Thieves – DNC-Consulting

Do you know why I despise Liars?

kpi Please note that I am not looking for sympathy; I do not need it! I relate the following facts for one reason and one reason alone, transparency. We need more of it, and right now, the liars and thieves have a rum hold on honest people’s lives, and it is time honest people started fighting back. Transparency is the best tool to fight back; that’s right, sunshine disinfectant is the only tool an honest person needs to fight the liars and thieves.

Well, here is some well-earned sunshine:

The main character in our story is one HMC Delacruz. HMC Delacruz was the Independent Duty Corpsman (IDC) for most of my tenure onboard the USS Barry (DDG 52) from 2000 to 2004. Time uncountable, a person would see HMC Delacruz handwriting a medical record in pencil (the instructions on the form claim black ink only), for patients, placing those medical records in blue folders, not the brown medical jackets, but blue folders. Then at some future date, you would need to refer to those records, a big show of looking for them would be made, piles of medical records would be evidenced outside their blue folder jackets, and the subject would change, or HMC Delacruz would assure the patient the files are “here,” and he would find them later. None of my medical documents in blue record file jackets made it off the USS Barry (DDG 52).

Bird of Prey I can attest and affirm that medical events occurred, I have scars from several of those events, and I can relate that I went to medical to be seen, but none of the paper trails is evident. I saw the medical records filled out and the documents filed; yet, I never received any blue jacketed medical records when I left the ship. During one conversation (circa 2010) with HM2 Abeld, HMC Delacruz’s junior IDC, I was informed that when HMC Delacruz made Senior Chief, it was discovered he was throwing medical records over the side and was “encouraged” to leave the service. I cannot affirm or attest to hearsay; I simply state the facts. The records were there, and now they are not, and the person at fault is HMC Delacruz, and the US Navy does not appear to care!

There is a single central injury around my spine that the VA declares has no records to support. To whit, on or about 30 July 2003, DC1 Rowe pushed me in the Repair 5 office while I was moving D-Cell Batteries into the several Repair lockers. I had 60#’s of batteries in my arms using proper lifting techniques and had moved two loads before our encounter. DC1 Rowe came into Repair 5 screaming about an incident where he had been proved wrong by the XO during a training scenario. Because I, as the Repair 5 Scene Leader, was proved right by the XO, he accused me of being at fault for his embarrassment and that making decisions above my pay grade was disrespectful. When DC1 Rowe pushed me, I felt and heard a “Pop” emanating from my lower back; a warm sensation flowed down the backs of my legs from the lumbar region of my spine. Think hot water tap opened and pouring down the backs of your legs. This warm sensation continued without a stop for 10-14 days. After three days of this sensation, I went to medical, saw HMC Delacruz fill out a paper record, and HMC Delacruz marked me “Fit for full duty.”

Exclamation Mark Since there was no pain, just the warm sensation, no further treatment was ever prescribed or discussed; HMC called this “Lucky” and further remarked, “No pain, no injury.” From this discussion until Spring 2005, the “warm sensation” continued to flow intermittently and was usually brought on by stretching, lifting, or vigorous/strenuous exercise or activity. When climbing vertical ladders, I would lose breath and strength in my legs, and when this was brought to HMC’s attention, he claimed it was due to being overweight, denying the spine injury was involved. I changed my diet, started trying to exercise more when in port, and my weight began ballooning—creating a cycle of weight loss and balloon that continues today.

Because I was not experiencing the “warm sensation” when I filed my initial claim (2004) and thought the medical records were in my jacket, this injury and the lingering symptoms passed from my mind. When coupled with my ignorance of the VA, this injury was not mentioned again until September 2011. When I checked my medical records in September 2011, I discovered these records are not in my file due to continued lower back pain and aggravated leg/foot pain. According to the Congressional letter received, the medical records I had obtained, circa 2005 (August), came through a Congressional Inquiry and showed the official medical file for Michael David Salisbury XXX-XX-1962.

March 2005, while doing the prescribed stretches for my feet, my back (lower lumbar region) popped, and something shifted. The warm sensation running down my legs intermittently became constant pain, with intermittent burning sensations. Whole-body shakes/tremors/involuntary movement increased from several times a month (2002-2005) to weekly (2006), then daily (2007-2010), now constantly (2010-present), bringing reduced stamina and chronic pain & fatigue, as well as shortness of breath, low lung volume, and other difficulties.

Broken Robot The pain takes my breath away, my feet flared, and anything involving my back, every movement, suddenly requires new dimensions of effort. The pain radiates from my lower lumbar into my tailbone and runs down my legs into my feet. In the first quarter of 2011, I saw a Chiropractor and explained my symptoms to him. He took X-Rays and declared several injuries to my spine, probably adding to the pain and problems in my feet. He prescribed mechanical decompression and wanted MRIs of my spine. The VHA has those chiropractor records as I submitted them to my Primary Care Provider and the VBA as part of my spinal claims. The pain has increased exponentially every year since 2005. Until my conversation with the VSO in Wyoming regarding this injury and pain (2011), I had no idea the records were missing or that the situation I found myself in required VA assistance (VBA and VHA).

The only remaining record I have found in my US Navy Medical Jacket is my out-processing physical from December 2003, where I mentioned back pain. HMC Delacruz and I spent more than 2 hours discussing the nerves, the spine, the injuries, the foot problems, the shin splints, etc. The only record of that conversation is the out-processing questionnaire I completed before the exam. When discharged in April 2004, HMC declared all my records were in my medical jacket. I did not need a new out-processing physical, which medical determination is also not in my medical file and should have been documented.

Thus, I left the US Navy without a medical examination from the medical record when I did have an out-processing medical examination. That event occurred while underway and those records are not in my medical file. Both HMC Delacruz and HM2 Abeld knew of my back pain, clumsiness, stumbling, lack of stamina, decreased energy, chronic pain, breathing problems, and other issues suffered while onboard the ship. Some of that proof is indicated in the repeated prescription of Ibuprofen; I had a running prescription for the largest Ibuprofen dosage available, taking as needed for pain, usually every 2-4 hours depending on the operational tempo and how often, along with how long, I was wearing an SCBA.

Vaccine Several other items are missing from my medical files where problems occurred, and HMC Delacruz made a record, but the files are not in the medical record jacket I possess.

My hands were crushed in a falling pipe incident while working on an assignment I shouldn’t have been assigned to while underway. Because there was nothing broken, the skin was not torn, I was marked “Fit for full duty,” prescribed Motrin and Ibuprofen, with the understanding in my command that my hands might be sore for several days and less difficult maintenance should be assigned for a week or so, my command complied and my watch standing doubled to make up for reduced maintenance.
- The prescription and work assignment came from HMC to my current chief. This (apparent) collusion between HMC and the other chiefs onboard was common practice. Many lower enlisted people, especially engineers, had similar treatment related or overheard during conversations as I roamed the ship as a watchstander.
- The standard operating procedure (SOP) was a “Gentlemen’s Understanding” among the chiefs that reduced duty was necessary. Reduced duty chits were not written because no reduced duty looked better on HMC and the command.
- The lower enlisted, especially Engineers, were returned to work “fit for full duty.” It was understood that no reduced duty chits would be written. I remember no injured engineer receiving limited duty or light duty chits during the entire HMC Delacruz service period.
- No X-Rays were ever taken of this incident as it occurred while underway. Upon returning to port, my hands were not as sore, so no X-Rays were ordered then.
None of my trips and spills when my feet gave way are in my file, including one that occurred during a GQ Drill (2003), right in front of HMC Delacruz, that left my hands and wrists hurting enough to send me to sick call the following day at HMC Delacruz’s insistence. My SCBA hit a particularly tender spot on my spine, my legs collapsed, and I hit the floor like a lead sack. The first of many collapses to date exactly fit this same pattern. Including the six falls experienced during a Compensation and Pension exam, Phoenix, AZ., where the examiner collapsed me intentionally (I forget the exact date/time, 2012-2014), claiming this would help document the problem for my claim. My VBA claim has no change from this collapsing, and I can find no documentation from the examiner collapsing me.

- HMC Delacruz asked how long I had been falling, and we spoke about my feet and the arch problem (2002) that had been ongoing; we discussed the spine issues from being pushed and various other medical concerns. HMC Delacruz documented the medical file. No records from this visit survived.
- HMC Delacruz also asked how my hands were doing after my fall and skid on the non-skid decking, checked for infection in the “Road Rash” on the palms of my hands, and marked me “Fit for full duty.”
- The “Road Rash” was from an incident where I tripped over a ship-to-shore connection, I fell on the non-skid decking and primarily injured both hands and knees. No medical records of this incident exist in my medical record jacket.
All the prescription records in my medical jacket from the rash developed onboard the ship. I see some of the records, but these are primarily from HM3 Abeld and none from HMC Delacruz. He prescribed various drugs, salves, pills, and treatments, but the records are missing.
December 2002, when my arches first fell and the pain in my feet was excruciatingly fresh, HMC Delacruz marked me “Fit for full duty,” prescribed Motrin and Ibuprofen, and colluded with my chief to let me off of running or lifting for a week.
- In the files, there are no medical reports about my feet from 2002.
- When HMC Delacruz rotated off the ship, his replacement sent me to Podiatry at the Naval Hospital Norfolk, where a medical case review discovered and documented my actual condition.
- These records were not in my medical file received from Congressional Inquiry, but the x-rays and medical records should have been stored in the Norfolk Naval Hospital as that is where I was sent and where an initial diagnosis of shin splints and flat feet originated. Yet, I can find no records in my official medical jacket presently, but the VBA claims they have these medical records. Leaving a series of questions about what medical records exist.
The tinnitus worsened during naval service to the point it is at today. After several head injuries, neck injuries, and a 5” Gun Shoot that began while I was under the gun in Repair 2, in the overhead counting inventory without hearing protection. The inventory assignment during a gun shoot was a prank pulled on the new guy (September 2000). I left Repair 2’s overhead with the inventory counted but was so disoriented, hard of hearing, and “compression shocked,” I could barely stand. Only later did I learn that when a 5” Gun-Shoot occurs, Repair 2 is supposed to be unmanned and closed as the only separation between Repair 2 and the 5” mount is plate steel. The prank was courtesy of DC1 Smith and DCCS Cloud, my direct chain of command.

