VA Health Care: Improvements Needed in Nursing Home Planning
HRD-90-98
Published: Jun 12, 1990. Publicly Released: Jun 12, 1990.
Skip to Highlights
Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) nursing home planning process.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Veterans Administration | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should require the Chief Medical Director to revise planning guidelines to remove limitations on the percentage of beds VA can use in a single community nursing home. |
Closed – Implemented
Final revision to Chapter 10 of the VA Veterans Health Administration Manual 9, "Strategic Planning" was issued May 18, 1992. This revision completes action on this recommendation.
|
| Veterans Administration | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should require the Chief Medical Director to provide clear guidance to planners regarding the specific steps they should take to assess the availability of community nursing home beds. |
Closed – Implemented
Final revision to Chapter 10 of the VA Veterans Health Administration Manual 9, "Strategic Planning" was issued May 18, 1992. This revision completes action on this recommendation.
|
| Veterans Administration | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should require the Chief Medical Director to ensure that planners follow guidelines in developing their counts of available state veterans' nursing home beds. |
Closed – Implemented
Regional liaisons in the Strategic Planning Office will verify regional planner input in the state home assessments on an individual basis.
|
| Veterans Administration | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should require the Chief Medical Director to review planned nursing home construction projects before requesting funding to be sure that available beds in community and state veterans' homes were accurately counted and that opportunities for converting hospitals beds were identified. |
Closed – Implemented
VA cited its long-term policy to require needs assessments for nursing home projects as meeting the intent of this recommendation. However, implementation of the other recommendations in this report is necessary to fully accomplish the intent of the recommendation.
|
Full Report
Office of Public Affairs
Topics
Community hospitalsElderly personsHealth care planningHealth resources utilizationHospital planningNursing homesProjectionsVeterans benefitsVeterans hospitalsVeterans