I Just Got Home From Vamc And I Am Poed.....

[LarryJ]

First of all, let me start out by saying that I have no idea whether this is posted in the correct topic, so, if necessary, move it or remove it.

I get a letter a couple weeks ago, an appointment at the VAMC in Dallas. It just says it's for a C&P.

Well, I figure that it's for my latest claim that I turned in a couple months ago about my knee and hip, but, I'm not really sure so I called up the VAMC and asked them. The dude says, "yup, it's for your knee".

So, I figure, hey, they got their mojo working and got something right..............kewl!

So, I show up today for my "knee C&P", right?

WRONG!

First, just let me say that this Ahole was a reall Ahole. He sticks his head out the door to the waiting room, BELLOWS my last name out, turns around and disappears before I even get a chance to get out of my seat......and I had to try to run to catch up with him as he disappears into some exam room down this hallway. I get in the room, he doesn't say anything, just looks at me.....then, after a couple of minutes of this, he tells me to take my boot off........then grabs my foot and proceeds to twist it.........and says "I bet that hurts, doesn't it".........and that is the extent of my C&P for my claim for my ankle that has been going on now for 3 1/2 years.

The following is the remand from the BVA to the RO in Waco via the AMC:

REMAND

The Board finds that a medical opinion is necessary to make a

decision on the claim. See 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103A(d)(2) (West

2002); 38 C.F.R. § 3.159©(4)(i) (2005). Specifically, the

veteran has a current left ankle disability, there is

evidence establishing an event in service involving the left

ankle, an indication that the disability may be associated

with the veteran's service, but insufficient competent

medical evidence on file for the Secretary to make a decision

on the claim. Id.; see also McLendon v. Nicholson, No. 04-

0185 (U.S. Vet. App. June 5, 2006).

Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action:

1. Please send the veteran a corrective

VCAA notice under 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103(a)

and 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(, that includes

an explanation as to the information or

evidence needed to establish a disability

rating and effective date for the claim

on appeal, as outlined by the Court in

Dingess/Hartman v. Nicholson, 19 Vet.

App. 473 (2006).

If there are outstanding records (such as

Social Security Administration records),

where the medical records are not those

that are already in the claims file

(medical records from Bill Jones, D.O.,

dated December 2003 through December

2004), the veteran should inform VA of

such records so that it may assist him in

obtaining the records.

2. Have a VA physician review the

veteran's claims file, including the

service medical records (which are in a

manila envelope) and provide an opinion

as to the following question:

The veteran has admitted that he

fractured his left ankle prior to service

and was in a cast for approximately five

to six weeks. He was seen in June 1964

with complaints of severe pain and the

inability to perform. X-rays taken of

the left ankle at that time showed

evidence of an old healed fracture of the

medial malleolus of the left ankle with

some loose bodies in the joint space on

the lateral aspect of the ankle. Was the

left ankle condition aggravated beyond

the natural progress during the veteran's

period of service?

A rationale for the opinion should be

included in the examination report, which

includes upon what evidence in the claims

file the opinion is based and involves

any other supportive reasoning.

Anybody see anything in that remand that requires the C&P?

I am P*SSED!

P$SSED P$SSED P$SSED!

If for no other reason that the fact that I was treated like crap.

I KNOW that I'm going to get a lousy report from this guy. I don't even know his name. He never introduced himself. He had no name tag on, not card badge, nothing on his lab coat, just a plain white lab coat. I don't even know if he WAS a doctor.

I've provided the VA with two IMO's favorable. Do you think that they will outweigh this schmuck's report?

[LarryJ]

I appreciate y'all replying.

And, please...............don't y'all go to arguing.........Vike was okay by saying what he said. It didn't upset me a bit, so, don't let it upset you.

I will admit that some of the storys that I could (and do, on occasion) tell, about the last 3 - 4 years with the VA struggle..........well, some people find it hard to believe that all that crap has happened to me.......to the point of "lookin at me funny" when I tell some of the stuff.

But, you folks KNOW. I know you KNOW.

And, in the KNOWING, you give me peace.........a place I can go and talk to my Hadit Buddies.

Now, having said all that, I've got chapter TWO:

I just got back from the VAMC, Dallas.

YUP, I laid there all night last night, didn't sleep a wink.

Got up this morning, had me a shower and a cup of Joe, went and got on the train and went BACK to the VAMC.

I don't tend to take crap like I was handed yesterday very well at all.

I was nice, didn't do anything my wife and children would feel badly about. I found me one of those "Patient Advocates"........told her the same thing I've told all of you. She had me fill out a thing that goes to the Doctor of the department in question, with copies to the Chief of Medicine and to the Hospital Administration. She said that someone would definitely be getting back to me. Okay. Good. I'm startin to feel a little better........

So, I go to the in-hospital office of the Vietnam Veterans Association. Had to wait an hour because the dude doesn't show up until 10 AM, and just on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The dude shows up...........just me sitting in his waiting room.......asks me what I want.....I tell him I just need to talk with him about a few things, seeing as how the VVA has my POA...........he tells me that he doesn't have time to talk to me because I didn't make an appointment. I say "It'll just take a couple of minutes". He says, pointing to the schedule of office hours posted on his door "Can't you read!"

At which point I tell him he is an.....well, this is not a good place to say what I said. Hell of a note when I was able to keep my cool and felt all proud of myself for not twisting off at the VA.....only to turn around and get shafted by MY Service Org. I walked down the hall to the Texas Veterans Commission, met this really great Service Officer (30 years Navy, 30 years Corpsman). We got a cup of Joe, talked, figured things out, he told me to get another IMO, get it to him and we'd solve the problem.........good coffee, good guy.