Important to note that the VBA and VHA have both been kept abreast of the spine deterioration, pain increases, mobility decreases, falls, and a host of peripheral nerve issues. The VHA has been particularly apprised of my nerves, making me look like a “bobblehead doll.” The VHA claims they cannot diagnose the problem until the VBA claims a service-connected problem. The VBA claims that until there is a medical diagnosis and proof of injury during service, I cannot obtain VBA admittance that there is a service connection to the problems or even a problem exists. Two bureaucracies act like opposing teams on a tug-of-war, and the patient is stuck suffering in the middle. ?u=https1.bp.blogspot.com-aqaqk18MHoEWRHHsCi_TyIAAAAAAAAAXc7hY4JQuyylIQHYudoR8sbezGZntic4SSwCLcBs640Betrayal2BSayings2Band2BQuotes2Bwww.mostphrases.blogspot.be.jpg&f=1&nofb=1

What was the prescribed solution? Find a non-VA physician, have them document the injury, then obtain a letter from that physician as “new and material evidence” for the VBA to consider. None of the costs of this are covered by the VA. I was also told to find a lawyer to handle my appeals, all of which cost money I do not have. It’s funny; I had none of these problems in the US Army (active duty), did not have these medical concerns upon entry into the US Army National Guard, and had none of these problems during inprocessing into the US Navy (2000). Yet, the VBA claims these cannot be service-connected to time in the US Navy because no medical evidence is recorded in my medical jacket. Logically speaking, how then did I become injured?

Hence, I detest liars. I hate “gentlemen’s agreements,” “skullduggery,” and secrecy in all its forms and mutations. I consider bureaucrats’ actions to be nothing more than lies to promote job security, and hiding behind ever-changing processes is the most detestable bureaucratic tool to waste time and abuse the customer. Under any circumstances, I cannot condone practical jokes and pranks on the job site that breach safety or play upon ignorance to harm others. Call me if you find yourself in the throes of villains, knaves, liars, and thieves. I have no problem fighting to help you out!

Knowledge Check! To my fellow shipmates from the USS Barry (DDG52) 2000-2004, please contact me through LinkedIn.com if you need help to corroborate the medical maltreatment and record problem. HMC Delacruz’s actions are a blight on the US Navy, and the USS Barry (DDG 52) and the VA bureaucrats only perpetuate the abuse. If anyone has ideas on getting injuries sustained in service documented after the fact, don’t hesitate to contact me through LinkedIn.com. I am in the fight deep with the VA, and all assistance is greatly appreciated.

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

If Everyone Cared – More Detestable VA Stories

I-Care As I went to catalog more of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) – Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) reports, Nickelback’s song, “If Everyone Cared,” was playing. I cannot think of a better title to proclaim the need for raising awareness and what is needed to fix the VA. Until everyone is aware and the scab hiding the infection inside the walls of the VA are ripped away to be exposed to the sunlight disinfectant, nothing will change, and taxpayers will continue to pay for the abuse of veterans who deserve so much more.

We begin with an indictment and a reminder. An indictment does not indicate guilt or innocence, and the parties mentioned are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law by a jury of their peers.

“Scott Mitchell Brown, John Henry Swiencki, and David Jeffery Hughes, Jr., were all charged with one count of conspiring to distribute hydrocodone, oxycodone, and amphetamines. Brown was also indicted for stealing prescription medications, possessing stolen mail, and obtaining unauthorized health information from the Kerrville VA Medical Center in Texas.” VA 3

I am a big fan of punishing liars and thieves of all stripes and support justice served in this case.

“David Naylor, 59, of Spring Hill, Florida, was sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for theft of government funds. Naylor made false representations regarding his physical limitations in connection with his application for VA disability compensation.” VA 3

While the following perpetrator has been caught and sentenced, she represents but the tip of the iceberg.

“Rita Copeland, 59, of Portsmouth, Virginia, was sentenced today to nine and half years in prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with schemes to defraud veterans. She operated Veteran Services of the Commonwealth, which claimed to provide veterans with caregiving, contracting, and rental assistance services. In total, from at least 2017 through 2020, Copeland’s schemes impacted at least 29 victims and resulted in a combined loss of approximately $430,000.” VA 3

Again and again, the following questions are asked and never answered; yet, the questions remain pertinent. Who at the VA had to have known this abuse of veterans was occurring and did nothing to stop the abuse? There are too many checks and balances, too many hands, and too many inspectors for fraud of any magnitude to exist for very long without raising flags needing investigating. Where were the VA employees? Who knew? What did they not do? Are they still Federal Employees?

Another veteran died, needlessly at the hands of VA providers, due to ineptitude, failed management, poor training, and a series of unfortunate events that cascaded. I weep for the family of this veteran and mourn for their loss. I am sorry you have had to experience this tragedy and wish there was something more I could do than simply spread the story of this deleterious behavior and hope for sunshine disinfectant. The patient died from “presumed anoxic brain injury (his brain failed to receive enough oxygen).”

“The VA-OIG found that physicians’ failure to provide adequate benzodiazepine dosing to address the patient’s delirium tremens, review the patient’s abnormal electrocardiogram before haloperidol administration, and transfer the patient earlier likely contributed to the patient’s deterioration and ultimate death. The VA-OIG substantiated that a non-VA paramedic documented that the oxygen flow was not active. Facility leaders and staff reported a lack of knowledge about the failed oxygen delivery. The nursing staff did not complete all required alcohol withdrawal assessments. A physician improperly ordered restraints, nurses failed to obtain full vital signs while the patient was in restraints, and nurses did not receive restraint training as expected. The VA-OIG substantiated that facility leaders and staff did not communicate initiation of emergency detention with the patient’s family; however, notification is not required. Leaders did not conduct an institutional disclosure with the patient’s family timely or in person and did not provide a relevant update.” VA 3

Did you catch that last sentence; while the patient was dying, the facility leaders and providers, including the nursing staff, were more concerned with CYA (covering their own acts) than notifying the family they had screwed up, and their family member had died. If the nursing and staff did not have the training, why and how could they use restraints on a patient? This is blatantly illegal! VA Seal

Let’s cover one more egregious item from this summary of unfortunate events; I visited a doctor who is transitioning out of medicine who made the following comment, “Medicine has changed, practicing medicine has changed, and the practice of medicine is no longer about treating people, but checking boxes, the patient be damned!” The patient was a “walking chemistry experiment, and no single nurse or provider took a minute to stop providing care, assess the patient, and stop administering drugs! Instead, they just kept pumping more drugs in until the patient died and then covered their tracks with designed incompetence to protect their failed inadequacies. This is not “practicing medicine,” you would not treat an animal in this manner; at least not and keep your license!

A death row convict is not allowed to die from anoxic brain death, as it is considered incredibly painful and a cruel and unusual method of death, which is why the gas chamber has been banned as a legal means of causing death for death row inmates. Yet, under a medical team’s care, a patient in a VA hospital is allowed to die in this horrific manner, and nobody is held accountable. Is it any wonder why this article is suitably titled “If Everyone Cared?”

Not many outside of the veterans affected and their families know that the VA has been pushing opioids for decades down the throats of veterans. At the height of the opioid crisis, the VA shut off all opioid drugs and told the veterans to seek help for addictions to pain medications. The VHA did not evaluate the individual patients for need, did not seek alternatives, did not try to reduce dependency over time, simply cut off all opioids, and told the veterans to deal with the problems. Unfortunately, opioids were not the only drug series that the VHA cut off suddenly on veterans without notice, cause, or individual patient consideration, and deficiencies in coordination for the care of patients and drug mandates from VHA has lead to suicides, murders, and other violent problems as addictions cause social problems. VA 3

When discussing failures to coordinate care for patients, abuse of patients, and the need for patients to be housed in the proper treatment centers for their needs to receive the right care, the following should boil your blood and comes from Fayetteville VAMC in North Carolina.

“The VA-OIG identified that the psychiatrist used the involuntary commitment process in a manner that was inconsistent with the state’s established parameters and failed to adequately assess and document the patient’s capacity to make informed decisions and determine whether the patient had a healthcare agent. In addition, the patient’s primary care providers and psychiatrist missed an opportunity to coordinate specialty care needs for the patient.” VA 3

Essentially, a bureaucrat incarcerated a veteran against their wishes, without a trial, an appeal process, and proper medical care. Now, imagine you are the family of this veteran or a friend, and you see this occur and feel powerless to help, impotent to intercede. Every avenue you approach is blocked because of the authorities, the bureaucrat in charge who wields their power illegally. How do you feel? What do you do? Where do you turn? Is it any wonder why this article is suitably titled “If Everyone Cared?”

I-Care America, we need to care about what is happening in our representative government, in our name, with our tax dollars, and to our neighbors, family, and friends. There are no excuses for the abuses witnessed! There are no excuses for medical providers to get away with this outrageous behavior in private hospitals or government-paid-for-care. Let us all heed Nickelback’s song and the intent; let us be the “everyone” who cares!

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

Chronicling the VA – May We Remember the “Pobrecito!”

I-Care A Spanish-speaking Mexican colleague taught me this term, “pobrecito,” meaning “poor little one.” As I chronicle the VA ineptitudes, failures, criminal behaviors, and abusive actions, I am always conscious of the pobrecito, the poor little one, the poor victim who got harmed. Too often, the victims never receive any compensation, acknowledgment, or retribution, nothing for having become a victim of the VA. Too often, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) – Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) investigates long after the abuse has occurred, and the victims are not covered in the scope of the investigation, or worse, the victim was killed, and the family is left to mourn, and nobody can help.

Angry Grizzly Bear Why chronicle the VA abuses; because the needs to be held accountable, speak the language, and have tougher skin and broader shoulders than the VA’s normal victims. The VA is slowly learning they can harm me, but they cannot shut me up! I will not stop fighting the VA for humane treatment, honorable service, and dedicated systems. The VA is sick because apathy and inertia were allowed to replace common sense and decency, leadership was replaced with cost accounting and bureaucratic red tape, and human kindness was eradicated and replaced with drones and robots. I know how to make the VA better; I do not have all the answers, but I know how to launch the revolution and begin cleaning the VA, and I will not stop calling upon those responsible for fixing the mess they created!

