The VA's Paper Trail of Tears: A Veteran's Plea for Better Record-Keeping

Veterans

The VA has turned our healthcare into a script where the punchline is missing, and the plot holes are bigger than a battlefield crater. We're talking about the accuracy, or rather, the inaccuracy of our medical records, and the VA's so-called patient-empowering systems that might just be pulling the wool over our eyes.

The Study That Shook Us:

In a study that's less mystery and more of a medical melodrama, Weiner et al. highlighted how our primary care notes are more like abstract art than factual documentation. Here's the plot:

• The Omission Saga: You share your life story, but the records are like a bad game of telephone. Half of what you say to your doc isn't making it into the official record. It's like our health journey is being written by someone with a very selective memory.
• The Phantom Entries: Notes filled with events that never occurred? That's not just bad record-keeping; it's like your file is being haunted by the ghost of medical encounters past.
• The Missing Plan: No follow-up, no next steps? It's like the doc left the room before finishing the sentence. What's the plan, VA? Oh, right, there isn't one.

Study finds issues raised by patients not included in medical records at some Midwest VA clinics

From indianapublicmedia.org

The 'Democratized' Disruption:

When it comes to the VA's Democratized Disruptive Behavior Reporting System (DBRS), the plot thickens, but not in our favor:

• Report Everything: It started as a safety net but has become a tangled web where every slight is reported. It's turned into a system where our complaints about care quality are lost in the noise of being accused of "disruptive" behavior.
• Not System of Record: Despite the surge in reports, it hasn't been elevated to a system of record. It's like we're yelling into a void, hoping someone is actually listening on the other side.
• Empowerment or Entrapment?: Instead of empowering us, it's ensnaring us in a web where our legitimate concerns are just another entry in an ever-growing list without meaningful action.
• Mandatory Over-Reporting: It's become a numbers game where our healthcare teams are almost pressured to increase reports each year. It's not about safety; it's about stats.
• Flagging Fiasco: Half of these reports result in veterans being flagged with a behavioral marker without any due process. It's like being tried in a kangaroo court where the jury is a secret committee, and the verdict is a life sentence on your medical record.
• No Defense: There's no opportunity for us to defend ourselves against these flags. It's the VA's version of "guilty until proven innocent," but how can you prove innocence when you're not even allowed in the courtroom?

ALT

The Silence Directive:

Directive 1112, the VA's "no reply" policy, feels like a gag order on our health concerns:

• The Quiet Game: After two letters, they can stop responding. It's like they've muted our health narrative, leaving us to guess our next move in our own care.
• Labeled as Repetitive: Keep asking about the same issue, and you're now a broken record, not a patient seeking resolution. It's the VA's way of saying, "We've already heard that song; we're changing the channel."

The Killing of Maj Fishback-Insufficient Mental Health Treatment and Access to Care for a Patient and Review of Administrative Actions in Veterans Integrated Service Network 10

A Veteran's Battle Cry for Better:

• Document, Document, Document: If the VA isn't going to record our stories right, we'll have to do it ourselves. It's not just about getting care; it's about protecting our rights.
• Demand Accountability: Our health shouldn't be a game of hide and seek. Demand transparency and action, not just a nod and a note.
• The Suicide Paradox: The VA claims veteran suicide is their number one priority, yet they can't even capture half of what we're telling our doctors. It's like saying you're focused on the main act but you're missing the opening scene where all the characters are introduced.

The Killing of Jordan Hunkin-Incorrect Use of the Baker Act at the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System in Gainesville, Florida

Conclusion:

The VA's system isn't just flawed; it's fundamentally broken when it comes to patient rights, especially in the realm of protected reporting. Our healthcare records should reflect our reality, not rewrite it. Veterans, let's demand a rewrite where our stories are told with the respect, accuracy, and dignity we've earned. It's time for the VA to stop prioritizing paperwork over people, to cease flagging us without fair hearings, and to genuinely address our health, not just the numbers on a report.

Office of Special Counsel (OSC) report

Accuracy, thoroughness, and quality of outpatient primary care documentation in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

National Development and Implementation of a Democratized Disruptive Behavior Reporting System in Health Care

UCLA Law’s Veterans Legal Clinic co-authors a report on the impact of policing in veterans’ healthcare UCLA Law’s Veterans Legal Clinic co-authors a report on the impact of policing in veterans’ healthcare

Policing Patients: Treatment and Surveillance on the Frontlines of the Opioid Crisis