Events of today: 4 December 2013 Wake up, get ready for work. Go to work. Pretty typical day. Except today, I’m sick. Not that usual runny nose and cough type stuff, but the “ouch!” my head hurts, my nose is running, I can’t stop sneezing and coughing, my throat is on fire and I can barely talk (audibly, without pain), my ears hurt and are ringing, my chest hurts when I breathe and I have hot and cold chills. The cold winter air feels like inhaling fire. I haven’t thrown up yet, but I feel like I could, I maybe even want to, nausea sucks. My appetite has been pretty hit and miss and I’ve felt about like this since Monday. Today is Wednesday afternoon. I don’t know if I have a fever or not, I haven’t checked my temperature because I don’t know where my thermometer is. What does the typical person do in a situation like this? Call their doctor’s office and make an appointment? Sure! Except what if you don’t have health insurance? Well, this might be expensive. But wait, I am a veteran and I applied for and received VA medical benefits. When I applied for these benefits, I was told that using them is much like using a civilian doctor. Awesome! So, I can see a doctor when I’m sick, right? Actually… no. On my first break of the day, I called the Richland Washington VA outpatient center. A man answered the phone. He did not provide his name. He asked me to hold and before I could utter a single word, he placed me on hold. Ok, your busy, I get that, but is that any reason to provide crap for customer service? No. It is not. 5 minutes and some seconds later, a woman answers the phone. She sounds like a woman I’ve spoken to before, named Crystal. I’m trying to be friendly, so I say “You sound like Crystal, are you Crystal?” She says “No, how may I help you?” So, I go through my symptoms and she interrupts me to ask what it is that I am calling about. (I thought it was obvious; I’m calling for an appointment with a doctor because I’m sick. I even sound sick, so much so that the people at my place of employment remarked that I sound terrible.) I inform the lady who never provided her name (My thought: where did the customer service go?!) that I am sick and would like an appointment to see my provider. She then informs me that she is going to transfer me to my providers nurse. (My thought: Ok, time out here, WHAT? I have to get permission from a nurse who hasn’t examined me to be able to make an appointment?) I tell the nameless woman on the phone, no, please, I just need to make an appointment to see a doctor. She tells me that I have to talk to my nurse because non-medical personnel cannot make medical appointments for patients unless it is a call back or at the providers’ request. (My thought: HUH?! This is crap. No patient input in their care?? What kind of medical benefit is this place providing??) My call goes to the nurses’ voice mail. Well, at least I know her name is Pam. I leave all of the requested information. I then think about the previous times I’ve called, the surveys the VA medical centers have sent out, asking for patient feedback; remembering that the nurse can take a few hours to a few days to return a call. I understand that the nurses and medical staff are busy, but so are the patients that are trying to reach someone for an appointment. The average age of veterans is going down. Why? Veterans in their 20’s and 30’s are becoming eligible for benefits after leaving the service and the VA clinics seem to be operating on a system for veterans in their mid to late 60’s and beyond. Thinking about all of this and also considering the fact that every day I have woken up feeling worse, I call the VA outpatient clinic in Richland again. A woman answers the phone. She puts me on hold, without giving me a chance to say a word. (?!?) A woman answers the phone after 10 minutes or so. I think it’s the same woman. I do not know. I inform her I had called previously, left a message with my nurse and that I would like to know why the policy of getting permission from the provider for an appointment is in place. She tells me that it is so that nonmedical personnel are unable to make appointments without a reason. (This doesn’t make any sense to me!) I then ask her about how long it will be before I get a phone call back. She has no idea. Offers no solutions. No help. During all of my phone calls, each person can hear that I am congested. They can hear my voice is cracking because I am sick. They heard me tell them how I feel, and offered no compassion, no understanding, and no solutions. I asked her if there was anyone I could lodge a formal complaint with. She transferred me to a woman named Alice Adams in the Walla Walla VA center. I explained everything (again) to Alice. Alice told me that she thought that the people I spoke to at the Richland outpatient center could have handled it better. (By this time I am over due to get back to my assigned duties at work, by more than a few minutes). I ask Alice if there is anything I can do or she can do to aid me in getting an appointment. I also informed the Richland outpatient center that the VA medical benefits I have is the only form of insurance and access to medical care that I have and can afford. Alice says she knows