Starting this week’s VA-OIG headlines of crimes and inspections, we find a couple in South Florida who used the system to bilk more than $20 Million in purchase order scams.

“Earron Starks was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay over $2.4 million in restitution. Carlicha Starks was sentenced to three years of supervised release, including one year of home confinement, and ordered to pay $501,000 in restitution. They paid kickbacks to VA employees as part of a large-scale bribery scheme, which enabled the Starks couple and other corrupt vendors to receive over $20 million in purchase orders from VA medical centers in West Palm Beach and Miami. Fourteen additional defendants were charged for their roles in this scheme.” VA 3

Who’s the pobrecito in this case; the taxpayers, the veterans, and the United States. Federal Employees had to not only know the crimes occurring but be complicit in the crimes. Will they lose their retirement benefits, have to repay their wages, and face criminal charges and jail time for their culpability? Fourteen additional defendants, how many were supervisors in the know and on the payroll who were promoted during this scheme whose supervisors failed to do their jobs and scrutinize the work of their underlings? The shadiest part of this entire scheme is encapsulated in the following sentence:

“All VA Employees were either terminated or resigned.”

Name me one private-sector employer who could get away with a massive scheme and enjoy similar benefits! Survived the VA

We find another VA employee embroiled in theft of equipment which sold the stolen goods in Ohio.

“Kevin Rumph, Jr., of Fairburn, Georgia, pleaded guilty to stealing more than $1.9 million in medical products while employed at a VA community-based outpatient clinic in Atlanta. Between 2013 and 2021, Rumph made hundreds of unauthorized purchases of equipment used to treat obstructive sleep apnea. He then stole and sold the equipment to a vendor in Ohio. Sentencing is scheduled for November 17, 2021.”

I have worked in purchasing in both the US Military and in the private sector. If I went to my bosses with “hundreds of purchase orders for supplies,” they would naturally be curious. Repetition of hundreds of similar requests would raise red flags and demand audits of my records and proof of need. Why did this not occur at the VA? VA 3

In the US Navy, I was in charge of ordering stock and saw requests for certain o-rings spike, as I knew the Chief Engineer would spot this and ask why, I asked why, went to the equipment records, dug up the maintenance reports, and asked questions of the mechanics and technicians. In doing so, we discovered an unreported problem with machinery. This is called due diligence; why was it not being practiced by the supervisor of Mr. Rumph? You cannot tell me a seven-year trend line is something that was an anomaly and easily missed in budget reporting year-over-year!

Exclamation Mark Let’s admit a truth for certain; COVID has been a farrago of gargantuan size from day 1. In acknowledging this, no blame is being proportioned to the front-line workers in any way, shape, or form. But, the administrators, policymakers, politicians, and government bureaucrats have certainly proved they could unscrew the inscrutable! Worse, the bureaucrats proved that their idiocy was highly contagious, infecting more people than COVID, spreading faster than COVID, and killing more people than COVID. Our proof of this concept arrives from Houston and the Michael DeBakey VAMC.

“The VA Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) conducted a healthcare inspection regarding allegations of incompletely screening for COVID-19 and treatment of a patient with serious mental illness who presented for same-day care at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (facility).”

Findings:

- - The VA-OIG substantiated that facility staff did not complete the patient’s COVID-19 temperature screening.
  - The VA-OIG substantiated that facility staff failed to manage the patient with COVID-19 symptoms medically.
  - Sent the patient to the drive-through testing area without medical evaluation, did not isolate the patient, complete a care plan, or follow the policy for transporting patients suspected to have COVID-19.
  - The vulnerable patient disappeared while in the facility’s care, was found off-site four days later experiencing a medical emergency, taken back to the facility, and died the following day [emphasis mine]!
  - The VA-OIG determined that the Mental Health Intensive Case Management team failed to address documentation discrepancies related to the patient’s surrogate and educate the family on COVID-19 visitor policy and screening processes.
  - The VA-OIG identified the facility’s noncompliance with the missing patient policy.
  - Facility leaders’ failure to report an adverse event and ensure a timely review of the patient’s episode of care.
  - The VA-OIG identified facility leaders did not timely or accurately disclose to the patient’s family the medical mismanagement that led to the patient’s adverse clinical outcome, e.g., death!
  - The VA-OIG concluded the failure to screen, isolate, and evaluate the patient resulted in potential COVID-19 exposure to staff, patients, and the public when the patient moved through facility grounds.

What was not covered in the scope of the VA-OIG investigation was whether the staff had proper training on the written policies or if training had been suspended due to the “pandemic health emergency.” Failure of training has been a running and recurring theme for the VA before the pandemic, and the failures of training have led to thousands of “adverse clinical outcomes” at the VA, up to and even including death. Yet, as evidenced in this example, small decisions lead to catastrophic events. The infected patient was mentally unstable and missing for four days; how many people interacted with the patient as a superspreader event? Who is at blame at this VAMC for this event, the leaders! They failed their people, failed this patient, and failed this family!

Detective 4 Before continuing, we must pause and take a moment to send heartfelt congratulations to two VA Health Care Systems (VAHCS) who passed their comprehensive healthcare inspections (CHIp), if not with flying colors with significant improvement, and are deserving of the highest praise. Would the leaders of the Fort Harrison VAHCS in Montana and the Western Colorado VAHCS in Grand Junction please stand and take a bow. Your improvements, conduct, and capacity to achieve reflect that success is possible with good leadership. Keep up the good work; find ways to improve daily, and may continual success be ever yours!

Finally, we come to a regular topic, the failure of the VA as a whole entity to manage to pass a simple audit on financial matters and the continuing debacle where hiring is concerned during the pandemic. Let me refresh your memories on the hiring debacle; first, the VA-OIG found that VISN leaders “were generally pleased with the “flexibility” provided during the pandemic for speedier hiring.” What did the American people get for reduced hiring practices at the VA? More criminal employees, more employees with shady pasts, more employees with sticky fingers, and more employees who could not find employment in public schools, now working for the federal government. VA 3

How did that relaxing of hiring practices work out for the American people and the veterans receiving care; not very well! But, let’s all relax; the VISN leaders are “generally pleased.” Frankly, I would be shocked if anything ruffled the VISN leaders’ feathers long enough for them to care; they are mostly at the top of their career ladders and failing a presidential appointment to Washington, know they are set for life. So, why rock the boat?!?!

As for financial audits, the VISN leaders know that money continuously is appropriated to carry them and their poor decisions forward. Just ask the Denver VAMC where the construction cost overruns are still costing the taxpayers, and no one was ever held liable for that boondoggle or any other crime and scheme for that matter.

Question 3 Why? Why are victims left to rot, the assaulters and victimizers promoted, and the VA as an organization left in the hands of disreputable, dishonest, unethical, and immoral people? Why is the VA a culture of corruption, greed, envy, sloth, and disinterest when the US military is the exact opposite? America is not what is found in the halls of the VA, why has the VA been allowed to become something anathema to the American people?

Knowledge Check! Great Britain, you find similar in your halls of government. Your people are amazing; your government workers are just as despicable and deleterious as the American VA, IRS, and DMV. Australia, great people, absurdly detestable government workers. France, interesting people, but the government employee seems to have been drug from the bottom of the scum sucked from the Seine. I have met incredible people in Italy, Greece, Germany, South Korea, etc., but the story rings true everywhere; the government does not represent you. Pobrecito; what has happened?

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

Paul Harvey – Detestable VA Chronicles for Week Ending 07 Aug 2021

Bobblehead Doll Paul Harvey is a hero of mine. I miss his voice on the radio. He exuded a calm demeanor, regardless of the terror, the trials, and the terribleness of the news reported and discussed. I do not have Paul Harvey’s sense of calm. When I heard about the beheading of a woman in America, in broad daylight, by an illegal immigrant who has been on a one-man crime spree from El Paso to Minneapolis since 2007, my cherub-like demeanor took a tremendous hit.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) – Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) reports on a couple from Kansas who are flat out despicable, faking blindness to increase disability payments from the VA and Social Security. Frankly, I hate liars and thieves and agree to the restitution ordered, but I do not agree that the couple deserved probation. Stealing benefits should come with more than simple probation and restitution. Where is the community service in distinctive clothing and sandwich boards declaring they are thieves? VA 3

However, this couple represents a symptom, not the disease of the VA and Social Security specifically, and the Federal Government generally. When leaders act reprehensibly, criminals will test the system to find weaknesses and attempt to benefit from leadership failures. The disease of poor leadership has far-reaching consequences, and criminal activity is not unexpected. Who is addressing the disease? When will the citizens of America receive justice to see the healing of the illness that has captured the government?

Military Sexual Trauma

I-Care Imperative to understanding, Military sexual trauma (MST) experienced while serving in the military affects both women and men with potentially severe and long-term consequences. Psychological trauma, such as MST, also increases the risk of physical health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) requires that each facility has a designated MST Coordinator with at least 20 percent of their time dedicated to protected administrative time. For the record, “protected administrative time” is the time required to be spent on administrative duties, writing clinical notes, ordering supplies, scheduling appointments, administrative responsibilities, and so forth.

In 2018, the VA-OIG discovered just how detestable and deplorable the VBA’s processes and procedures were for military sexual trauma (MST). Having been a victim of MST, this issue is of particular interest to me, and I continue to follow this issue closely. I wish I had some encouraging news on this issue, but the VA-OIG found:

“… Processors did not always follow the updated policies and procedures. VBA leaders did not effectively implement the VA-OIG’s recommendations and did not ensure adequate governance over military sexual trauma claims processing. The VA-OIG concluded that VBA was not properly implementing the recommended changes.” VA 3

In 2016, when claims were being improperly and prematurely denied, the problems were considered a lack of training, a lack of policy, a lack of procedures, and comprehensive guidance was needed. In 2018, additional training and guidance were needed, time, and leadership were recommended, even though claims were still improperly and prematurely denied. In 2021, it is now blatantly obvious we have a systemic failure of leadership at the VBA to process claims in a manner that is conducive to good order and discipline!

