Veteran Health Care

How to navigate the Veteran Health Care System for Disabled Veterans and Veterans that use the Veteran Health Care System.

For 911 emergencies. The Veterans calls the hospital then puts on his old uniform. The Veteran then must lay in his or her yard and scream MEDIC at the top of his lungs until help arrives. Once the helicopter comes the veteran will firmly secure him/herself into the basket.

For regular appointments the veterans must get there early. The veteran will be waited on by other disabled veterans who are hard of hearing, a little blind, with a touch of arthritis, to wait on all Veterans.

After standing in line for about 5 to 10 minutes or an hour. The Veteran can talk to the other Veteran patients. Most Veterans swap war stories about the Korean War, World War II, WWI, Vietnam, Civil and Spanish American Wars.

Grenada, Panama, Desert Storm and Iraq War Veterans are considered rookies and will learn the proper way to enhance their experiences by listening to the above Veterans stories of older conflicts.

Veterans in wheel chairs are the best people for information about past altercations with other countries. Notice how Veterans argue and disagree about their outfits, units, companies, ships, etc. they served in. Common arguments consist of how their duty stations were more dangerous than anyone else's. Sometimes wheel chair Veterans play chicken in their wheel chairs to settle arguments in the hallways. This is especially interesting because usually their legs have no feeling and the crashes they create are better than the ones in NASCAR.

It is also not uncommon to see people on crutches arguing with the wheel chair Vets and sometimes they end up pulling the air tubes out of each others machines.

Be aware that a young woman is usually not a nurse but a relative of the Veteran helping him spend his benefit monies.

If a Veteran argues with a receptionist, secretary, doctor or nurse. The security staff will intervene and the Veteran must wait an extra hour for his medication in the Pharmacy. If the Veterans causes a serious situation he must return his meds and come back the next day to retrieve them from the Pharmacy.

No VA Doctor is an American Citizen. Most are all interns training to be doctors. Sometimes the doctor is a Veteran of the same War the Veteran was in, but unfortunately the doctor was on the side the Veteran was fighting against. So it is with the up-most importance that the Veterans be friendly to all senior medical personnel.

The Veterans should be able to understand Eastern, Asian, European and the language the Doctors from India speak.

The Veteran does not have to worry about parking in handicapped spaces because all the parking spaces are handicapped.

In Pennsylvania, Transportation is provided to all veterans with cancer to go to Philadelphia and New York and get treatment. The local VA hospitals do not provide these services so be prepared to travel 3 to 4 hours one way for a half hour treatment. The bus usually leaves for NY or Philadelphia at 5 or 6 in the morning and then leaves NY or Philadelphia 4 or 5 in the afternoon. This is so that the Veteran will be tired and sleep in the bus so Veteran will be quiet for the entire trip. Extra medication is given for the return trip.

In a waiting room at the Va hospital never ever assume that the Veteran sitting next to you is sleeping. Check his pulse every 10 or so minutes to be sure he is not having a heart attack or stroke.

Veterans with behavioral problems and are a constant annoyance to staff will be automatically sent to the Walter Reed Facility.

Enjoy your stay at the VA and remember that there are HMO's out there that could be far worse.