- “Veterans Affairs pivoted to virtual care a year ago, but the change came with some significant challenges. That’s according to the VA Office of Inspector General. It found that in-person medical visits indeed dropped by 75% and most subsequent veteran contact was by telephone. But an IG survey of primary care providers found that many veterans had trouble with VA Video Connect. Patients simply lacked training and support for how to get on, and many veterans didn’t have internet access or in some cases the required devices…”
- The Veterans Health Administration dramatically sped up its hiring process to help it deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. But VA’s inspector general says the three-day onboarding process may have created new risks, since it let new employees start working before they’d been fully-vetted by background checks. The IG says the department needs to pay special attention to catch up on those deferred requirements, like drug screening and credential checks. VHA hired more than 55,000 new employees with those expedited processes between March and September of last year…” Read the full article here.
Source: VA protocols to respond to COVID-19 caused additional challenges – By Eric White, March 12, 2021. Federal News Network.