On the same day, this investigation was released, the VHA investigation results for MST coordinators were released to the public. I bet you can guess what was found, but let’s allow the VA-OIG the opportunity to detail the failures:

“The VA-OIG conducted a national survey and interviews to evaluate MST Coordinators’ duties and perceived challenges.

- - - - 80% of the respondents reported having been assigned at least 20 percent or more of protected time.
        
        39% reported inadequate resources to fulfill MST Coordinator administrative responsibilities.
        
        The VA-OIG found that insufficient protected administrative time, role demands, insufficient support staff, and inadequate funding and outreach materials challenged MST Coordinators’ ability to fulfill role responsibilities.
        
        The VA-OIG found that MST Coordinators who reported more dedicated time than other MST Coordinators did not necessarily serve at facilities with higher numbers of patients in MST related care.”

Did you catch that final point? Resources are not being adequately provided based upon patient load to locations where veterans need care. Another symptom of leadership failure, being designed into the organization as a policy and working procedure, meaning this is designed incompetence!

Knowledge Check! Here’s the biggest rub, a veteran can be receiving care from the VA for MST at the VHA and still be denied MST on a VBA claim. I have not heard it working in reverse where a claim is being paid, but the VHA refuses care, but given the failures of the VA as an organization, I would not be surprised to learn this was occurring. How do I know that care can be provided for MST and not be allowed on a claim? I am among a number of MST victims, all-male, who have been regularly denied VBA claims but are receiving care for the psychological harm. Veterans talk to each other. I have heard the stories of fellow veterans being attacked, assaulted, molested, drugged, raped by male and female attackers, and heard how the VBA had revictimized them.

What’s worse, MST leads to PTSD, and people are suffering PTSD from a number of traumatic events not receiving care or benefits because the VA refuses to acknowledge these problems. Admitting a problem is the first step in addiction programs; well, it is also the first step in healing leadership failure, and the VA is suffering from dynamic leadership failure at every level! Know a veteran whose story needs to be told, refer them to me; let’s get this information out. I am sick to death of the VA getting away with murder.

Programs and Inspections

VA Seal This week, the final three emails from the VA-OIG reflected a VISN wide comprehensive healthcare inspection (CHIp) conducted virtually, a VAMC/VAHCS CHIp conducted in Spokane, Washington, and a program report on the failures in the Veteran-Directed Care Program. The most interesting finding in the CHIps was how short the leadership teams had worked together, a month, and how many open positions for leaders there were, more than half. Talk about glaring symptoms of leadership failure, were the leadership teams broken up from employee turnover? If so, did the employees retire, or were they retired to avoid criminal convictions? With all the investigations for fraud, as discussed on these pages frequently, I can only guess how leaders churn in a VAMC/VAHCS/VISN.

Believe it or not, the Veteran-Directed Care Program is full of faults, problems and is suffering from a lack of leadership as the program balloons. Color me shocked! Surely, somewhere in the VA, if only to screw with the gods of perversity and Murphy their prophet, there must be a functioning and well-led program, department, office, etc. Angry Wet Chicken

It is so absurdly depressing to catalog these failures of leadership week after week and never see any improvement. We see increasing failures, we observe heightened criminal activity, there is undoubtedly raised awareness of needs and moral distress in abusing veterans, but where is the improvement towards achieving excellence? Where is Congress in scrutinizing the legislative branches, officers, and leaders?

If a congressional representative can order the VA-OIG to investigate the MST Coordinators, which they did, where is Congressional action on the results? Surely this is not too difficult a question to ask. Better still, where is Congress? I have now reached out to all the elected Federal officials in Arizona, Texas, and New Mexico. Texas, because that is where I have been forced to receive care from. New Mexico because I now live here. Arizona because I was physically injured by VA employees there. The amount of interest received has been less than zero! Angry Grizzly Bear

How can interest be less than zero, you ask. Well, while I have not received any response to my original complaints, I have received a TON of marketing materials about how those congressional representatives “Care about veterans, the community, pets, animals, and America.” Maybe, not always in that order, but absolutely with less sentiment than I have for the weeds growing on my sidewalk! Thus, I ask again, with all sincerity, where is Congress in scrutinizing the government? I demand to know the “Rest of the Story!”

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

COVID-19 – Authoritarians, Storm Troopers, Liars, and Thieves

Angry Grizzly Bear Since February 2020, the world has seen COVID-Authotirarians, Storm Troopers, Liars, and Thieves rise. I think it is time to start naming names and being specific that we will no longer accept this detestable behavior from government, media, community, bureaucrats, and those who have constantly been aching for a chance to exert authority over someone else! Too often, I have witnessed these ignorant savages trying to overcome common sense and legal boundaries in the name of a survivable viral disease because the atmosphere has allowed the rise of stupidity masquerading as “Health Policy!”

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs

Monday, 26 June 2021, the US Mail delivered to me a letter from the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), Secretary Denis McDonough, and cosigned by Acting Under Secretary for Health, Dr. Richard A. Stone MD. Two people who were selected by the fraudulent president Biden for their political adroitness and not for their brains, experience, intellect, or even manners, and the letter received is proof! Imagine sending a letter to all US Veterans using an attitude of childishness and the faux superiority of the intellectual elite to compare getting the COVID-19 vaccine to serving in the US Military, “AGAIN!”

Angry Wet Chicken What was the desired intent of this despicable piece of self-righteous trash? I have had three calls to date from two different VISN’s and VAMC’s requesting me to get vaccinated, neigh demanding me to get vaccinated. Yet, the VA cannot even answer simple questions about my concerns for the vaccination, including future sterility, why vaccinated people are only catching the DELTA variant, how the vaccine interacts with medications already being taken, the neurological issues and heart issues from receiving the vaccine, and the list goes on and on! But the VA wants to send me a letter talking down to me and my intelligence trying to promote the vaccine and claiming this is like serving in the US Military again!

Quoting Colonel Potter, M*A*S*H 4077, “Bull Feathers!”

Governors who do not understand the Separation of Powers or the Rule of Law!

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, governor of New Mexico, Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Governor of Michigan, Governor Gavin Newsom, Governor of California, Governor Andrew Cuomo, Governor Phil Murphy, governors of New York and New Jersey respectably, and too many more who act like tyrants, think like spoiled children and run their state’s like the Federal Government is their personal piggy bank and all the citizens are private property. We, the citizens, are sick to death of being held captive to your ignominious and deleterious policies, stupidity, and damnable insanity! You have disgraced your offices, demeaned the rule of law, and distanced yourselves from any political redemption. Apathy

I look forward to the day when you are held legally culpable, accountable, and individually responsible before the bar of justice for your behaviors, actions, double-dealings, and waste of taxpayer funds! You named, and those unnamed who are cohorts in crime, have been the cause of unemployment, businesses shuttering, economic disaster, all for personal gain and individual ego, and your reigns of terror are, hopefully, soon to end in Federal Court and an Orange Jumpsuit! You have betrayed the honest citizens in your states, and when they awake and arise, blessed change will follow, for there is nothing more dangerous than an honest man betrayed!

US Senators, US House of Representatives, and Every Legislator Elected in the United States

Every one of you should be ashamed! Each one who has sat by and watched your governor or president be the flaccid media mouthpiece of cheap science, faux interest in public health, and have voted to create inflation, destroy businesses, livelihoods, and communities, while cheering the destruction of law and order, you also need to be held accountable for your culpability in this most disgusting and distressing event, COVID-19! I absolutely require your retirement packages, repayment of all funds, and a dishonorable discharge from public service for every one of you! Why have so few of you even asked the simple questions regarding COVID; for example:

- - Why is COVID different from every other viral disease in the world?
  - Why do we need to “fast track” a vaccine using untrusted, untried, and unknown technology?
  - Why is a Chinese Viral disease able to shut down economies, close businesses, close churches, and close everything but big box stores?
  - What is different about COVID, a viral disease less dangerous than any other viral disease shipped from China with a higher survivability rate, able to throw the entire world on its ear?
  - How did Fauci go from approving Hydroxychloroquine in research to being against Hydroxychloroquine for the same COVID viruses he wrote peer-reviewed research papers?
  - Why was common-sense medicine thrown away for personal suffering at home until those susceptible to COVID were dying?

You were elected to represent the best interests of ALL your electorate, not the special interests, Big-Tech, Big-Pharma, Big-Box retailers, but the common citizens, and you refused to perform your primary function! Legislators have only two jobs, write common-sense laws that support the best for all citizens, honoring the US and State Constitutions, and scrutinizing the legislative branch! That is your entire job, and too many of you have failed to even show up for work.

Yes; you who have sat around and done nothing to protect citizens from run-away government are guilty, culpable, responsible, and need to be held accountable in front of a judge for your lack of job performance! Justice demands you to be held responsible. You will be held liable and accountable. I long to see you in distinctive clothing, carrying sandwich boards advertising your crimes, picking up trash, pulling weeds, feeding the hungry, and doing other public services until all the funds you have squandered, and the pain you have inflicted has been paid off! Plato 2

Neighbors and Bureaucrats

America has always come together in difficult times, relying upon our neighbors and communities for strength and support. But those who have used COVID as a means to exercise dominion, creating rules and policies at a whim, demanding obeisance, and using fear of a public health emergency instead of logic and calm-headed reasoning should be utterly ashamed of yourselves! I have watched neighbors, friends, families torn apart by COVID Storm Troopers who have used faux science, media talking heads, and the most abysmal behavior exercising control, and this behavior must cease immediately! When government fails, bureaucrats lose their voice. Well, the government has failed, the bureaucrats have lost, and it is time for a reckoning with the citizens who have been cheated, defrauded, and penalized! quote-mans-inhumanity-2

Neighbors and Citizens

Do you realize that you have had money stolen from your pockets through inflation, taxes, and a run-away government? Do you understand that through media talking heads, faux science, and out-of-control legislative branches of government, your liberties, rights, and freedoms have been stolen and replaced with socialized government? In fact, the socialization of the government began before COVID, and this was done to directly penalize you for crimes you have never committed and enlarge the pockets of career politicians! Are you aware of how close the US Constitution has come to being irrelevant, overtaken by a socialized/communist government? How concerned are you that your heritage, your legacy, and your family are about to be wiped out through government actions taken in capitals and applied on main streets, and the bureaucrats are laughing all the way to the bank!

