WASHINGTON, D.C. — The VA Medical Center in Erie, Pa., is this year’s recipient of the Robert W. Carey Quality Award, which is the highest award for organizational effectiveness, performance, and excellence in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
“The Erie VA Medical Center is a model for health care. They are champions of excellence within the federal government,” said Acting Secretary for Veterans Affairs Hershel W. Gober.
The Erie facility is cited for its leadership in quality improvement and initiatives that improved customer service. As a result, the medical center has a 75 percent decrease in the number of days patients are hospitalized for care, and a 45 percent increase in the number of veterans served. In addition, the availability of clinic appointments has increased 30 percent along with a decrease of 30 percent in waiting times. The medical center serves 86,000 veterans in northwestern Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, and southwestern New York.
A panel of judges, including VA employees, other federal agencies and military organizations, selected three VA operations as quality achievers in separate categories: Amarillo VA Health Care System, Amarillo, Texas, for health care; Florida National Cemetery Complex, Bushnell, Fla., for national cemeteries; and Veterans Benefits Administration Insurance Service and Insurance Center, Philadelphia, Pa., for benefits services.
The Philadelphia Insurance Center was recognized for its customer service standards and customer satisfaction. The Insurance Center receives over 3,300 toll-free calls a day, and sends out 400 customer surveys each month. The staff instituted “listening post” meetings to determine what services veterans need.
According to the A.M. Best Company, a leading information source for the insurance industry, VAs insurance policy costs are lower than those of top-ranked insurance companies. The Philadelphia Insurance Center insures over 5 million individuals for over $485 billion.
The Florida National Cemetery Complex is comprised of Bay Pines, St. Augustine and Florida national cemeteries. Management empowered employees to provide the best service to veterans and their families with dignity, honor and respect. The staff looked at options to improve services for veterans and their families. Their suggestions resulted in land expansions, memorial gardens, a columbarium and an agreement with state, county and local agencies to use reclaimed water for irrigation.
The Amarillo VA Health Care System offers health care services to a population of 75,000 veterans throughout the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma, plus portions of New Mexico and Southern Kansas. A team of staff and union leadership developed a rewards and recognition system focusing on outstanding service to veterans. Highlights include transition of the substance abuse program to an outpatient setting, restructuring primary care, the establishment of a safety program to reduce employee accidents, implementation of bar code medication system and a computerized patient record system.
The Robert W. Carey Quality Award is named for the late director of the VA Regional Office and Insurance Center in Philadelphia. Carey led his office in initiating a total-quality management approach to serving veterans and their families. He died in 1990.
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