Clinic Appts

[Wings]

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Thanks everyone! I am frustrated with my VA medical care! As the years go by, I have more issues --and am totally dependent on the VA for my care. I have no other medical insurance. All of your responses are helpful and much appreciated. It's only 100 mile round trip, but road trips are most often bad trips for me, especially if I end up getting lost. I have gone toe-to-toe with the Fee Base Office and have two issues on appeal with them, Fee Base seems to have cut back severely with the ongoing Gulf Wars ...

Anyway, I will call the specialty clinics and try to get in to see about getting my first hearing aid. I have lost almost all my hearing this year in my left ear, my claim for SC was denied because the injury was not documented in my SMR. I can't even talk about that ... trauma. My vision is OK, just need reading glasses.

I have already changed my PCP this past year and the new one is not better than the Nurse I had been seeing. JUst seems they don't want to examine the whole veteran, just small parts.

I may need to buy a new car this year, but I am feeding my famility of 4, and the cost of living goes up and up!

I will talk with someone at the VA Hospital about other health concerns, seems I need to learn more about "consults".

I would give an eye tooth to be treated in a military hospital, at leas the young men and women were eager, gung-ho trained --and proud of their work! I can not say the same for the VA.

All the best for a Happy and Healthy New Year --if only to spite our enemies ;-) HUGS!! ~Wings

P.S. I still think the Federal Register published some rules about being seen within 30 days.

[VADDS]

Yes, you can call and make your own Vision and Dental appointments. You do NOT have to have a consult put in for them. Same for Audiology if it is for a hearing aid you already have. If you don't have one then you need a consult --at least at my VA that's what the audiology dept. requires.

In fact, you do not need to have a VA primary care physician to access dental care, provided you are eligible for it. There are many vets treated in my dental clinic who only utilize our system for dental care. It is a 'foul' for a VAMC to tell a vet s/he must enroll in primary care before accessing dental care.

[Pete53]

I think the 30 days was a goal not mandated. Except for the appointments I usually see Doc within 30 days to 45. Not good about seeing walkins though

[VADDS]

I think the 30 days was a goal not mandated. Except for the appointments I usually see Doc within 30 days to 45. Not good about seeing walkins though

You're right. Access goals are just that, goals. Depending on the completely different siuations at every VA medical system, some services meet the standards easily, some never come close. Believe it or not, the VA actually insituted a 14-day access standard for appointments in FY '11. The problem is that the people imposing the access standards are not the ones treating the patients. And neither the bean-counters or the clinicians have any control what-so-ever over the funding levels.

[john999]

If you have a good PCP you can get access to testing including MRI's, CT scans etc. If you have an uncaring PCP you get squat. You more often you go to the VAMC and the more you complain the more treatment you get in my experience. I am sure glad I have medicare because I hate waiting and having to struggle with getting physical access to my VAMC. The VA is better than nothing and that is about all I can say for them.

[sharon]

http://www.va.gov/vhapublications/ViewPublication.asp?pub_ID=2252

This is the regulation regarding scheduling appointiments