Vaccine COVID is the virus with the highest survivability of ALL the Chinese viral diseases unleashed since the early 1990s; yet, COVID is the only virus to impact the world, as we have witnessed since Jan//Feb 2020. Why is that? Why is COVID powerful enough to change governments to demand green/health passports to enjoy food and drink in an outdoor café? Businesses owners, why was COVID allowed to close your businesses? None of the other Chinese Viral diseases were allowed to close you down; why was COVID allowed? The Ebola outbreak in the last years of Pres. Obama was insufficient to close schools, businesses or demand health checks, and health passports; why was COVID given this honor?

What is Politics?

Knowledge Check! Politics is too often a word with so much baggage; people become confused and stop listening after hearing the word politics. According to Webster:

As a Noun, “the activities associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power.”

“The activities of governments concerning the political relations between countries.”
“The academic study of government and the state.”
“Activities within an organization that is aimed at improving someone’s status or position and are typically considered to be devious or divisive.”
“A particular set of political beliefs or principles.”
“The assumptions or principles relating to or inherent in a sphere, theory, or thing, especially when concerned with power and status in a society.”

As a Verb, politic/s is derogatory and is defined as “engaging in political activities.”

From Old French Politique “political,” Latin from Greek Politikos, and Politẽs “citizen” and Polis “city.” Thus, we have described the term politics in all its glory and inhumanity. Is the term more understood? Politics is a descriptive tool used to identify certain human activities where power is sought, and devious means and divisive gestures are employed to obtain that power. Every action tied to securing power through devious means and divisive gestures is politics or political, meaning derogatory. For those needing more, derogatory is “showing a critical or disrespectful attitude.” quote-mans-inhumanity

COVID has only EVER been about POLITICS! Meaning that those exercising political leadership positions have a derogatory view of you; the common citizen, those of us who elected them to power. The politicians are in the “political game” to demean, abuse, and destroy you. Mad yet? Feeling betrayed? We, the citizens, need to restrict our consent to be governed, recalling all the politicians and demanding they be held accountable for creating the mess America is in! I am not talking about being violent, I do not condone any violence, but I demand the Rule of Law be applied to those who have abused the law, usurped power, and exercised dominion!

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

I Hate Being Lied To – Follow-Up on Diabetes and Dieting

Angry Grizzly Bear Earlier this week, I went to a doctor’s appointment that included diabetes boot camp and was instructed by Dr. T., a clinical pharmacist for the El Paso VAMC. At the time, I thought the only liars were the Food and Drug Administration and the food pyramid I have been living for 40+ years. After some additional research, I have to add Dr. T. to the list of liars using peer-reviewed sources. Well, at least he is in good company. The list of liars includes a neurologist who claimed all calories are the same and reducing caloric intake and caloric burn will help a person lose weight. The advice I have been following for the better part of six years to no avail.

Cave Man Foods

The “Cave Man Foods” pitched by Dr. T. were sourced from Keto-Diets, not “14-years of research at the VA.” The problem with the Keto-Diets is Ketosis, and if you have a liver problem, which I do, you can do serious damage to the liver by eating eggs. Eggs are a staple of the Keto-Diets; do you see the problem here? Gravy Train 2

I have a friend, and he and his spouse went Keto about 16 months ago. Earlier this year, his wife had liver failure, and the Keto-diet helped create a liver problem for someone who has never had liver problems in their life. The correlational relationship between consuming eggs and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NFLD) is pretty solid based on my research. However, as I am not a dietician, a medical doctor, or a food researcher, I can only rely upon medical advice and encourage you to seek medical opinions (plural) before starting any diet regimen!

Calories are not the same!

Let us establish a base of information. A calorie is a unit of energy defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of a quantity of water by one degree. In Junior High School, we used peanuts, sugar cubes, and other home ingredients to explore calories in chemistry class. I still remember setting foods on fire and measuring water temperature correctly to get the caloric burns right. However, dieticians never discussed then and not discussed now that one calorie is not the same as another calorie. Just like rocks are not all the same size, have the same value, or can be used in the same manner.

Rocks For example, calories from sugar are not the same calories from kidney beans, even though both are units of energy, and 2000 calories of chocolate are not the same as 2000 calories of carrots. If we are clear on this, let’s discuss why this is important. 2015, a neurologist told me all my problems with my nerves lay in how much fat I was carrying around. He claimed that if I reduced the amount of calories I consumed and increased the number of calories burned, I would quickly lose weight. Losing weight never happened, nor could I keep any weight lost off for any length of time.

Three years after this meeting, I was told I had developed diabetes and a non-alcoholic fatty liver, as well as gallstones, and my GERD was out of control. This was when I was first introduced to the notion that not all calories are equal, even though all calories are units of energy. I did not understand this discussion totally then; after Dr. T.’s discussion, I still do not fully understand the entire argument.

Lemmings 3 I am sure that energy sources are not equal, even though calories are simple units of energy, per the laws and rules of physics. However, I am not a chemist, a physicist, nor exceptionally well versed in diet and health. I am not a dietician and am left to try and figure out the best advice and live that advice. As a foodie, I have yet to find any diet, as the first part of a diet is “die” dying of hunger! Before you ask, yes, Garfield is a hero of mine and has been my whole life.

Complications to Weight Loss

2017 thru 2019, I had been more active and had lost a little weight. July through December 2020 come along, and all the weight lost is back in spades; why, the injuries sustained at the hands of the VA Police in arresting me for not wearing a mask at the VA Hospital in Phoenix, AZ. According to research conducted on people with spinal cord injuries, the following are key variables in weight loss:

- - Age
  - Race
  - Marital Status
  - Employment Status
  - Family history of overweight/obesity
  - Level and duration of injury
  - Cholesterol level at baseline.

Thus, it is only logical that since my fallacious arrests and injuries at the hands of the VA Police at the Carl T. Hayden VAMC in Phoenix, AZ., exercise and weight loss would be impeded, acting as complicating factors in improving my health. Why is this important; because, my new primary care provider does not think I have any problems and refuses to renew medication until other specialists claim the medicines are needed. I find it interesting that the doctors would vary so significantly between VISN 17 and VISN 22. Lemmings 4

Mask Policies

While the following is not a variable in weight loss, it is part and parcel of the lies and problems I have experienced since Feb 2020. The Las Cruces, NM., VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) had no problems accepting my doctor’s note regarding my inability to wear a mask. When I arrived at the El Paso VAMC, the VA Police had no problem with my doctor’s letter regarding my inability to wear a mask, handed me a face shield, and then provided protection for me with other bureaucrats who took umbrage that I was not wearing a mask.

Meaning that what I have been declaring about the mask policy, the mask mandates, and the hypocrisy of zealot VA Police Officers at the Carl T. Hayden VAMC is 100% true, and my treatment was not in accordance with the mask policy (emailed directive) from Washington DC. I hate being lied to, detest being arrested and injured when I am right and refuse to be silent about how poorly the VA is treating veterans! Does anyone know a lawyer who is willing and hungry enough to take on the VA?

References

Chen, Y., Henson, S., Jackson, A. et al. Obesity intervention in persons with spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord 44, 82–91 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.sc.3101818

Gundry, S. R. (2017). The plant paradox: The hidden dangers in “Healthy” Foods that cause disease and weight gain. HarperCollins.

Joshi, S., Ostfeld, R. J., & McMacken, M. (2019). The ketogenic diet for obesity and diabetes—enthusiasm outpaces evidence. JAMA internal medicine, 179(9), 1163-1164.

Mokhtari, Z., Poustchi, H., Eslamparast, T., & Hekmatdoost, A. (2017). Egg consumption and risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. World journal of hepatology, 9(10), 503.

Taubes, G. (2008). Good calories, bad calories: Fats, carbs, and the controversial science of diet and health. Anchor.

Taubes, G. (2011). Why we get fat and what to do about it. Anchor.

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

I Hate Being Lied To: Highlights From Diabetes Boot Camp

Lemmings 3 2015, The day I went to the VA Emergency Room with killing pains in the upper-right quadrant of the abdomen was a game-changing day. Yet, it also marked the day that doctors started lying to me. I was diagnosed with three things, gallstones, obesity, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, also known as metabolic-associated fatty liver disease, is excessive fat build-up in the liver without another clear cause, such as alcohol use. There are two types; non-alcoholic fatty liver and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, with the latter including liver inflammation. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is less dangerous than NASH and usually does not progress to NASH or liver cirrhosis. Essentially, my liver was having problems policing itself and had developed fattiness, not alcohol-related.

2021, a clinical pharmacist in charge of teaching diabetes at the El Paso VA Medical Center, holds a “boot camp” for veterans to help them understand and better handle diabetes. I spent 30-minutes with Dr. T. getting the low-down on diabetes and getting questions answered. I hate being lied to, and I hate not being able to get simple questions answered. Today’s diabetes class changed my understanding, and I have just scratched the diet/diabetes topic.

Let me be clear right here; I am not an authority on these topics. I am not a medical professional, and sources outside my own research have provided all medical information. I am still learning on these topics and am simply describing my experiences. If the same issues spark your interest, may this information help and support you and your doctor’s path moving forward. Exclamation Mark

Obesity

Obesity is the amount of fat carried on a person, above a specific level, as determined by the health and activity of the person. Please note, no single person is identical in where their fat vs. health into obesity levels are. I have met people who look overweight, but they are not unhealthy because of how their body works. Whereas, I have met skinny people with very little fat on their bodies who were exceedingly unhealthy. Thus, calling all heavy people “fat” and “obese” is the first set of lies and misconceptions we must learn and unlearn when discussing obesity, diabetes, and diet.

Obesity, and the linked diseases to obesity, is also a misnomer and a horrible series of lies. Diabetes is considered a disease; obesity has just now (2018 or so) been changed from a symptom to a disease. Want to hear something to blow your mind; both descriptions are 100% wrong! Obesity is a consequence of being addicted to foods. Diabetes is a consequence of having the addiction overcome the body’s natural defenses and cause independent problems.

