I think this reporter fouled up this story big time. The VA has VA Hospitals which are regular hospitals and have an ER. The VA also has Medical Centers which are usually a complex with various clinics to see specialists.
This is how it works where I am, and if it works the same in Spokane then this man was not mistreated.
There is a VA Medical Center in El Paso, it looks like a small hospital and some people even refer to it as a VA hospital- it is not a hospital. It is really a complex of Drs offices. You go there to see your primary care physician and there are also **some** specialists there. They have a pharmacy. They have no ER, they have no way to treat life threatening things, only minor things. It's out patient based.
The actual VA hospital for us is located in Albuquerque, it is a full fledged hospital with an ER. There are not that many full fledged VA hospitals nationwide. Where we are we can either go to Albq. or Tucson VA hospitals, both about 4 hours away. There are VA clinics in many small towns, and the Medical Center in EP that I already described.
What it seems happened to this man is he asked to go to the Medical center, to see his Dr. and what he really needed was a hospital ER. If this was like the VA Med. center in El Paso that I am familiar with- they would have had to call and get an ambulance to get him to a hospital. (of course in EP Wm. Beaumont Army Hospital is next door- but not everyone eligible for VA care is eligible to be treated at WBAMC- hubby luckily is- so we don't have to go to Albq.)
For those not familiar with the VA system- think of it this way- if you are in the parking lot of your Drs office and you collapse- they will do their best to treat you and call 911 to get you to a hospital. That is exactly what I think happened here.
It seems this reporter did not do a lot of checking to see what happened and why. I am not surprised.
cut the nonsense
This is G o o g l e's cache of http://www.healthyjobs.com/statejobsearch.cgi?location=West&pro= as retrieved on Sep 30, 2006 04:02:44 GMT.
ER Staffing needed at Spokane VAMC. IM's or FP's or ER physicians needed to cover 24/7.
http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:XLKZ7Ad5yRoJ:www.healthyjobs.com/statejobsearch.cgi%3Flocation%3DWest%26pro%3D+Spokane+VAMC+ER+emergency+room&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=3
"The actual VA hospital for us is located in Albuquerque, it is a full fledged hospital with an ER. There are not that many full fledged VA hospitals nationwide. Where we are we can either go to Albq. or Tucson VA hospitals, both about 4 hours away. There are VA clinics in many small towns, and the Medical Center in EP that I already described."
I agree Tammy8, it's the same here in Mobile...the hospital is in Biloxi.
If you call the VA here, the first thing that is said is: "If this is an emergency, hang-up and call 911."
The VA is getting a bumb-rap on this, IMO. You don't go to your GP's office if you're dying, you go to an emergency facility.
My dad died of a heart attack in the parking lot of his heart doctor, I don't blame the doctor.