By Dorothy Meindok
The Post Newspaper Veterans Consultant
Did you know that less than half of all eligible female veterans engage in VA healthcare? It’s true and the VA is asking why. VA leadership wants to know. They are asking if female veterans even know that they are eligible, whether they feel respected and most importantly, do they trust VA? The administration has a website and has established surveys to try and get to the answers. (https://tinyurl.com/yev2nkue).
If you are a female veteran reading this, I encourage you to answer VA. They need to know because if we don’t respond, they will not ever be fully capable of meeting their mission as VA.
I thought about this when I got my invite for the survey. I have been engaged in VA healthcare and outspoken about its exemplary successes as well as its pitiful and often avoidable errors for over 30 years. In my advocacy, not only for myself but for others, I have had the great pleasure of meeting some VA angels that helped correct course for many lost and have saved numerous lives even in the reality of having their own hands tied by bureaucratic nonsense and misplaced, untrained, and disconnected administrators. Thinking about it all, I decided to help and answer the survey. (You can participate as well at: https://survey.voice.va.gov/?cwv-women-veterans .)
I started recalling some of the issues I have raised over the years based on my personal experiences as a veteran. Some of these grievances were not accepted well and the repercussions to me were not necessarily warranted. The ability to raise a grievance regarding healthcare without retaliation or fear of retaliation by someone medically degreed and empowered to retaliate because of hurt feelings, bruised ego & pride or anger is one primary issue that often left me wishing for outside options for healthcare at times. For instance, in the 90’s, for all female veterans of Southeast Texas, the VA hospital had on staff only one single staff gynecologist and one single nurse to coordinate it all; given that there are literally thousands of females veterans in the VHA district (called VISNs) this was a disparaging and unsafe setup It left many women veterans feeling unimportant and secondary despite the (then-new) women’s clinic a few floors down decorated with pretty surroundings where there was a PCP on staff and one other assistant.
Many female veterans have told me that they don’t want VA healthcare, using statements such as ‘look what they do to our brothers, who wants that?’ I have to agree, who wants that? Many of our brothers have opened to VA healthcare only to then later be labeled as a nuisance for advocating baseline healthcare which later translated, for some, into opportunities for reported and disgruntled healthcare workers to use official methods to gaslight the veterans, often using mental healthcare diagnosis against the complaining veteran when the factual complaints, apart from the misused label, raised reasonable healthcare issues and requests. In some events the retaliation was so severe that that these inept medical workers, including licensed medical doctors, intentionally entered false information into veterans’ records to safeguard themselves from simple discipline to egregious surgical malpractices laying blame and confusion resting upon the veteran’s PTSD from in service traumas
The thing is many female veterans had a huge dose of this behavior as females in the Armed Services and we recognize it when we see it happening. We watched and reported when our sisters and brothers were mistreated and maligned in every way for reporting sexual harassment and rape while in the service. We watched helplessly what happened to the few brave souls who stood up and reported to proper chains of command. We suspected some of the suicides and suddenly AWOL persons had met the same fate the world came to know as reality via of our fallen sister, Vanessa Guillen, (may God rest her soul in peace and deliver her family from pain). Too many were given labels of personality disorders and mental disease designed to discredit their voice and stories as well as frustrate their ability to timely receive appropriate trauma care and coordinating benefits to heal. Some received Bad Conduct Discharges and were simply booted out depending on how important it was to safeguard the actual predator, his/her rank and reputation over the lowly-ranked prey that could be easily discarded.
When we see the repeats of this same behavior in our VA medical system, in various ways, our mental immune system recognizes it just like the basic workings of immunology and vaccinations: our system recognizes it, sets up alerts and a built-in, pre-exposure, natural protections start. Without safe and effective intervention and support, a majority will likely decide to just avoid the possible pathogen altogether. Who can blame them?
I invite you to visit a lengthy disclosure over the issues surrounding healthcare for veterans nationwide that was republished in full (over 30 pages) by USA Today over the matters: https://tinyurl.com/mm9yhk96. It was shared during the pandemic and you may have missed it. Don’t miss it. It’s important and filled with reasons why many, including female veterans and younger veterans, simply refuse to engage. It could be said that publication on these matters adds to the distrust however, for one cannot correct a wrong that is either concealed, unknown or kept purposefully clandestine. Our leaders need to know, we need to tell them and we must be relentless in our peaceful outcry because veterans are suffering and dying because of it.
Our VA is undermanned by an estimated 30%-40%. Those who remain employed are often overworked, undertrained and stressed out; many work alongside and under persons that shouldn’t be healthcare workers at all because their heart is in the wrong place and who oftentimes work in healthcare for the money and social prestige rather than to help “heal thyself” or “to do no harm.” The Covid pandemic revealed many of the same kinds of practitioners in the civilian medical ranks, leaving a world in questionable trust as to the sanctuary of medical care. While it may not be wholly possible to clean out the ranks of the entire medical system, the VA is a closed system where it is perfectly possible to clean house and get rid of predatory and mentally-unstable medical practitioners and administrators that frustrate the purpose of VA meeting her mission, providing a healthy workspace for civil service and above all, quality, trustworthy healthcare for our nation’s warriors.
I urge you to participate in the surveys and to write to your Congressional leaders as well as your local state and federal representatives. Sound off on how you feel about veterans’ healthcare. You can find your Congressional contact to do that by visiting this website: https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member
Next week, I’ll introduce you to one of Southeast Texas’ local veteran leaders who is raising awareness in a neighboring county. I’ll share some of his plights and successes. I know you’re going to like him.
Don’t forget, this Wednesday, on Pearl Harbor Day, December 07, 2022, please consider joining Sea Star Base Galveston as they honor Pearl Harbor Veterans with a fundraising dinner and where 100% of proceeds will benefit local Veterans. Visit www.PearlHarborDinner.org for tickets.
Event Date – Wednesday, December 7th 2022, 6:00pm to 9:00pm
Event Location – Sea Star Base Galveston, 7509 Broadway St. Galveston, TX 77554
Dress Attire – Business Casual
Features – A special Hawaiian dinner and open bar
Thank you and see you next week!
Dorothy Meindok is The Post Newspaper’s Veterans Consultant. Ms. Meindok served her nation in the United States Navy and is currently a practicing lawyer advocating for our nation’s veterans. Her column appears on Sundays.