Diet

I am not advocating any diet/weight-loss plan, nor am I using this term to describe specific foods in a health regime; in using the term diet, I am discussing the foods we eat. The foods we eat form our diet, and our diets are killing us.

If you are around 40-years of age, you grew up with the food pyramid, as detailed by the Food and Drug Administration, as a way to select healthy foods and improve your diet. You were taught that grains, especially whole grains, were essential for your diet and should be the bulk of what you eat daily. You have been carefully trained and programmed that dairy, especially drinking Milk, is extremely important to a growing body. You have been instructed that calories in, plus exercise, is the path to weight loss and healthy living. You have been taught that salt is bad, sugar is good in moderation, and that there are pills to correct the issues if you are having problems. Would you believe a single voice that told you those are all lies; I wouldn’t, but the researchers continue to affirm the truth of these things if you desire to learn.

Today, I finally learned just how bad these lies are, and my “cherub-like” demeanor has been brutally beaten by reality. Since 2015, I have been told these lies multiple times, specifically to reduce the problems I am experiencing from a lifetime of eating the food pyramid! Nothing is more dangerous than an honest person lied to, and the government needs to fear this consequence. Salt is good in moderation, as established by your blood work. Drinking Milk is bad for the body. Sugar is worse for the body than dairy!

Let’s talk about historical facts for a moment. You will not find this discussed in your history books, but I promise the history is 100% accurate, and the Internet has sources for what I am about to declare. The East India Company, a powerful trading company from England, wanted to increase sales of sugar cane and offered what is essentially bribes to farmers to feed their animals sugar cane. The animals quickly developed sores, open wounds, and a host of health problems, leading to death. When this experiment failed, the focus was pushed back to sugar crystallization, which began injecting crystallized sugar into people’s diets worldwide. Who eventually had the same problems as the animals eating raw sugar cane, only the length of time between consumption to health problems was longer, and thus more easily overlooked as the cause.

Research using fMRIs has shown that sugar and heroin have the same effects on the brain, opening the same receptors and releasing the same feel-good chemicals into the body. Worse, the addiction between sugar and heroin is very close chronologically. Two weeks is the upper limit to reach to begin changing the body’s dependence to both, which means that it takes roughly two weeks after the last hit to start the addiction recovery process. The only difference between heroin and sugar, sugar does not come with a stigma and legal problems that heroin carries.

Diabetes

In simple terms, diabetes is the overproduction of insulin in the body until the pancreas cannot keep up and begins to fail. If you have a Gastrointestinal problem, the levels of insulin in the body are the cause. The powerful pancreas is directly tied to a person’s health.

Carbohydrates are the problem; carbohydrates (carbs) are comfort foods and always contain higher sugar levels. Carbs make it very difficult to break the sugar addiction and stop the pancreas from not hitting the proper amount of insulin in the body to digest foods. I have always preferred brown rice to white rice, beans and legumes, whole grains, and I love making my own bread. Yet, these foods especially are why my pancreas is overworking, and I have gastrointestinal issues and diabetes. The nine-grain cereal I love any time of the day to consume is hurting me, but for my whole life, I have been told that nine-grain, whole grain cereal cannot hurt you.

Cave Man Foods

Knowledge Check! The following were suggested to me as foods to focus on eating, cutting my meals from three to two per day, and I have a follow-up in two weeks with Dr. T. Dr. T. called these foods “Cave Man Foods” as they are closer to what cavemen ate, and they did not have diabetes. I include these foods as a permanent record, not as health advice. Please consult your physician and your body for what is best for you.

- - Eggs
  - Cheese
  - Avocados
  - All types of leafy green stuff (I knew they would stick these nasty things in somewhere.)
  - Non-Starchy Vegetables
    - - Cucumbers
      - Colored peppers
      - The greenest lettuce to be found, Romaine is best provided it is GREEN! If your lettuce is white, RUN AWAY, THROW IT AWAY.
      - Spinach
      - Cabbage – Oh, I love Red and Green Cabbage with brats!
      - Broccoli
      - Radishes
      - Fresh Tomatoes – If your tomatoes are processed, look at the added sugar content, and be amazed at how sodas have less sugar than spaghetti sauce. But sodas get a bad rap, and spaghetti sauce gets a pass.
      - Asparagus – I love red/purple asparagus, can never find it, but I prefer red/purple to green.
      - Mushrooms – Oh, I have a great recipe for stuffed mushroom caps for the grill!
  - Raw nuts, but any non-sugar added nuts are good.
  - All berries.
  - Coffee and Tea, no sugar – Frankly, I drink neither, for I hate the taste of green/black/white/etc. Teas and I have finally kicked the coffee habit.
  - Drink Water! As a firefighter, as a person who has suffered three major heat stress injuries, I am a huge proponent of drinking water.
  - Meat – Any type.
  - Avoid – Bread, Rice, and Pasta

Irony What I found unique on this list is the missing fruits, watermelon, peaches, pears, apples, oranges, pineapples, etc., and Dr. T. claimed this was because of the need to pump the body full of insulin to digest the fruits. If the goal is to heal from diabetes and be free of the drugs, shots, needles, etc., the body needs to be weaned from sugars to allow the pancreas to heal and the insulin levels and liver functions to return to normal. As the pancreas heals and liver functions rise, the intestines will see a marked change in healthy bacterial populations without needing to add bacteria to your foods. Have you seen the amount of added sugar in yogurt? The bacteria are killed by sugar, but to eat yogurt, you get a considerable amount of sugar; tell me, does this make sense to you?

References

Gundry, S. R. (2017). The plant paradox: The hidden dangers in “Healthy” Foods that cause disease and weight gain. HarperCollins.

Taubes, G. (2008). Good calories, bad calories: Fats, carbs, and the controversial science of diet and health. Anchor.

Taubes, G. (2011). Why we get fat and what to do about it. Anchor.

Glory and Gore go Hand in Hand – Stating the Obvious

Lorde, from the “Pure Heroine” album, sings the song “Glory and Gore.” From which both this title and the principle for this article originated. The obvious is stated many times a day, oftentimes in an ironic accident, and today was no exception. The headlines on several stories help prove this point and highlight some serious problems facing America.

From The Daily Signal, we find our first instance of stating the obvious when Lindsey Burke announces that “Unions are doubling down on inserting critical race theory (CRT) into education.” Of course, the labor unions of teacher associations would be doubling- and tripling- down on applying political pressure to advance America, destroying malarkey for K-12 Educators. Show a single instance when a Marxist labor union has ever done anything to support America, and I will show you the inner workings of liars, thieves, and cheats who will tell a thousand truths to convince you a lie is a truth.

CRT is dangerous, it is a lie thought up by academics, and the only people who will benefit from CRT are liars, thieves, cheats, and politicians. Tell me, of all the people in history who have been enslaved, forced into indentured servitude, harassed, belittled, and betrayed by a different society, why are American Black populations the only ones ever targeted for pampering and coddling? When you answer this question, you will discover that this population is being treated this way by racist antagonists who know they can rely upon this population for agitation, anger, and terrorism without thought, concern, and care about the consequences. Why; because they have been intentionally groomed and carefully taught to act in this manner for the political ambitions of the same people pushing CRT.

Ever notice how President Biden and Hillary Clinton only talk at the American Black Populations, and even then only address the leaders of groups dedicated to rousing the population’s emotions, and not the population themselves? When was President Biden ever in Harlem for a political rally? When was Hillary ever in Compton, Philly, or Chicago? What about a visit to Atlanta for a political rally down by the riverside? The politicians talk to the NAACP and the Black Caucus, who then speak to the religious leaders and social justice minions. They talk to the local neighborhoods, reflecting the cowardice and true colors of the politicians as race agitators and race hustlers, not interested in the population unless it is election time. What is CRT; trouble!

The Daily Signal also carried a story authored by Hans von Spakovsky, who declared that a former Justice Department lawyer testified that lawyers abuse their power at the Department of Justice. What a revelation; lawyers were acting unethically, immorally, and illegally for personal gain in government employment. Color me shocked! Ever wonder why lawyers and attorneys have the most jokes written about them of any other profession; I never have! Worse, I cannot believe how many can get elected!

Under the heading of stating the obvious, and how you cannot color me shocked, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) continues to blame inadequate training as the go-to excuse when the Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) comes investigating. In the almost two decades I have been chronicling poor behavior at the VA, VBA, VHA, and National Cemeteries, the number one most often cited excuse for failure is “poor or inadequate training.” As a point of reference, this lack of training drove my desire to work in training at the VA to improve the training delivered.

As an adult educator with more than 20 years in distance learning and classroom training, I thought I would be a shoo-in for the positions. Nope, I had not served in pay grades lower to “learn the VA.” Even though I had more education and experience, was Schedule A, and more skilled than any other candidate, I was deemed not qualified, and internal people filled the open roles. How do I know these facts, I asked those hired, and they were glad to relate their stories, experience, and time served in the VA to get into a plushy training position where they were grossly inadequate. Only after leaving was the other reason revealed, the HR Director at the Albuquerque VAMC claimed too many veterans were in employment at the VA and refused to hire a single veteran while she directed the HR department.

Do the VA Leaders ever think that this is the problem? Only the worst of the worst can survive the mental depravity and mind-numbing bureaucracy at the VA to obtain promotion into higher leadership positions. Worse, those who achieve these positions have agendas, lists of enemies to crush, and power empires to build, so they are never interested in doing the job!

The result, designed incompetence is bred, excuses that could not hold reality become the accepted verbiage to deflect responsibility and accountability, and if all else fails, make sure your union dues are paid, and the union will defend your pension, your job, and your benefits. Then you can lie, cheat, steal, and terrorize without prejudice and escape without any problems.

If you ever think that something is too far-fetched to believe, the VA will prove you wrong. The VA-OIG continues to inspect five VAMC’s for inadequate and improper processes, procedures, and leadership where financial controls and payments to third-party or affiliated non-profit corporations are concerned. In 2021, two additional VAMC’s have failed sufficiently to make the eternally under investigation list, Albuquerque, NM and Palo Alto, CA. The original five are Boise, ID., Boston, MA., Cincinnati, OH., Nashville, TN., and San Francisco, CA.

