picture is in it's place.  

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To be fair, many private hospitals are run similarly to the VA.  Not all hospitals are top notch teaching hospitals.  If you're ever interested, read some of the hospital ranking charts for different specialties and overall standards.  

Sometimes, when you're in a dark place, you think you've been buried, but you've actually been planted.  

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1 hour ago, Heron25 said:

To be fair, many private hospitals are run similarly to the VA.  Not all hospitals are top notch teaching hospitals.  If you're ever interested, read some of the hospital ranking charts for different specialties and overall standards.  

I understand your position here. I have a fair amount of experience with different hospitals for both myself and my girlfriend. Between us we’ve been in most all in 150 mile radius of our locations,nothing to brag about,and i’m not. We have critiqued between ourselves the care,treatment,knowledge experience at various ones and have our druthers as to which we would be admitted to if choice were an option.

I am able to say definitively I have never seen more consistent incompetence,mistakes,incorrect diagnoses and substandard care-especially for non ambulatory or patients that can’t speak for themselves,often treated as less than human beings anywhere else besides the VA hospital in my original post. Been familiar with this hospital for some time and recognize and interact with some of long term patients there on visits. Disturbing the amount of patients there that pass away and didn’t have to due to substandard care.

I am aware many vets get good care at various VA hospitals but what I have seen 1st hand,this is not one of them.

 

Like Fred,I have enlisted help from local representatives and have phone #s in my phone to call and keep them and state senators office abreast of my friends experiences there.,at their insistence.

All i’ve been involved with promise investigations and things will change but there is none at all and emails and phone calls eventually go unanswered.

This is not a large state with millions of constituents and politicians other than lip service really do nothing. I feel both that they don’t want to take on the federal government behind the VA and there’s nothing to be gained for them or their political career. Shameful.

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Having known a number of both good and bad docs that have worked for the VA, it's an absolute mess of bureaucracy and complacency.  As in many gov't jobs people are there to get benefits and do the absolute minimum of what's required of them to keep the job.  Pathetic and easily remedied but the administrators at the top are totally against it.....status quo is what they're after.  Glad to hear some are run better than others though.

*

 

Diversity makes us stronger!

 

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