Rust on the surgical instruments?

By Freddy Groves
Good grief. Just how many deficiencies can one Department of Veterans Affairs facility have? A recent VA Office of Inspector General report itemized just how many when they inspected one particular hospital.
Starting at the door of this facility, there was the small problem of signs leading to the emergency room, which the facility no longer had. Other outdoor signs were so faded they were difficult to read. Interior navigational signs were inaccurate. Add to that, there was no place to sit once one got in the door, only in the vending machine area down the hall, described as ”dirty and disorganized.”
Two employees were designated as toxic exposure navigators, staff meant to give the screenings to veterans. It was determined that over 450 screenings had not been done.
One disturbing deficiency at this particular facility concerned the delays in notifying patients of abnormal test results. The VAOIG had dinged this facility a few years ago for that same problem and saw there had been no improvement. The plan: Develop a process to ensure prompt communication of test results. Target date for that: July 31, 2025.
And then we have the areas where biohazardous materials were stored, yet there was no sink nor hand sanitizer, no warning signs about the ”potentially infectious material” — along with cracks in the floor, holes in the walls, dust on the bed rails and handbooks that were years out of date.
The biggest problem unearthed by the VAOIG concerned the continued improper sterilizing processing of reusable medical equipment, something the VAOIG had reported on the previous year. The facility claimed that improvements had been made, yet during the inspection itself, even more problems with the sterilizing process came to light — including surgical instruments with rust.
It’s gut-wrenching to read VAOIG reports like this and know that some veterans have no choice but to seek their health care at facilities with serious deficiencies like those at this VA facility.
I hope the new VA secretary reads these reports when they cross his desk.
(c) 2025 by King Features Synd., Inc.