STOP THE VIOLENCE!! - Keep Your Hands to Yourself!!

Even though I've been out of the military for quite a few years, I've been blessed to stay in contact or been able to reconnect with some of those who I considered to be my friend.  We went through some things together and had a lot of great fun together.  And as close as we were I never noticed what one of them was going through and really didn't know the full story until yesterday.

My friend lives in Savannah and had to come up to the VA today for her BVA hearing.  She called and asked if she could spend the night with me and of course I told her yes.  When she got here we did a lot of small talk, just about what we were going through, our families and that sort of thing.

I assumed that she was going to the BVA because of a physical injury.  In all the years I've known her I never knew she had one, but I decided I would ask.  I was totally blindsided when she told me that she was going for PTSD.  Now mind you, I'm one of those ignorant people who believe that you can only get PTSD if you've been in a war or in some type of terrible accident.  As she explained to me the physical and verbal abuse that she suffered at the hands of her husband I was dumbstruck.  Then to add insult to injury she told me about how her Chief Petty Officer had also harassed her.  Not at just one duty station, but at two different ones, and how no one took her seriously enough to do anymore than slap him on the wrist.

My friend doesn't know I'm sharing her story, but I hope she is okay with it.  And in the interest of fairness I'll share my own.  In no way did I ever suffer what she did physically, but the verbal abuse from my ex-husband had me terrified for a time.  I even lost my 1st home to foreclosure because he wouldn't leave and the police wouldn't make him leave.  I had to make a choice of whether I wanted to protect me or if I wanted to keep a piece of property.  The choice was very easy for me to make.

To all of you suffering in silence I beg and plead with you to do something about it.  Now, many may think that there are only men who are abusers, but be assured, there are some women out there who are abusive themselves.  Whatever your situation I implore you to seek help.  No matter where you are, there is a way out.  And whatever you do, please stop saying that it was your fault.  No one has the right to put their hands on you in a violent manner.  I don't care how mad I am at someone I will not put my hands on them because this opens me up to them possibly hitting me back, and I think I am way to pretty to get beat.

The military also offers you a way out.  I received the following information in a recent email:

Every single day in the United States, approximately three women are killed by an intimate partner. What can you do to take a stand against domestic violence?

Visit NO MORE for more information and ideas.

  

 #StopIPV #SuperBowl501 #Caring4Vets

 

With VA's Caregiver Support Line assistance is just a quick phone call away. Whether you're in need of immediate assistance or have questions about what services you may be eligible for, the caring licensed professionals who answer the support line can: Tell you about the assistance available from VA. Help you access services. Connect you with the Caregiver Support Coordinator at a VA Medical Center near you. Just listen, if that's what you need right now. If you're just getting started with VA, calling the Caregiver Support Line is a great first step to take to learn more about the support that's available to you. While this says it is for caregivers, the help and support is for anyone who finds themselves in an abusive situation. As always, thank you for your support. TTYL - be blessed.

WHERE'S THE MONEY GOING?!! Audit of VAs Financial Statements

Recently the Veterans Office of Inspector General conducted an independent audit on the VAs finances.  The audit was for the fiscal years 2015 and 2016.  I really wanted to be surprised at the results but unfortunately I wasn't.  No surprise here guys.  Mismanagement and more mismanagement of funds.

While I don't depend on my disability to pay my bills or uphold my lifestyle (what there is of it), it bothers me that there is so much waste and the veterans who could really use the help are getting the shaft and have to fight so hard to get what they deserve.  What I really want to see though is what happens to those who have done such a poor job in managing these funds.  It seems that no matter how bad they do they get a pass, and continue to stay in jobs that they don't deserve.

This is only a portion of the bad news coming out of the VA.  For those who really want to work here I would caution you about that.  The VA has gotten a bad rating in regards to employers and they also are so far behind on their Human Resources tasks that it's crazy.  A recent investigation showed that they are over two (2) years behind on their background checks.  Lord only knows who could be working there and taking care of you.  I've added a link to both of these stories below.

As always, thank you for your support,

Be blessed-TTYL.

Audit of VA's Financial Statements for Fiscal Years 2016 and 2015 11/14/2016 07:00 PM EST We contracted with an independent public accounting firm to audit VA’s FY 2016 financial statements as required by the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990. VA received an unmodified opinion meaning that its financial statements were materially accurate. The contractor identified six material weaknesses: IT security controls; education benefits accrued liability; control environment surrounding the compensation, pension, and burial actuarial estimates; community care obligations, reconciliations, and accrued expenses; financial reporting; and CFO organizational structure for VA and VHA. The contractor further identified two significant deficiencies: procurement, undelivered orders, accrued expenses, and reconciliations; and loan guaranty liability estimate. It also reported VA’s substantial noncompliance with applicable Federal financial management systems requirements and the United States Standard General Ledger at the transaction level under the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA). It noted improvements were needed in complying with the Federal Managers’ Financial Integrity Act. The contractor cited instances of noncompliance with section 5315, title 38, United States Code, pertaining to the charging of interest and administrative costs; noncompliance with section 3733, title 38, United States Code, pertaining to the vendee loan program and six violations of the Antideficiency Act identified by VA. Review of Alleged Human Resources Delays at the Atlanta VA Medical Center 01/29/2017 07:00 PM EST VA OIG received and substantiated allegations that the Atlanta VA Medical Center had a backlog of over 300 unadjudicated background investigations and that mandatory drug testing of new hires did not occur for 6 months. VA officials confirmed the VAMC had a backlog of unadjudicated background investigations by mid FY 2015. The Director of VA Central Office’s Personnel Security and Suitability Service said the VAMC had a backlog of about 200 of these investigations as of July 2015. Atlanta HR personnel acknowledged a backlog dating as far back as 2012. Even though the lack of available records limited our ability to quantify the extent of the backlog, we substantiated that backlogs were occurring by determining that the average adjudication processing time at the VAMC was about 170 days. We also substantiated that the Drug Free Workplace Program was not administered from November 2014 to May 2015. These lapses occurred because records within the personnel security program were inadequate, policies were not implemented as required, and HR staff were not adequately trained. VAMC management did not ensure the continuity of the DFWP when the former coordinator left the position in September 2014. Without proper controls over these functions, the VAMC cannot reliably attest to the suitability of its staff, exposing veterans and employees to individuals who have not been properly vetted. The facility lacks assurance that employees in Testing Designated Positions remain suitable for employment. We recommended the Medical Center Director assess the HR program and ensure staff receive appropriate background investigations, provide training on the requirements of the personnel security program, and monitor the DFWP. The Director concurred with our recommendations. We consider the corrective action plans the facility submitted acceptable and will follow up on their implementation.

