Turner, hospitals to advocate for Dayton VA hospital
Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association task force will assess service and other issues at the facility.
By Anthony Gottschlich, Staff Writer, Wednesday, November 21, 2007
DAYTON – U.S. Rep. Mike Turner and local hospital officials on Tuesday said they will convene a task force to improve services at the Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
The Centerville Republican, responding to reports of patient dissatisfaction and other issues at the Dayton VA, said a Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association task force will serve as an "advocacy group" for the VA hospital, much like the Dayton Development Coalition is for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
"Our veterans have served our community with such great distinction that we need to be sure that the medical care they receive serves them," Turner said at GDAHA's headquarters near downtown.
The association, which represents 11 area hospitals, will assemble the task force from its existing members and start working on the initiative with VA officials by January, said Frank Perez, GDAHA board member and Kettering Health Network president.
Turner said the task force will be charged with researching and assessing quality and types of services; employee and customer satisfaction levels; timeliness of service, costs involved and ways to secure more federal funding.
"I think at times there's a sense in the VA system that it's isolated," he said. "This will help ensure our community partners, those who have hospital expertise, are at the table."
The Dayton Daily News reported in August that the Dayton VA hospital ranks among the worst of the nation's 146 VA facilities for patient satisfaction and last among six VA medical facilities in Ohio for employee satisfaction, according to surveys obtained from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Dayton VA hospital Director Guy Richardson, in a statement to Turner's office, said, "We see this initiative as an opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to veterans and excellence."
http://www.daytondailynews.com/story/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/11/20/ddn112107turner.html?cxntlid=informNews Articles
Got back to News Articles
