VA Head Testifies About Botched Treatments

Concerning veterans who are suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), VA Department’s agency chief Eric Shinseki said they will receive care, but did not explain a new rule that concerns this care.

newsinferno.com
Date Published: Thursday, October 15th, 2009

We have been following several medical scandals at the Department of Veterans Affairs. In one case VA centers in three cities have been accused of reusing colonoscopy and endoscopy equipment without properly sanitizing the equipment. At last count, some 50 veterans have tested positive for blood borne pathogens.

The VA also recently sent erroneous letters to veterans with potential neurological diagnoses, but who do not have ALS—Lou Gehrig’s disease—telling them they were diagnosed with the debilitating, deadly disease. At last count, some 600 veterans received the distressing letters. And, last June, the brachytherapy program at the VA Medical Center in Philadelphia was shut down, after it was learned that scores of veterans had received incorrect radiation doses over a six-year period.

The Washington Times is now reporting that the VA Department’s agency chief Eric Shinseki acknowledged at a Congressional panel yesterday that the Department did make serious safety errors at some of its centers and also was lax in conducting necessary educational and monetary services to thousands of veterans. “While this process is at times painful, it is the right thing to do for veterans and the nation and will ultimately result in greater trust and better quality,” said Shinseki when discussing the issues specifically at the Philadelphia center, said the Washington Times.

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