my providers nurse, Pam, and will call her and see if she can call me and set up an appointment for today or tomorrow. Alice also says that she can’t really do much about the policy. She pretty much says what the nameless woman at the Richland outpatient clinic said. At least Alice answers her phone with her name so that you know who you are talking to. Alice also expressed some concern over my sickness and how I felt about the lack of service I was receiving at the Richland outpatient clinic. Alice said she’d log my complaints and forward them to the appropriate channel. An hour later; I get a phone call from Pam at the Richland VA Outpatient Clinic. I informed her of my various symptoms and how I had been feeling progressively worse. She then asks me how I had been treating my symptoms. I told her. Hot water with lemon and honey. Tylenol or Mucinex DM. Cough drops. Nothing seems to be helping much. She tells me that viral infections can last for 5-14 days and if my symptoms aren’t gone in 14 days then we can schedule an appointment. She says my “Care plan” is to continue treating my symptoms. I have a few issues with this. First of all, she hasn’t seen me, taken my vitals or examined me. How does she know what is wrong with me? She hasn’t seen the back of my throat; she hasn’t checked my ears for an ear infection. She has no idea what my temperature is and most importantly she is not a doctor or PA or LPN. Or maybe she is. I don’t know. She never identified what type of medical training or certificates she possesses. I asked her about some of my concerns. She said she would pass her case notes on to my provider. If he wanted to see me for an appointment, she’d call me back. Two hours later; Pam calls me back. The provider (PA Hansen) has agreed with Pam’s “Care plan” and does not feel an appointment is necessary. However, since I requested an appointment, I could come in and see the provider. I told Pam “Ok, when is the next available appointment?” She tells me she doesn’t know and doesn’t do scheduling, so she must contact the front desk, wait please. Then puts me on hold without hearing if being placed on another hold is ok or not. (My thought: Any courtesy here?? What about customer service??) After about four minutes, she transfers me to the front desk. She never came back on the phone to tell me she was transferring me. She never told me when the next appointment was. Person at the front desk: “Richland VA, this is Delaney” (My thought: Wow! Someone who offered their name! Thanks.) I ask Delaney when PA Hansen’s next available appointment is. She tells me that it is 9 December 2013. Today is 4 December 2013. (My thought again: So, let me get this straight, I might have bronchitis, pneumonia, strep throat, walking pneumonia, or some other bacterial infection or flu that could be treated, or who knows what else, but because you don’t think I have anything “serious”, you’re going to make me wait five days to see a provider?) I ask Delaney if there is any way I may be able to see a provider sooner. She says “No, he doesn’t have any sooner available appointments”. (My thought again: So, sick veterans have to wait an entire business week to see a doctor??? No wonder veterans say we have such a terrible quality of life, Thanks, America!) Then Delaney asks if I want the appointment. By this point in time I am frustrated, sick, tired, in pain and fed up with this run around for a freaking doctor’s appointment! My throat hurts like hell and from talking so much, I want to cry. My head hurts and listening to people who clearly communicate that I do not matter to them as a person or as a patient doesn’t help. I inform Delaney that no, I do not want the appointment, and then hang up. Why don’t I want that appointment? Well, I have to take tomorrow off work. Why? I have to get labs drawn for a pending VA claim. I cannot afford to take several days off work. I have a child. I have to take care of him and part of that is going to work, even when I’m sick and feel like crap. When I try to take care of myself, using the “services” that the VA and other agency’s say are here to support and help veterans I get such a run around that it’s almost not even worth it. How long did this entire ordeal take? I made my first phone call around 9:45AM and I received my last phone call around 1:15PM. All for an appointment because I feel awful. This level of customer service or lack thereof is not uncommon for the Richland VA Outpatient clinic. This is common. This is not okay. Veterans shouldn’t have to go through all of these steps and spend hours trying to get a doctor’s appointment. I have lodged complaints with various people within the VA, none of them have ever been responded to. I don’t think this one will, either, but I am hopeful that someone within the VA actually cares about veterans and wants to provide us the services and healthcare that was promised to us. So, why did I write all this? Because I want the VA to know what is going on, that other people know what is happening and that this is a problem, and it is not a new problem. It needs to be fixed.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 00:25:14 +0000
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