MAKING LIFE EASIER - Electronic Medical Records

I actually had something totally different that I wanted to talk about but then an interesting article came across my email.  I don't know how many of you have ever heard of this before but they are actually testing a new electronic medical record system for the VA.  What is exciting about this system is that it can interact with the civilian system so if you are going to a private doctor, who is using this software then your medical records can be automatically uploaded to your VA file.

Now, when I first read this I thought how much easier it would make it for use to file our claims without having to go to each and everyone of our civilian doctors, both past and present, to get information that helps us support our claims.  It also keeps track of the type of medical we receive and helps doctors to determine which treatments are most effective for certain types of illnesses.

While I don't know the true extent of this program I plan to keep an eye on it so that I can report back to you everything I find out.  For those who are currently in the military this system is supposed to bring in all of your medical records as well so you shouldn't have to go through the hassle of requesting them.  Everything should be in one location.

I hope this is helpful.

As always, thank you for your support.

TTYL - be blessed.

This is just the beginning of the article:

"“Liberate the data.” That was a principal design goal for a team of public-private health care technology collaborators established by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Veterans Health Administration to develop a working and scalable proof-of-concept digital health platform (DHP) to support the department’s long-term vision.

The open-source project demonstrated both proven and emerging technologies for interoperability and advanced functionality innovations from both the public and private sectors. The proof-of-concept delivers capabilities that VA and VHA leadership had identified as strategically important to support clinical and operational policy and program transformation plans needed to address expected changes in veteran populations, service needs and care delivery models.

For example, the demonstration included the capability to obtain patient data from disparate military and commercial electronic records systems, and accept information from a broad range of ancillary services and consumer medical devices. "

If you want to read the whole article here is the link: http://www.news.gatech.edu/2017/01/31/team-demonstrates-digital-health-platform-department-veterans-affairs.

CHOICE IS A CHANGING!!

If you're anything like me, when you want an appointment with your doctor, or any doctor for that matter, you want it sooner rather than later.  Unfortunately, we all know that it is usually later than sooner when it comes to getting a VA appointment.  The Veterans Choice program was supposed to be the solution to this problem.

In my humble opinion, it has not worked out as well as I'm sure they hope it would.  I've heard of individuals complaining about the process, as well as complaining about the lack of response from the employees running the program.  I've used it myself and it has proven to be a bit of a challenge.  I'm also, getting different information from VA employees on whether I should only see my Choice doctor, or whether I should see my Choice and VA doctors for the same condition.  Whew, I tell you I have to take a break from the VA mess some days.  It can become so convoluted.  

The good thing is that the VA has recognized that this is a problem.  Below is a story about an investigation that was conducted on the Choice program by the VA Office of Inspector General, as well as the findings.  I'm also providing a link for you to read the entire 45 page report, just in case you're bored or something. Let's hope that this leads to some great changes in the program that will make it much more user friendly.

As always, thank you for your support.

TTYL -Be blessed!!

https://www.va.gov/oig/pubs/VAOIG-15-04673-333.pdf

"Review of the Implementation of the Veterans Choice Program 01/29/2017 07:00 PM EST We conducted this review at the request of Senator Johnny Isakson, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, who expressed concerns about the implementation of the Veterans Choice Program (Choice) and the barriers facing veterans trying to access it. Our review focused on whether veterans were experiencing barriers accessing Choice during its first year of implementation. Choice, as part of the Patient Centered Community Care (PC3) Program, provided care for eligible veterans, when the local VHA medical facilities lack available specialists, have long wait times, or are geographically inaccessible. We reviewed monthly reports to identify average wait times for multiple stages of the Choice process, including the authorization of care, scheduling, and the delivery of health care to veterans. We determined several barriers exist in accessing care through Choice, to include cumbersome authorization and scheduling procedures, inadequate provider networks, and potential veteran liability for treatment costs. After being scheduled with a Choice provider, on average the veteran waited about 13 days to receive care. VHA identified approximately 1.2 million instances in which veterans could not receive VHA appointments from November 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015. During this period, about 283,500 eligible veterans opted into Choice, and 149,000 of these received an appointment with a Choice provider. We calculated a 13 percent rate of Choice utilization (based on appointments provided compared veteran eligible to receive care). We were unable to determine why the other 87 percent did not access Choice. We recommended the Under Secretary for Health streamline procedures for accessing care, develop accurate forecasts of demand for care in the community, reduce providers’ administrative burdens, ensure veterans are not liable for authorized care, and ensure provider payments are made in a timely manner. The Under Secretary for Health concurred with our findings and recommendations."