Local Newspaper El Nuevo Dia published an article titled “El Hospital de Veteranos falla auditoria federal”. The article reflects a biased perspective towards the negative elements of the report it refers to. The article mentions recommendations in four areas of the VA Caribbean Healthcare System. It does not address that the same report released on April 7, 2014, includes areas where the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) did not make any recommendations. This means that the areas were found in full compliance with expected standards of care and that the health and well-being of veterans was never at risk. Among the areas found in full compliance are: performance of infection prevention risk assessment, fire safety, environmental safety, medication safety, auditory privacy, radiation safety committee, policies on equipment inspection, discharge instructions and documentation, medication counseling, post-discharge requirements, nursing staffing, pressure ulcer prevention and management, and resident independence and dignity, among others. We are saddened by the fact that these areas of full compliance were not noted in the article. The VA Caribbean Healthcare System (VACHS) takes pride in serving Veterans. Veterans are heroes, as they served in harm’s way to preserve the principles and values we as American live. For this sacrifice made by our veterans, we have actively worked on a series of improvements within our facility for many years. These improvements, among others, include, the new bed tower inaugurated in the year 2010, the opening of four new outpatient clinics in Comerio, Utuado, Vieques and Ceiba and the acquisition of “state of the art” technological equipment. We pride also in having served over 65,000 veterans every year and also take pride in being the recipient of multiple accreditations, including the Joint Commission, SOARS, CARF, ACR (American College of Radiology) for the delivery of radiotherapy and being a Chest Pain Center. Many of our recognitions and accreditations are unique to the island and to the Caribbean. Our mission at the VACHS continues to be that we will always honor our veterans by providing them with the best healthcare available. We invite you to read the full OIG report by visiting va.gov/oig/pubs/VAOIG-14-00659-111.pdf.
Posted on: Fri, 25 Apr 2014 21:17:17 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015