VA Hospital

[Redmaxx 740]

So I use the VA for all my medical (I have BCBS FEP) just so that everything is in one place (all my records, scripts, etc.). I had to go and see my Primary Care Physician for my yearly checkup. Before you see the doctor you have to see the nurse who weighs you, takes your temp and blood pressure. While they are doing that they ask you a bunch of questions like, "Do you where sun screen when you go outside", "how much do you drink?" and now for the biggie, "Your BMI is 25.4, would you like to enroll in the VA telemove program to loose weight?" WTF? I went from a 35+ BMI less than 6 months ago to a BMI of just over 25 and you have the gall to ask me if I want to enroll in the telemove program? This from a nurse who probably has a BMI of 45 or so? My blood pressure shot through the roof and they had the gall to say, "Well your blood pressure is still too high." ce my surgery in October I have been at the VA about 4 or 5 times for different appointment and my blood pressure has been normal. Whenever I go see my primary it shoots up.

OK, rant over.

Edited April 19, 2017 by Redmaxx

[Navigating the Wilderness 824]

4 hours ago, Redmaxx said:

a nurse who probably has a BMI of 45 or so?

Step 1: Look nurse up and down.

Step 2: Say "Now I know where all my excess weight went"

[Redmaxx 740]

LOL

[Berry78 4,261]

What is a telemove program? I gots to get me some of that!

[Chris Lee 43]

Tele move is D.O.D VA sponsored class for exercise, diet , and weight loss. If you are a veteran most VS Hospitals/clinics offer these classes

[Sherrie Scharbrough 311]

Don't get me wrong...my hubby is a Navy man and because of his service I have coverage thru CHAMP VA and I will be covered for the rest of my life!! I pay no copay when I go to the DR. I get most of my medications for free thru the mail. Thank you honey!!! But...he doesn't have the great coverage that I do. Sure his going thru the VA is free and his medications are free also. But now let me tell you a horror story. For 3 years he went thru the VA with a tumor on his kidney. They never told us anything about it. Said it was more than likely a benign tumor like he has had in the past. So for 2 and1/2 years we did everything that they told us to do. Cat scans etc. Out of the blue while he was seeing them again the DR says, YOU know it is CANCER right. My lip dropped to the floor. Here he is and a DR that had never seen him (the VA of course) telling us that he had Cancer. On and on it went. The advocate of the VA told us that we had a case and we should sue the Goverment. BTW they told him he had 5 years if he did nothing. We took him outside of the VA and this Spealist took one look at the cat scan and said it is cancer. But due to his size they couldn't do anything until he has lost 130#'s. Back to a Kidney (oh yes he had 5 years and the last 2 would be HELL) Dr we went because he had lost 120#'s this was 3 weeks ago and they were supposed to call to let us know if they could do the freezing after his weight loss. Then today I get a letter stating that the Kidney DR wouldn't get paid by the VA. After they told him that they will pay a outside DR from the VA. This is really not fair at all. They have waisted almost 4 years waiting to do anything. I guess I will stop BITCHIN!! If you all don't want to listen to my rant I will understand. I guess what I am saying that our area of DR at the local VA have let my hubby down BIG TIME!!! Again my RANT IS OVER ALSO!!

[qwurzer 4]

So I use the VA for all my medical (I have BCBS FEP) just so that everything is in one place (all my records, scripts, etc.). I had to go and see my Primary Care Physician for my yearly checkup. Before you see the doctor you have to see the nurse who weighs you, takes your temp and blood pressure. While they are doing that they ask you a bunch of questions like, "Do you where sun screen when you go outside", "how much do you drink?" and now for the biggie, "Your BMI is 25.4, would you like to enroll in the VA telemove program to loose weight?" WTF? I went from a 35+ BMI less than 6 months ago to a BMI of just over 25 and you have the gall to ask me if I want to enroll in the telemove program? This from a nurse who probably has a BMI of 45 or so? My blood pressure shot through the roof and they had the gall to say, "Well your blood pressure is still too high." ce my surgery in October I have been at the VA about 4 or 5 times for different appointment and my blood pressure has been normal. Whenever I go see my primary it shoots up.
OK, rant over.

That had to have been so frustrating! Having said that, I work for the informatics department at the VA and while they get a lot of slack, they are held to a higher standard than the private sector. And that is exactly where that BMI question came from. All VAs nationally have a performance metric where they have to offer the MOVE! program to Veterans with a BMI greater than 25. In a lot of cases, it is an appropriate screening question, but in a lot of cases (yours) it absolutely is not. Unfortunately VA Central Office does not allow facilities to cherry pick from that "patients with BMI>25" population. And I can assure you that the nurse asking you the question would not have done so if it did not require her to do it, because we can all agree that, clinically, you are no longer a candidate! So give her a break and smile and politely decline. I'm sure she was uncomfortable asking you the question and was aware of the irony in the situation. I know I would have been!

[Redmaxx 740]

14 hours ago, Sherrie Scharbrough said:

Don't get me wrong...my hubby is a Navy man and because of his service I have coverage thru CHAMP VA and I will be covered for the rest of my life!! I pay no copay when I go to the DR. I get most of my medications for free thru the mail. Thank you honey!!! But...he doesn't have the great coverage that I do. Sure his going thru the VA is free and his medications are free also. But now let me tell you a horror story. For 3 years he went thru the VA with a tumor on his kidney. They never told us anything about it. Said it was more than likely a benign tumor like he has had in the past. So for 2 and1/2 years we did everything that they told us to do. Cat scans etc. Out of the blue while he was seeing them again the DR says, YOU know it is CANCER right. My lip dropped to the floor. Here he is and a DR that had never seen him (the VA of course) telling us that he had Cancer. On and on it went. The advocate of the VA told us that we had a case and we should sue the Goverment. BTW they told him he had 5 years if he did nothing. We took him outside of the VA and this Spealist took one look at the cat scan and said it is cancer. But due to his size they couldn't do anything until he has lost 130#'s. Back to a Kidney (oh yes he had 5 years and the last 2 would be HELL) Dr we went because he had lost 120#'s this was 3 weeks ago and they were supposed to call to let us know if they could do the freezing after his weight loss. Then today I get a letter stating that the Kidney DR wouldn't get paid by the VA. After they told him that they will pay a outside DR from the VA. This is really not fair at all. They have waisted almost 4 years waiting to do anything. I guess I will stop BITCHIN!! If you all don't want to listen to my rant I will understand. I guess what I am saying that our area of DR at the local VA have let my hubby down BIG TIME!!! Again my RANT IS OVER ALSO!!

I am so sorry to hear that. WOW! I would go to your Congressperson and the news media.