The
Department of Veterans Affairs continues its parade of poor decisions and bad
ideas with their most recent slideshow shown to VA employees, which depicts veterans
as Oscar the Grouch, the character from Sesame Street.
Perhaps
the VA needs to bring in Oscar the Grouch’s Sesame Street neighbor, Count von
Count, to give themselves a lesson and count how many veterans have waited far
too long to receive the health care and benefits they have earned.
The
cranky Sesame Street character who lives in a garbage can was used in reference
to veterans who will attend town-hall events Wednesday in Philadelphia. The
spokeswoman from the Philadelphia VA benefits office - which will host the town
halls - said in a statement that the agency regretted any misunderstanding
caused by the slide show.
There’s
no clear answer as whether this idea came out of the Philadelphia VA or the
national office. But so much for improving customer service to our veterans.
What’s
more, the slide show contains a “coping with stress” and four-minute relaxation
technique for employees if they feel angry or overwhelmed (by the veterans in
attendance at the town halls).
Maybe
some of the veterans in attendance would love to know about those “coping with
stress” techniques as well, especially as they sit on egregiously long wait
lists for care.
The
bottom-line throughout all this unfortunate news coming out of the VA is this:
those who have sacrificed so much for our country do not deserve to be treated
like garbage. They are not grouches. Veterans are not “too demanding” or
“unreasonable” when they get upset by the current state of their care. Many
have lost trust in the VA.
Instead
of slideshows depicting Oscar the Grouch and relaxation techniques for
employees, perhaps a presentation on best practices, cutting wait times, and
real customer service is in order.
Read more on this issue
on Stars & Stripes’ website: http://www.stripes.com/news/philly-va-training-slides-depicted-veterans-as-oscar-the-grouch-1.300205
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