“The Albuquerque and Palo Alto medical centers made about $17.9 million in improper payments to affiliated non-profit corporations. The reason for improper payments was the same for all seven VA medical centers reviewed. Specifically, procedures for approving invoices did not satisfy VA policy requirements because they did not require verification that the services were provided. The audit team also noted an absence of required periodic reviews by VA supervisors of approved invoices at all seven medical centers.”

Now, here’s the other side of the coin, the internal controls at both the VA and the non-profits did not identify that their problems were internal or even an issue. When I have worked in finance, the rule is, “no evidence, no payment!” When the non-profit I volunteered at failed an audit with 27-pages of audit inconsistencies, I was called in and charged with fixing the problems. Of those 27-pages of audit findings, 26 pages were for payments where documentation was missing. Four months later, a follow-up inspection cleared all 27-pages. Yet, no evidence continues to be the single most glaring problem at seven separate VAMC’s, and nothing has changed since this issue first reared its head in FY 2017-2018. The VA-OIG has collected reports beginning in Boston, MA VA_OIG report number 18-00711-211, published 02 December 2019, where more than 3700 payments totaling more than $23 Million were made without evidence proving services rendered.

From the VA-OIG Report:

“Of the estimated $1.6 million overpayment, about $1.5 million paid to the Boston non-profit was included in the total $35.7 million improper payments due to lack of evidence that services were received. The entire $1.6 million overpayment was for unallowable or prohibited reimbursements to the non-profit.”

“The OIG previously reported a total of about $35.7 million improper payments to five affiliated non-profit corporations as shown in this report.”

Is it too obvious to declare the leadership in charge at both the non-profits and the VA needs immediate removal, transparent audits conducted, and those leaders held accountable for the money that has been lost? Recently an author claimed the VA is more of a crime syndicate than the mob. After reading that two additional VAMC’s have failed gloriously to prove services rendered for payments made, I can agree with this sentiment!

Our final entry today originates, unsurprisingly, with the Department of Veterans Affairs – Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and a VA-OIG inspection where 88% of the claims processed involved lengthy delays in making decisions. Tell me, if you had an 88% failure rate at your job, how long would you keep your job? How long would it be before your bosses were shown the door, the company shuttered, and investigated for fraud? Now, why are government employees treated differently than private-sector employees? The inexcusable delays have led to more than $232 Million in questionable payments projected for the next two years, while the VBA is “encouraged” to fix the delay problems and “catch up.”

For the record, stating the obvious, the entire US Government is sick. The legislative branch keeps abdicating responsibility to the judicial and executive branches. Bureaucrats and bureaucracy have overcome common sense. The whole process has been rigged to keep the dregs of society in power while the taxpayer suffers. Let us, the owners of representative governments, remind those supposed to be in charge that they have cause to fear the electorate. Politicians should fear the ballot box, and they should fear having the electorate hold them personally accountable for the mess they have perpetrated.

Weep America! – The VA Leadership is Becoming Worse! – Part 3

I-Care In the less than 10-days since I last wrote on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) has dumped more than ten inspection results over the last three days into my inbox. Not a record, but the recorded actions are certainly hitting record lows. Worse, the culture of the VA remains unchanged, even through all the recorded crimes and indignities the veterans suffer under. Recording and summating the crimes of the VA is so depressing, mainly because of the failure to reform. But, a little depression will not slow or halt the reporting of these detestable actions of the VA!

The first VA-OIG investigation is more of a report on criminal proceedings concluding with sentencing. A total of five people, including one VA Employee, have been stung in this investigation. How thrilling to see accountability and justice served cold!

“Francis Engles of Bowie, Maryland, was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution for defrauding a VA program dedicated to rehabilitating military veterans with disabilities. As the owner of Engles Security Training School, Engles falsely represented to the VA that his company was providing veterans with months-long courses when, in fact, the school offered veterans far less.”

“February 2019, four other individuals were sentenced in related cases following their guilty pleas. First, James King, a former VA employee, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for committing bribery, defrauding the VA, and obstructing justice. Second, Albert Poawui, the owner of Atius Technology Institute, was sentenced to 70 months in prison for committing bribery. Third, Sombo Kanneh, Poawui’s employee, was sentenced to 20 months in prison for conspiracy to commit bribery. Finally, Michelle Stevens, the owner of Eelon Training School, was sentenced to 30 months in prison for committing bribery.” VA 3

Apparently, bilking the GI Bill is a regular fraud opportunity, and the VA employees need to be held more accountable for the loss of these funds! The GI Bill is a precious commodity and sometimes the only lifeline for a soldier for retraining while awaiting the VBA’s decisions. Therefore, stealing these funds should come with more substantial sentences, more accountability for the employees in the know of fraud, and scrutiny from elected officials!

For the next story, we have several crimes co-occurring; the most egregious is reporting to have been a veteran, fraudulently obtaining benefits, and then trying to use veteran status for preferential contract awarding. The VA-OIG reports:

“Robert S. Stewart, the former owner of Federal Government Experts LLC in Arlington, Virginia, was sentenced to 21 months in prison with three years of supervised release for making false statements to multiple federal agencies in order to fraudulently obtain multimillion-dollar government contracts, COVID-19 emergency relief loans, and undeserved military service benefits.” VA 3

I know the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has declared that lying about military service is a freedom of speech issue and not a crime. However, stolen valor continues to make me sick, and the liars should lose all US Constitutional Rights, as well as be sentenced to punishment most vile! Having served twice (US Army and US Navy), having been deployed to S. Korea (US Army) and the Persian Gulf (US Navy Multiple Times), stealing valor infuriates me into a raging juggernaut! I hate liars and thieves, but to steal valor from those deserving goes above and beyond being just a liar and thief, and the conduct deserves punishment most vile! No, I am not apologetic in taking this stance either! Burn the American Flag; I disagree with SCOTUS again and becoming a raging juggernaut! There are lines you do not cross with impunity, and if you cannot scream fire in a crowded theater as “Free Speech,” then acts of stealing valor or burning the American Flag are reasonable restrictions!

I do agree with Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes’ statement:

“The ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade in ideas — that the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market, and that truth is the only ground upon which their wishes safely can be carried out.” Angry Grizzly Bear

But stealing valor and burning the American Flag is not “free trade in ideas,” and I support social shaming as part of the punishment most vile for these lepers of society! Before you burn the Flag or steal valor, serve in uniform, watch a military funeral as a dependent, and then let’s talk about reasonable and valid restrictions upon “free speech!”

Another case, another criminal act, only this time, I am left asking, “How long has this individual been doing business with the VA?” Regardless, as this is an ongoing case, the following firstly applies: “The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.” From the VA-OIG report:

“Muhammad Z. Aabdin of Bronx, New York, was indicted for offering bribes to a VA contracting officer in exchange for the award of VA contracts for personal protective equipment.” VA 3

It will be interesting to watch this case and future (potential) investigations occur. However, I have several questions needing to be answered, and the report does nothing to aid in answering the questions raised in the defendant’s arrest and the grand jury indictment. More to come as the VA-OIG and the US Attorney produce information. May the US Attorney NOT allow a plea deal!

The VA-OIG has often investigated improper fiscal practices at several VA sites for the VBA, the VHA, and the National Cemeteries. I could almost quote the following investigation results, only differing on how much money is involved.

“The VA Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) conducted a review to examine whether VA’s Maryland Health Care System appropriately managed purchases and payments for medical equipment and supplies. Fiscal oversight of purchase cards and internal controls governing the use of overtime were also reviewed. The VA-OIG found ineffective processes, internal control weaknesses, and inadequate oversight in five areas: 1. The healthcare system and the Enterprise Equipment Request (EER) portal need improved controls for approving equipment purchases. 2. Healthcare system staff and the prime vendor should prepare timely and accurate planning information to ensure adequate supplies are on hand to fill orders. 3. Even though no inaccurate inventory payments were identified, VA’s inventory system needs controls to ensure correct recording of supply units and costs. 4. The healthcare system purchase card program requires closer monitoring to ensure purchases are authorized and supported by documentation. 5. The healthcare system should strengthen its overtime payment controls to ensure supervisors verify overtime hours were completed before approving timecards for payment. The VA-OIG team also identified more than $5 million in questioned costs related to identified issues such as undocumented or unapproved purchases” [emphasis mine]. VA 3

I have heard the term “Criminal Stupidity” and often wonder when “Criminally Designed Incompetence” will become adopted into common vernacular. I am so fed up with the excuses, the missing money, and the abuse of taxpayer forbearance by bureaucrats; I could rip my hair out and scream until my voice gives out! But, unfortunately, both actions do absolutely nothing to correct the problem and would make me miserable. The VA has problems with criminals without and stupidity masked as “designed incompetence” within, and the solution continues to be leadership!

Gravy Train 2 What adds fire to my mental processes on criminally designed incompetence, the VA-OIG has two other investigations in my inbox on the need to strengthen fiscal controls, , and more correctly track accounting practices. Under current legislation, if a private business accounted for their money like the VA, they would be shuttered, and criminal charges levied! Yet, somehow, the elected representatives cannot apply the same accounting behavior standard to a government agency, as they mandate for private companies! Anyone else thinks we need stronger demands for scrutiny of government agencies?

Plato 2 Adding more fuel to the fire for the IT/IS Departments of the VA, the VA-OIG discovered that the VA still cannot regularly and appropriately log records into its own electronic health record systems! Are you surprised; as a patient, I know I am not surprised at all. Worse, the lack of medical records being properly handled influences (negatively, of course) how the VBA makes decisions on claims!

