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Q525: I’m a new VA employee and I’m a VA employee who works in the mental health unit at my VAMC and I am an employee who’s seen a lot of bad things against veterans and it is making me sick. I work with a number of grizzled VA veteran employees who never served time in the military (civilians). Most of my coworkers are Phd’s, LCSW’s, MFC’s, LPC’s, DAC’s, and RN’s. I can’t go to my lazy coworkers for help with this problem because they are involved in doing the things that make me ill. I can’t go to my corrupted supervisor because he is doing it too. I went to HR and they blamed me for trying to get their behavior corrected. I went to the VA AG and they are pretty much sitting on my accusations and doing nothing about the problem. I don’t know what else to do. I’m sick of seeing veterans make appointments and coworkers tossing the referrals in the trash. I’m sick of coworkers coming to work late and veterans have to reschedule their appointments because my coworkers don’t want to see them. I’m sick of seeing my coworkers not take clinical notes after seeing their veteran clients, but instead, jot dot half-hearted gibberish from memory weeks after an appointment. I’m ill knowing that veterans are being neglected and they don’t realize it. If you were in my position what would you do?
All I can do at this point is issue a stern warning…Veterans beware!
There is so much more to this problem, but I hope you get the gist of what I’m trying to convey to you. What you see and experience at the VA is not what you think. At the surface, things look ethical and professional. Behind the scenes it is a mess that affects you in adverse ways. Veterans beware!
I don’t want to mention which California facility provides me employment, but I hope not all VAMCs operate this way. Angry VA employee.
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A1: As a retired VA employee, I highly recommend that you contact the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. It?s the arm of Congress that performs oversight duties for the Department of Veterans Affairs. House Committee of Veterans Affairs
www.veterans.house.gov
202-225-9756
Mark Takano (Chairman) - from California
This is the best source for addressing VA issues! Don?'t give up! Good luck! (MJ) 10/1/20
A2: Go to the the VA committee in congress (the senate) we have seen this before the only way it gets fixed is Trump and Congress. (RM) 10/1/20
A3: All agencies have an Office of Inspector General. You can report this to any OIG and it will get to where it needs to go. You can report this anonymously or you can submit your name. Either way you have an obligation to report wrong doing. (BJ) 10/1/20
A4: Contact your U-S Senator. (DB) 10/1/20
A5: Unfortunately I have dealt with these types of situations working as a veterans advocate. I have found that the most effective way to take care of such issues is to contact your local or better yet your state representative , congressman or congress woman. A good person to get in touch with would be Kamala Harris. She represents California and what better person at the present time to contact her. In my experience working as n advocate I have found in my local facilities there are the very same senarios that you are dealing with and as stated these types of situations are happening far to much and in far too many facilities. As I explain to people that are experiencing the same things I tell them that you have to look at the VA as just another large corporation and being a large corporation there will be corruption, lazy employees and cheating. In other words they are just there to get a paycheck and could care less about the veterans they are supposed to be taking care of. As shameful as this may be it is a reality and correcting it is a problem. Contact your congressman/woman. (TV) 10/1/20
A6: Contact US Senator Dianne Feinstein, Vet Rep./Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs Constituent Services Rep.; Great Advocate as well. Set a Confidential Appointment SF Office: One Post Street, Suite 2450
San Francisco, CA 94104
Phone: (415) 393-0707
Fax: (415) 393-0710 (DH) 10/1/20
A7: Consider contacting your Congressional representatives in both the HOUSE and the SENATE---and ask them to bring your issue to the HOUSE and SENATE committees on VETERANS AFFAIRS. (BB) 10/1/20
A8: Whistle blower programs are designed for just that. Thank you for caring! (KD) 10/1/20
A9: Document everything, date/time/who, and or keep a notebook of these. Then contact your congressman for assistance. Or you can get a local newspaper reporter to write a story on this problem. (LK) 10/1/20
A10: I would name the facility. They can't do anything and maybe you can help change something. I work at a non VA rehab that takes in Veterans and see many that have to pay out of pocket or something because their home VA said they can't get them inpatient for several months. Then ask them to come back while having the deadly disease of addiction. Not sure how many just go back out and overdose never to make it back. A lot needs to be done. (EB) 10/1/20
A11: If I were you and this is really happening I would make a log of everything you have seen and done up to this point also include who you have told. I would then contact in person your Federal Representative, give him all the information but keep copies if you have too contact the news media and let every veteran thru the media know what VA Facility this is happening at. (AM) 10/1/20
A12: Call your state representative office. They have staff that handle these issues. I worked for the VA for 30 years and it saddens me too to hear this. (RP) 10/2/20
A13: To begin with, my recommendation would be: start recording/taking notes with names, title, section/department, time, date and offense. DO NOT, AGAIN, DO NOT go to HR, NOT all of them are on your side and have no legal experience, they're just employees like yourself and side with the VA rather than get fired (retaliation) DO NOT take video or voice recording it might be used against you for policy/patient confidentiality violation and get fired or jailed. Most hospitals have CCS cameras, IF you have taken notes without patient info that may work for you; MAKE copies of your notes, at least 3 and secure an attorney or news media (investigation unit) and MOST IMPORTANT, DO NOT SUBMIT YOUR ORIGINAL NOTES, for some reason "they" tend to get "misplaced or lost" if above doesn't work, contact your city, state or federal representative. DO NOT DISCUSS YOUR actions with anybody NOT EVEN your so call friends or girlfriends, maybe, maybe even your family, the words like powder gets around fast; after "someone" does listens to you and starts taking action, watch your (6) meaning watch your back and continue taking notes, once you start taking notes from beginning through when the problem may have been resolved. IT DOESN'T END. I've been there and done that and had a "tail" 24/7/365 for two years (twice). Good luck and I hope you get it resolved. I'm a VN and OIF Veteran, you may contact me if you can, I've got nothing to hide or afraid, like I said: Been There and Done That. (JH) 10/2/20
A14: I just want to thank this VA employee for having the heart to go against the norm at his department and desire to correct a system which appears to be broken. Thank you for wanting to do what is just and right. I will pray for your protection and strength as you attempt to get positive results for this situation. (DJ) 10/8/20