“A new report from the Office of Inspector General for the Veterans Health Administration found VA facilities generally met requirements, but cited problems with facility cleanliness and panic alarms.”
Between Oct. 16, 2017 and Sept. 14, 2018, the OIG conducted
surprise inspections to 51 randomly selected VA health facilities across the
country. Issues that were discovered were dirty vents in patient care areas,
furniture in patient care areas that were either dirty or broken and dirty
floors.
I have spent time in VA facilities with my husband. He has received
tremendous care, but I must agree with the report on cleanliness. Recently,
sitting in a waiting room while my husband underwent outpatient surgery, a
mouse ran across the floor and went into some cabinets. This room was on the
interior of the facility and on the third floor. In all my years working in
medical facilities, I have never encountered a mouse. Needless to say, it was a
bit disturbing to those of us in the waiting room. One family member tried to
alert a staff member to the mouse. Her response, “Well, that’s not good,” and
then she walked away.
The report found that “environmental cleanliness noncompliance was
often due to lack of oversight and staffing challenges.” Based on my
experience, I would say the researchers got that right.
The OIG made 16 recommendations,
I hope pest control was one of those recommendations.
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