Posted on Aug 17, 2015
CPT Military Police
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Female veterans are having problems getting the services they need from the V.A. in part because of their gender. Most V.A. programs are set up for men due to the V.A. originally being set up to support men. (Not pointing fingers here or being feminist) The increased number of female veterans has led the V.A. to begin to seek medical services and to open support groups specifically geared toward women. I have heard from male counter parts stories of having great difficulty in applying and receiving help from the V.A.. Some women say it is more difficult for women, because they are not recognized as being veterans in the firs place. The V.A. is trying to respond to these needs but funding is always an issue and the items that are going to get funded first are those that help the greatest majority of veterans, thus creating a vicious circle because women are in the minority. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/opinion/sunday/the-vas-woman-problem.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0
Edited >1 y ago
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PO1 Sojourner "Chancy" Phillips
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I don't think being male or female matters.  The VA is a mess across the board.  It seems to be more dependent on whether or not you live in a an area that has well ran VA hospitals or clinics.  The worse the management the worse the facility.
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SSG Trevor S.
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I say no because women have their own clinics in many VA locations that men don't have access to, since women can use every resource men have this acutally gives them more resources to exploit.
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SSG Trevor S.
SSG Trevor S.
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PFC (Join to see) see the full definition of exploit, as shown earlier. *(and referenced) Build your vocabulary before being indignant.
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PFC Ammunition Specialist
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if anyone was being indignant as you so nicely put it Ssg Smith, is you! and your little side kick brown noser Sfc Smith Jr that agreed with you. you have no clue what we women have been thru during our time of service and now as veterans trying to get some sort of medical treatment you are trying to back track what you said about women exploiting the VA b y trying to say that you meant it in the way of the defininition that you posted later after you had been called out.

so nice try. again, who's being indignant? certainly not me! good night be blessed because I am done with you and your brown noser! :)
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SGT Amanda Cray
SGT Amanda Cray
>1 y
That is not true for where I live
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PV2 Senior Web Designer, Web Team Lead
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>1 y
I will admit DC VAMC is not perfect. Far from it. I can't seem to ever get anyone on the phone. I will say when I've messaged my Dr. she responds right away on My Health eVet. I walked in last week because I had an issue that couldn't wait and it took two hours to be seen but I got seen. I guess I am lucky.
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GySgt Wayne A. Ekblad
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Sorry ... I'd have to see a whole lot more data on this to be convinced that this is really an issue.
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CPT Military Police
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GySgt Wayne A. Ekblad Agreed. I'm hoping to get some input here from females to see what their take on this is.
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Sgt Spencer Sikder
Sgt Spencer Sikder
>1 y
A very good question by CPT M C., for many years, VA didn't have much in place for women veterans, but then again not many women went to VA either. While there were some specialized medical supplies for example, there was a time that women would wear the same male hospital gown. As recent as four or five years ago, some VA's didn't have or provide feminine hygiene products (thought to be a personal expense not a taxpayer expense) . Rooms were group rooms with as many as 4 beds in one room. Or even the primary care rooms didn't have exam tables with stirrups or curtains. Some years ago, VA began an aggressive construction program to designate some rooms female specific. As more females present to VA it seems the initial plans were once again short sighted and not enough rooms, so we're seeing construction for more female specific rooms. So I think it would be good the hear from our female veterans of their experience or expectation failures or successes. This will enable the rest of the Rally Point population to understand the plight of that segment of veterans when it comes time to represent them at the polls.
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SSgt Laurie Sayles
SSgt Laurie Sayles
>1 y
Learning that few VA facilities have physicians that cater to women regarding OBGYN is public knowledge ... you can google and find it.
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SSG Gregg Mourizen
SSG Gregg Mourizen
>1 y
I'd have to say that there are many services available to vets. It has come a long way from where it was 10 years ago, when it comes to many of the services provided, especially when it comes to female health concerns. Sometimes you have to really look for the programs you want, and you have to be willing to jump through the required hoops, to get to them. I taken advantage of the VA medical and educational programs. The problems I have seen are not all that gender specific. Services are not always easy to find. If the care you are looking for is not available at the clinic you are going to, the VA support network is usually there with outside healthcare providers, to take care of your needs. The problem with healthcare systems (not just the VA) is that they are slow and services are not always available to you. If you feel you need specific care for a problem, (in my experience) you just have to push for it and they will get you what you need.
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