An Open Letter to Donald Trump and David Shulkin
Dear Donald Trump and David Shulkin,
As a child of a veteran, I never realized how much trauma my father had endured during his service. I just thought that he was a navy soldier that was on sea for five years and nothing traumatic had happened to him, but that was the complete opposite of what he actually went through. Now you would think that after everything he had gone through, he would get the proper care he would need from the V.A. (Veterans Affairs). Instead my father has been struggling with thyroid cancer, PTSD, and hearing loss for the past year and has still not received the full financial and medical help that is needed.
What I have noticed from the V.A. is that they have not been able to give the full support that veterans need, because physicians do not get paid well and the V.A. does not have a proper working system, which constantly puts them on a wait list. We need to change the system so that it will be able to improve. An article named “Troubling Veteran Mental Health Facts and Statistics that Need to be Addressed” states that, “2.1 million veterans received mental health treatment from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in the five year period from 2006 through 2010. A study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration revealed that only 50% of returning vets who need veteran mental health treatment will receive these services.” Out of all the veterans that applied for health service, only 50% got medical attention. 50%! I believe that the reason for the low percent of medical attention is because the system in all V.A.s are not under control and that doctors and nurses are not paid enough.
First of all, every V.A. has a different system. If you were to go to the V.A. in Arizona, it would have a completely different system to the one in California. The reason that every V.A. system is so different is because they are not centralized. This is because different V.A.s only do what works for them and have not been given the proper instructions to work efficiently. Earlier this week, I was able to speak to a social worker from the San Francisco V.A. (who’s name I shall not announce) and they state that, “ Each V.A. is different [because] they do not operate on the same guidelines which is a problem for the patient because they are so use to one system, that if they were to move, there will be confusion on how things work in another state.” This just goes to show that because of the lack of guidelines, it ultimately ends up in chaos and causes confusion not only with the patients, but with other V.A.’s. Systems as well.
Another reason why veterans are constantly put on hold is for the reason that there are not many doctors that are willing to work at the V.A. because it does not pay a decent wage. Although I could not find any websites about V.A. doctors being paid less than regular doctors, I have learned from personal experience that the reason there are not According to an article named “VA Scandal Shows How Government Works” written by Jeffrey Dorfman, it states that, “In the past few years, the VA has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on furniture instead of hiring more doctors because seeing more patients and delivering better patient care did not bring in more money.” This just goes to show that instead of using that money to pay doctors, the V.A. is improperly spending their money on materialistic products. The government and V.A. seems more appealed less health benefits hoping that it will bring them in more money. It seems that the government are always complaining about doctor shortages, but with these types of purchases and low income, no wonder why many doctors do not want to work at the VA.
Some people might think that most of the people applying for health care are just taking advantage of the free health benefits. However, it is important to consider that there are plenty of veterans that are suffering from health problems that are service related. Instead, their needs are put on hold just because others are taking advantage of the system. According to an article from Military.com, 300,000 veterans have passed while waiting for health care from the V.A. With all of this in mind, here are some solutions that I believe will help both our veterans and the V.A.’s system.
I propose that Shulkin should increase the pay of physicians in the VA so that veterans can get the medical attention they need without needing to be on a waiting list. Not many people realize that the reason why so many patients are on a waiting list is because the job does not pay that well. As I have stated before, most of the money that is spent on the V.A. is on the materialistic items, not the physicians themselves. Therefore, the V.A. would not have competent doctors or nurses that are able to help patients and that is why I think we should increase their salary. Trump and Shulkin can also change the V.A system of patient history. Because there are many different V.A.s across the country, they should all be under the same system so that patients can go to different V.A.s without having to go through the entire process again. These changes will make a difference because it will give the medical attention veterans need and give the V.A. system a better support system.
Thank you for your time and I hope you take this into consideration.
Sincerely,
Hannah L.