So, then I figure I'm on a roll, so I calls up the Appeals Mgt. Center.....talk to this supervisor.....not the one mentioned earlier here, Mr. Gingel, for he was out of the office, but, instead, a Mrs. Dunlap.......nice person......said to put on paper what I had told her and she'd get me another C&P....

HOW AM I DOING, GUYS? KICKIN A AND TAKIN N's?

I'll sleep tonight.

[Objee]

Wow! Big Bravo Zulu for that Larry. You got more done in a day than most of us in a good month!

I've had some really fine work done by my state SO, and I think that's a great contact.

Best of results to you from now on (even with a setback now and then!)

Ralph

I appreciate y'all replying.

And, please...............don't y'all go to arguing.........Vike was okay by saying what he said. It didn't upset me a bit, so, don't let it upset you.

I will admit that some of the storys that I could (and do, on occasion) tell, about the last 3 - 4 years with the VA struggle..........well, some people find it hard to believe that all that crap has happened to me.......to the point of "lookin at me funny" when I tell some of the stuff.

But, you folks KNOW. I know you KNOW.

And, in the KNOWING, you give me peace.........a place I can go and talk to my Hadit Buddies.

Now, having said all that, I've got chapter TWO:

I just got back from the VAMC, Dallas.

YUP, I laid there all night last night, didn't sleep a wink.

Got up this morning, had me a shower and a cup of Joe, went and got on the train and went BACK to the VAMC.

I don't tend to take crap like I was handed yesterday very well at all.

I was nice, didn't do anything my wife and children would feel badly about. I found me one of those "Patient Advocates"........told her the same thing I've told all of you. She had me fill out a thing that goes to the Doctor of the department in question, with copies to the Chief of Medicine and to the Hospital Administration. She said that someone would definitely be getting back to me. Okay. Good. I'm startin to feel a little better........

So, I go to the in-hospital office of the Vietnam Veterans Association. Had to wait an hour because the dude doesn't show up until 10 AM, and just on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The dude shows up...........just me sitting in his waiting room.......asks me what I want.....I tell him I just need to talk with him about a few things, seeing as how the VVA has my POA...........he tells me that he doesn't have time to talk to me because I didn't make an appointment. I say "It'll just take a couple of minutes". He says, pointing to the schedule of office hours posted on his door "Can't you read!"

At which point I tell him he is an.....well, this is not a good place to say what I said. Hell of a note when I was able to keep my cool and felt all proud of myself for not twisting off at the VA.....only to turn around and get shafted by MY Service Org. I walked down the hall to the Texas Veterans Commission, met this really great Service Officer (30 years Navy, 30 years Corpsman). We got a cup of Joe, talked, figured things out, he told me to get another IMO, get it to him and we'd solve the problem.........good coffee, good guy.

So, then I figure I'm on a roll, so I calls up the Appeals Mgt. Center.....talk to this supervisor.....not the one mentioned earlier here, Mr. Gingel, for he was out of the office, but, instead, a Mrs. Dunlap.......nice person......said to put on paper what I had told her and she'd get me another C&P....

HOW AM I DOING, GUYS? KICKIN A AND TAKIN N's?

I'll sleep tonight.

[Josephine]

Wow! Big Bravo Zulu for that Larry. You got more done in a day than most of us in a good month!

I've had some really fine work done by my state SO, and I think that's a great contact.

Best of results to you from now on (even with a setback now and then!)

Ralph

Ralph,

Good for you. If it had not been for Mr. Gingel and Mrs. Dunlap, I would have never gotten my personnel records straight. I faxed a complete set of my personnel records to the Appeals Management Center in May and someone misplaced them. I did the same then in July and the same thing happened again. Finally I found out by Mr. Gingel in January that the Nara could not locate my personnel records. He put Mrs. Dunlap on the telephone and neither one of them could locate where they had ever been logged in on those previous months. Thanks to those two, as of January 24, 2007 the AMC has finally recognized that they have a copy of my personnel records. I faxed a copy with attention to Mrs. Dunlap and L. Gingel and now my file is with a claims adjustor.

You will be glad that you have contacted those two, for they work really hard for the veteran.

Always,

Josephine

[Pete53]

Nice to know and I think it is great that you used names.

Larry way to go and being civil helped your cause. By the way the guy who used to be the SO for VVA at the Hospital Dean Reynolds would have never treated you like that. He was a price but I think that the Orange got him and he passed from Liver Cancer last fall.

I also know the guy at Texas Veterans Commission and he can help you.

[Ricky]

You know sometimes you just gotta stop and look back. We are really the luckiest people in the world. By this I mean that our service has given us many good stories to remember. Even though the event may have been bad - no one else in the world except a vet could have experienced it (not talking about combat stressors). Take one of my uncles. He was in VN and had been shot in the rear end. His story was that one night while in the boonies, he had to take a crap so he wondered off a bit. Dropped his drawers and took to the required business. Prior to finishing his work he decided to have a cigarette. As he squatted drawing puffs, rifle fire broke the silence and an round hit him square in the butt. I read the investigation of the incident and it seems as though a fellow soldier saw the cigarette fire as it got bright from the puffing and fired. We die laughing at uncle Sammy as he tells his story over and over. Now no one but a vet could have such loving memories hahhahahaha... the reason for my story is that Larry has the right ideal about all of this VA crap.... even though he just got shot in the butt by the VA's pen, he was cool calm and collected and I am sure this will someday this will be just one of those funny stories he can relay to younger vets..... one that only a proud veteran could experience. Keep a chugging Larry, for by using your example we will all succeed one.