Problems exposed at OKC Veterans Affairs center

For years, problems at Veterans Affairs medical centers have been exposed and condemned, fixes promised, and executives fired, including General Eric Shinseki, former VA Secretary.

Two days ago, USA Today printed an expose of problems at the Oklahoma City VA Medical Center. The story opened with the plight of two veterans, Charles Hand and George Washington Purifoy.

According to USA Today, “Both sought care at Veterans’ Affairs medical facilities in Oklahoma. And in their cases and others, medical professionals missed or misdiagnosed their conditions resulting in life-altering consequences.

“Hand and Purifoy are two of an untold number of veterans still suffering from shortfalls in care at the VA. Their stories suggest that the government's attempted fixes have not yet translated into better health care for veterans at facilities across the country.”

The USA Today story continues with specifics about Hand’s and Purifoy’s cases, as well as problems at VA facilities around the country.

Rachel Landen, writing in Modern Healthcare, in May 2014, said, “As accusations of mismanagement, falsified records and preventable patient deaths rock the Veterans Affairs healthcare system, some who are familiar with the VA say the failures are consistent with a pattern of well-documented problems.

“For more than a decade, the department's inspector general and the Government Accountability Office have pressed the health administration to address breaches of the requirement to schedule timely appointments and problems with its recordkeeping on wait times.

“Under a 1996 law, disabled veterans needing care must be seen by a provider within 30 days. But five years after the law passed, the GAO found that two-thirds of the specialty-care clinics they examined had wait times longer than 30 days.

“In 2007, an audit by the department's inspector general revealed that Veterans Health Administration facilities did not always adhere to the organization's scheduling policies and procedures. Unexplained differences between the desired dates shown in the scheduling software and the desired dates shown in the related medical records also caused the inspector general to conclude that the VHA's reported waiting times were unreliable.”

The problems discovered at the OKC VA Center reflect an even worse problem. According to the USA Today article, “The Oklahoma City VA Medical Center has had five directors in three years and is awaiting the appointment of a sixth. By the VA’s own statistics, the facility has consistently ranked among the lowest performing in the country — one out of five stars. 

“Measures of patient safety — the rates of in-hospital complications and adverse events following surgeries and procedures — are among the highest of VA facilities across the country, as are mortality rates for patients suffering from pneumonia or congestive heart failure. The Oklahoma City VA also has among the highest turnover rates for registered nurses.

“VA officials say that since Secretary Bob McDonald took over in July 2014, they have initiated supervisor training to protect whistleblowers trying to report problems. But after a doctor — who was inspired to join the VA after the wait-time scandal last year -- repeatedly tried to report lapses in Hand’s, Purifoy’s and other patients’ care, Oklahoma City VA officials turned around and launched an investigation of the doctor.”

“An independent specialist who reviewed five cases, including Hand’s and Purifoy’s, at the request of USA TODAY found that their care was ‘tragic’ and ‘unbelievable.’”

Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe issued a statement after the USA Today article was published. Inhofe said, "Taking care of Oklahoma's veterans has been a leading priority throughout my time in office. The stories of problems at our Oklahoma City VA Center is unacceptable, and I have already been in touch personally with the facility, the VA director who oversees all Oklahoma VA operations, and the VA headquarters regarding the specific cases recently brought to light by the press.

“This year alone, my office has worked hundreds of cases for Oklahoma's veterans that are facing inadequate care or blocked access to their earned benefits. This past fall I personally brought the VA's chief of staff to Oklahoma to see first-hand the progress that needs to be made toward improving health care for our veterans. Following his visit, I also initiated a full review by the VA's office of inspector general of Oklahoma's VA facilities. This is an epidemic not only at the Oklahoma City VA Center, but across the state. I will keep working so that Oklahoma sees significant change in the care provided to those who bravely and honorably served our nation."

“On Oct. 30, Inhofe authored an op-ed published in the Tulsa World highlighting issues he is working to resolve at the Muskogee VA medical center. Following its publishing, the VA also sent two teams to investigate operations at Muskogee, one that looked at quality of care and the other that looked at management of the facility, with findings that are expected to be released in the coming weeks. Their visits resulted in the immediate shut down of intermediate surgeries at the Muskogee facility due to issues that were discovered.”

The problems at VA Medical Centers are not limited to the facilities in Oklahoma. There are problems nationwide, and USA Today’s article offers a good summery. To read the full USA Today article, visit www.tinyurl.com/orvuxg5.

Senator Inhofe’s op-ed in The Tulsa World can be read by clicking here. 

The Gayly – December 24, 2015 @ 2 p.m.