The hands-on health providers I have encountered are absolutely outstanding.

The administrative infrastructure is broken beyond repair.

So far, I've been pleased with both.

If I may ask, what sort of administrative issues are you running into?

quote:

The hands-on health providers I have encountered are absolutely outstanding.

The administrative infrastructure is broken beyond repair.

This, in Nashville they try to emulate Vanderbilt which is horrible.

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:

If I may ask, what sort of administrative issues are you running into?

The most recent examples:

• Trying to make an appointment, the system kept trying to send me to the Daytona clinic, hour and a half each way, instead of the Orlando clinic, twenty minute drive. Calling to get this straightened out involved misleading phone trees, endless holds, dropped calls, etc. More than two frustrating hours to reach a live person who was able to set an appointment at the nearby loation.
  
  
• I arrived at the VA clinic audiology department at 1:50, for my 2:00 appointment. There were three people on line ahead of me on the line to check in for appointments.
  
  Twenty-five minutes later (2:15), the same three people were still ahead of me on the check-in line. The audiologist came out to the waiting area, visibly annoyed that her 2:00 appointment had not shown up. I waved to her, she escorted me back to her exam room, bypassing the check-in counter.
  
  
• During the above-referenced appointment, the audiologist set me up for a consult with a physician for further evaluation. The physician does not work at the moderately inconveniently located clinic; he works at a hospital that is a terrible drive through the viscious Orlando commuting traffic. The audiologist suggested that I use the VA's VetRide app, to set transportation that would allow me to sit back, relax, and let someone else do the driving. Went home, downloaded the app. First thing it wanted was my zip code. The app presented a numerical keypad for the zip code, but nothing to click on to Enter or Save the zip code. No way to get past that screen. Clearly a coding error (there are a few different keypads that an iOS developer can use, the developer of this app did not choose the correct one for iOS 27).

Wow V-Tail, that stinks. I have found that I can make all my appointments on the phone with the VA schedulers. I used to make them first thing in the morning, but as I've gotten older, I now do s 2:30-400 time period. I get all my health care, except for my eye care, at the VA. It may be better for me as I don't use any outside the hospital clinics, though there are some in north Pinellas County. I'm only 4 miles from the Bay Pines Hospital main gate so I use them for all my VA care.

My most recent experience is here: Earlier this year, I began gaining weight. I hardly eat anything, so the culprit was determined to be fluid. Over a relatively short period of time I really swelled up and diuretics (several different ones) could no longer keep it under control. I could not walk across the room without gasping for breath.

My wife (the ARNP) tried to get me to go to the ER but I kept saying the diuretics were working (I was peeing a LOT). On October 21, I had an appointment with my Kidney Doc, whom I really like. He walked in, his face got pale and he said, "You need to go to the Emergency room-now!" So we left his office, crossed the parking area to the main hospital (I was using a walker the VA had given me) and entered the ER, gasping for breath. They were expecting me, as the doctor had called them and written a brief report.

I was admitted immediately and they took me to the Drain Room. An ARNP and a couple of other medical types were there and an Ultrasound lady immediately started on my huge, distended belly (I'd weighed in at 246lbs in the ER!). The ARNP stuck a lidocaine filled syringe in my left side, to deaden the area, rolled me over halfway from my back to my left side, stuck a support under my right side, fastened a device to the catheter (I couldn't see very well due to my position, but I think it was a funnel, connected to a hose connected to a jar and the fluid flowed. 5.5 liters of fluid out in just a few minutes. They closed the hole in my side and a transporter took me to a room where I spent a total of eight days.

I think, while there, I had every test known to man, two Echos, Ultrasounds of my stomach, liver, and a couple of other places, tests of my lungs-so many that I really never had time to get bored till the 1ast couple of days. Several doctors, heart, kidney, gastroenterologists each came at least once a day with their various assistants. And Pharmacists to adjust my meds.

After eight days, on Wednesday the 28th, they discharged me. But they have a unit that keeps in contact with recently discharged patients, so I had one in person appointment with them, then a phone call every day, 3 appointments today, labs, nurse and heart doc.

Absent any unexpected surprise, I get a break now till I see my Primary on the 10th.

I was treated so well, so politely, I almost felt like I was somebody instead of a 78 year old geezer. I'm still taking a strong diuretic, but my weight is now 200lbs, down from the 246 I rolled in there with. I hope to get back to 180ish before too long.

Bob

This message has been edited. Last edited by: straightshooter1,

Also Wow! from here V-Tail. Wide difference in local facilities apparently.

Sorry you're having to deal with incompetence like that. Mine has been super. I think I've seen one person ahead of me for check in. Appointments have been right on the dot of scheduled time.

Any questions have been answered with one, or at most two phone calls.

I haven't had to make a non-scheduled appointment but I'm confident that would go just as smoothly.

After every appointment, whether it has been PCP, eye care or audiology, I've gotten a survey with opportunities to point out issues. Perhaps a word in the ear of the right person (VSO?) would smarten them up a little.

The medical and administrative side of the Walla Walla VA are both abysmal.

Providers chewing me out for not making an appointment that was never made as the provider didn't fill out the referral correctly. Admin sending letters stating an appointment is on 08 Oct when the letter is dated 20 October (I already knew about the appointment from the community care provider for optical so I made that one).

Audiology not returning calls. I had to call ten times in a three week timeframe and leave messages to finally have them call me back.

And When I had the community care provider put a "rush" on a referral I already had made the appointment for as I needed to be seen sooner the referral ended with the provider calling to make the appointment for the same date and time for which I was already scheduled.

The physicians assistant who diagnosed the diabetes offered no education. Thank goodness I have commercial insurance and can see private sector medical professionals... oh I fire them regularly also as I do my own research for issues I have had for decades.

I don't know this for a fact, but I get a very strong impression that many of these admin staff people are DEI civil service, probably pretty secure in their jobs, regardless of performance. And don't even think about complaining, these are the people who set appointments, etc. I just grin and bear it, stay polite, thank them for their help.

There are prominent signs that say "Aggressive Behavior Will Not Be Tolerated." First time I saw one of those signs, I was skeptical. After seeing some of the staff at work (if you can call it that), I fully realize why those signs are needed.

That's the admin type staff. The actual hands-on health care guys and gals are really great. Hard to imagine how they could be any better.

I've had really good luck with the VA. My last appointment was kind of frustrating as I was seen an hour and a half late, I was forgiving, however, when I found out the nephrologist I was scheduled to see had died unexpectedly. Currently, I needed physical therapy, and the VA offered me the option of community treatment. I see a therapist half a mile from my house, they pay for it. Really nice since it's about a 40 minute drive to the VA hospital.

I’ve had only great care so far now going on 2 years.

We have a large VA Clinic in Reading, PA that has a great doc and then the VA Medical Center which is a huge campus with full facilities is in Lebanon, PA and a bit of a drive at an hour each way but the clinic handles most things. If they can’t see me in a timely fashion it triggers the Community Care thing and I ended up going to a GI specialist that way early this year for a full scope. Turned out that taking two Naproxen at a time for pain was eating up my stomach.

Overall I’m grateful to have it as my own employer healthcare is a HDHP shitshow.