I had a very refreshing experience a few days ago at a South Florida VA Clinic. I live in Philadelphia and get all my treatments at the Philadelphia VA Hospital, but I am on the Miami VA Hospital email list because of a previous need to get a prescription refilled there.
The most recent email was about an upcoming Miami VA Veterans Town Hall meeting in Sunrise Florida; “During the town hall, Miami VA leadership will provide updates on VA operations and improvement initiatives regarding VA health care and benefits. Veterans and their families will have an opportunity to comment publicly about VA programs and services and discuss ideas or suggestions on how we can better serve Veterans and their families in South Florida.”
During the almost 3-hour meeting, we were first introduced to the local clinic’s director and several of his staff, and the director and all the major department heads of the Miami Hospital. That was followed by statistics detailing the effectiveness of the Miami Hospital, and its regional clinics that make up the Miami VA Healthcare System, and comparing it to the VA’s national averages. The rest of the formal presentation described the progress of some of the technical and logistical upgrades and improvements they have been working on, and some of the issues that are restricted by national VA budgetary constraints. The presentation ended with the director of the local VA cemetery talking about burial benefits.
While questions were taken, and responded to throughout the presentation, the meeting really got interesting when the veterans in attendance were given an opportunity to ask questions on any topic relating to health care and benefits. Although there were quite a few comments praising the quality of the health care received, most of the complaints centered around the inability to get treatments in a timely manner because of excessive wait times for appointments, and rescheduled and cancelled appointments by the hospital. Many of the vets said they had similar experiences at other VA hospitals around the country, and quite a few wanted answers to questions pertaining to their specific circumstances.
What surprised me the most was when we were told those with personal issues would be able to talk with one of the staff in private after the meeting. And the staff would stay there until everyone had a chance to discuss their individual problems and concerns, with the goal of coming up a plan to resolve the issues. And that’s exactly what happened.
It’s certainly a good thing to be kept aware of what is being done in general to provide the veterans with positive hospital experiences, but it’s even more important to seek out those individuals that that are having difficulty receiving the care and treatment they should be getting, and working to get past the obstacles that prevents that from happening.
Wouldn’t it be great if every VA hospital in the country did what Miami is doing; holding quarterly Town Hall meetings to listen to the veterans, and work to resolve their grievances. To hear the specific health care issues and problems veterans are having with the intention of finding ways to insure all veterans get the care they so desperately need.
Maybe others are doing just that, but what about those that are not. Perhaps mentioning it to the VA doctors and administrators we see at those other hospitals and clinics might help make it happen.
The most recent email was about an upcoming Miami VA Veterans Town Hall meeting in Sunrise Florida; “During the town hall, Miami VA leadership will provide updates on VA operations and improvement initiatives regarding VA health care and benefits. Veterans and their families will have an opportunity to comment publicly about VA programs and services and discuss ideas or suggestions on how we can better serve Veterans and their families in South Florida.”
During the almost 3-hour meeting, we were first introduced to the local clinic’s director and several of his staff, and the director and all the major department heads of the Miami Hospital. That was followed by statistics detailing the effectiveness of the Miami Hospital, and its regional clinics that make up the Miami VA Healthcare System, and comparing it to the VA’s national averages. The rest of the formal presentation described the progress of some of the technical and logistical upgrades and improvements they have been working on, and some of the issues that are restricted by national VA budgetary constraints. The presentation ended with the director of the local VA cemetery talking about burial benefits.
While questions were taken, and responded to throughout the presentation, the meeting really got interesting when the veterans in attendance were given an opportunity to ask questions on any topic relating to health care and benefits. Although there were quite a few comments praising the quality of the health care received, most of the complaints centered around the inability to get treatments in a timely manner because of excessive wait times for appointments, and rescheduled and cancelled appointments by the hospital. Many of the vets said they had similar experiences at other VA hospitals around the country, and quite a few wanted answers to questions pertaining to their specific circumstances.
What surprised me the most was when we were told those with personal issues would be able to talk with one of the staff in private after the meeting. And the staff would stay there until everyone had a chance to discuss their individual problems and concerns, with the goal of coming up a plan to resolve the issues. And that’s exactly what happened.
It’s certainly a good thing to be kept aware of what is being done in general to provide the veterans with positive hospital experiences, but it’s even more important to seek out those individuals that that are having difficulty receiving the care and treatment they should be getting, and working to get past the obstacles that prevents that from happening.
Wouldn’t it be great if every VA hospital in the country did what Miami is doing; holding quarterly Town Hall meetings to listen to the veterans, and work to resolve their grievances. To hear the specific health care issues and problems veterans are having with the intention of finding ways to insure all veterans get the care they so desperately need.
Maybe others are doing just that, but what about those that are not. Perhaps mentioning it to the VA doctors and administrators we see at those other hospitals and clinics might help make it happen.