“The Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) evaluated whether VA’s community care staff accurately uploaded records for non-VA medical care to veterans’ electronic health records. Veterans receive non-VA care based on certain criteria, such as the distance from the veteran to the nearest VA facility or the wait time for a VA facility appointment. Records for non-VA care enable Veterans Health Administration (VHA) providers continuity of care and inform treatment decisions. The audit team found that staff at six of the seven VA medical facilities reviewed did not always index, or categorize, these records accurately. Inaccurate indexing of medical records poses a risk to veteran care. It increases the burden on the VHA staff who locate and correct the errors, reducing their time for other tasks. The team reviewed 209 veterans’ mental health medical records that VHA community care staff indexed between April 1, 2019, and September 30, 2019, and found 108 indexing errors for 92 veterans. (Some veterans’ records had more than one error.) Errors included using ambiguous or incorrect document titles, indexing records for non-VA care to the wrong referral or veteran, and entering duplicate records. These errors occurred, in part, due to inadequate procedures, training, quality checks, and quality assurance monitoring and a lack of local facility-level policies.” VA 3

Of course, training and local policies were blamed for the failure to log records properly! These are automatic designed incompetence excuses that appear every single time the VHA fails, the VBA fails, or they both make significant life-altering decisions for veterans, and the VA-OIG investigates! The VBA claims it is my duty to ensure outside providers send records to the VA in a timely manner. The VHA claims they have the documents the VBA wants, and they should read the file. Who is inconvenienced, not the VHA and the VBA, the veteran? The person who cannot even look at his digital file without a “Freedom of Information Act” (FOIA) request and 30-45 days of waiting, and even then, the document is heavily redacted for privacy! Whose privacy, I wonder, the providers, the employees, or the veterans? Because I guarantee the VA is conducting serious CYA on the records produced! Let alone IT’s continued failure to protect the veteran from identity theft or IS to protect the files from being accessed without reason by employees. Apathy

May 2021 was a tumultuous month for the VA and the VA-OIG. If you would like to review how tumultuous or think you might have missed an article or two reporting the VA’s designed incompetence, feel free to review using the following link. Frankly, I want to see action taken based upon the investigations to clean house, more fully scrutinize the VA, and improve the veteran experience at the VA. But, I do not tell you how to think or feel about an issue. Instead, I report and summate and leave the rest to you! VA 3

As always, I report and summate upon the good and bad. If you are a citizen of Indiana or receive your care from either Fort Wayne, Marion, or through the Northern Indiana Health Care System, please count yourself lucky, and pass on the praise to the VAHCS employees. The VA-OIG conducted a comprehensive Healthcare Inspection and found, “The VA-OIG’s review of the system’s accreditation findings, sentinel events, and disclosures did not identify any substantial organizational risk factors” [emphasis mine]. While improvements can still be made, this is HUGE news, and the Northern Indiana VAHCS leadership team needs to be back-slapping and congratulating their employees.

Knowledge Check! Thus, my sincerest congratulations go to the Northern Indiana VAHCS, and heaps of shame and scorn remain served cold to the ineffective leadership and useless employees of the VA in general! America, we should weep, for the VA is not alone in the government agencies in providing world-class detestable service, abuse of the customer (taxpayer), and skirting accountability and responsibility through designed incompetence! But, when we are done weeping, it is time for action! Changing the elected representatives, demanding higher scrutinization with actual penalties for failure, and insisting upon fiscal restraint equivalent to the private sector!

The Perils of a Toxic and Inert Workplace Culture

Duty Dandira (2012), in an epic discussion on the origins of organizational cancer, discussed how communication, among other things, breeds organizational cancer. The author stated what should be obvious, but the government remains oblivious to government agencies and the body’s organizational cancer. “Responsibility and authority: (the CEO/Executive Chief) he should have the power to hire and fire, especially those who continue to follow the old system of playing political games at the expense of the organization” (Dandira, 2012, p. 191). Again, while the following is using the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the examples spread like thick peanut butter, or bathtub scum, across all government agencies and NGOs.

Wasting Time From the Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector of General (VA-OIG) reports, we find:

“Michael Wibracht of San Antonio, Texas, the former owner of several construction companies, defrauded the United States by obtaining government contracts under programs administered by the Small Business Administration for which neither his nor his co-conspirators’ companies were eligible. One co-conspirator, Ruben Villarreal, also of San Antonio, pleaded guilty on Nov. 20, 2020, to participating in the same conspiracy. “The defendants conspired to fraudulently obtain multi-million dollar government contracts under a program designed to benefit service-disabled veterans,” said VA Inspector General Michael J. Missal. “These guilty pleas send a clear message that individuals and companies who defraud the government contracting process for service-disabled veterans will be held accountable.”

VA Inspector General Michael J. Missal, you are 100% incorrect! Holding third-party contractors responsible for defrauding the VA does not “send a clear message,” nor will any of the actual problems be addressed; hence the fraud will continue, and the taxpayer and veterans will continue to suffer. A little research into this story reflects that no VA Employees, who had to have been aware of the schemes and aided and abetted the schemes, have been held accountable for dereliction of duty. Thus, the fraud will continue, and frankly, I wish you would learn this particular lesson!

VA Seal Dandira’s (2012) point is the hinge upon which fraud will or will not continue, does the executive heads at the hospital, VISN, and D.C. levels have the power and authority to act? No; they do not, because Congress refuses to grant this power, while also refusing to scrutinize the government properly! A convoluted mess that should have already been resolved, but the bureaucrats prefer designed incompetence and inertia to perform any work to improve the culture and accountability to the American Citizen and veterans.

Speaking of a culture needing work, the VA-OIG reports:

“Matthew Pizarro, 32, of Stoughton, Massachusetts, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and eight years of supervised release for distribution of fentanyl, one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl, and one count of possession with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of crack cocaine. Pizarro was indicted in October 2018 and has been in custody since his arrest in August 2018.”

Look Speaking to the cultural problems allowing for criminal behavior to be accepted as part of the VA’s normal daily operations, consider visiting the following link. That link will take you to incidents of failure to correct the criminal and toxic culture at the VA starting from 2013. Not that the culture began in 2013, but that is as far back as the VA is willing to admit the culture extends from. For example:

“Lisa M. Hoffman, 48, a former pharmacy technician at East Orange VA Medical Center in New Jersey, was charged with stealing more than $8.2 million worth of HIV medication. Hoffman used her position to order, then steal, large amounts of HIV medication, which she later sold to an associate for cash.”

Detective 3 While the last two examples of toxic culture include individuals, I am always impressed with the lack of integrity and the language games to spin a VA-OIG investigation report to more favorably report a Charlie-Foxtrot! The VA-OIG investigated the use of virtual appointments for primary care during the COVID Pandemic. Here’s the issue, before the pandemic, the only people regularly using virtual appointments were the psychologists treating individual patients who had the technology. My Primary Care Provider (PCP) refused to use virtual appointments until last March. Even then, my current PCP refuses to diagnose, treat, or even answer general health questions using virtual appointments. The last three appointments using virtual technology have been technological disasters where the sound cut off and on, the picture cut off and on, random noise was broadcast, and nobody can explain how secure the technology is and how it meets HIPAA requirements. The VA-OIG is crowing and magnanimous about the growth of virtual care appointments using VA Video Connect (VVC) in the VA.

Worse, the virtual appointments using the VVC technology do not come with technical support, so the veteran is left trying to fix connection issues without guidance and assistance. Training for the VVC technology is either missing or obsolete, and frustration is the only regular VVC technology product. Go ahead and crow VA-OIG; the veterans stuck using this garbage should have been part of your survey, and the fact that you refused to obtain the veterans’ input tells much about how respectful the VA is about their patients!

Inertia Here is a real-life example of a toxic culture with inert actors in action. It is reminding me of those “Priceless” MasterCard commercials from a few years back!

“This management advisory memo identifies potential risks associated with the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) efforts to expedite adding new staff to meet increased demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) recognizes the tremendous pressure to hire staff to meet unprecedented needs quickly. To achieve VHA’s goal of bringing all new employees on duty within three days of making a tentative offer, VHA has modified or deferred tasks such as fingerprinting, background investigations, drug testing, credentialing, and preplacement physicals. The potential risks identified by the OIG may threaten VHA’s ability to safeguard veterans’ sensitive information and ensure its workforce is suitable for serving patients at VA medical facilities. The OIG organized these potential risks into three categories: (1) employees who do not have a completed fingerprint-based criminal history check may gain access to sensitive information and controlled substances; (2) delays in processing fingerprints add to a backlog of investigations; (3) onboarding tasks are deferred—such as drug testing and credentialing—that is not being centrally monitored to ensure completion. If realized, these risks could damage the trust veterans have in VA, keeping their information secure and meeting employee suitability standards; this memorandum raises issues for VHA to consider in determining whether vulnerabilities and related processes warrant further review. These include possible changes to centralize governance of deferred actions to improve oversight.”

Scared Eyes! Who says the veterans trust the VA to keep their data secure? I am amongst thousands of veterans who annually have to track our identity because the VA continues to lose data through the most elementary methods. Worse, the government is a sieve of escaping personal data from the VA to the OPM; the government keeps losing data. These VA articles keep mentioning designed incompetence, want to see designed incompetence in action, “VHA has modified or deferred tasks such as fingerprinting, background investigations, drug testing, credentialing, and preplacement physicals… which is not being centrally monitored to ensure completion.” Change processes, probably never even wrote down the procedures, and then refuse to monitor for completion. Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot on that Charlie Foxtrot, over! Please excuse the military axiom; I am mentally blown away that this was approved, put into operation, and then left alone to fester! When it is discovered that more criminals and nefarious people were hired, who gets the blame; nobody! It will be COVID-19’s fault, not a mindless and spineless drone!

Detective 4 I am personally aware and have reported both on this blog and to the proper authorities (not that they ever cared or did anything), the HIPAA, EMTALA, and other legal abuses of veterans in several VA Hospitals. Without improvements in operations and providing authority to clean house for those in leadership positions, the VA’s problems will only worsen. Please be aware; it is not for the lack of money or technology to pinpoint abuses and problems with employees; it is all the inertia of the leadership towards action and the toxic culture which allows and encourages pushing the boundaries that are killing the VA. The VA requires a cancer operation, where the potential killing growths are removed and the body allowed to heal—healing through better leaders, better-written procedures and policies, and improved communication chains that promote catching the problems before the VA-OIG!

Reference

Dandira, M. (2012). Dysfunctional leadership: Organizational cancer. Business Strategy Series, 13(4), 187-192. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/17515631211246267

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