Healthcare Inspection - Select Patient Care Delays and Reusable Medical Equipment Review Central Texas Veterans Health Care System Temple, Texas

OIG conducted an inspection to determine the validity of allegations regarding patient care delays and reusable medical equipment (RME) concerns at the Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Medical Center in Temple, TX. A complainant alleged that: (1) hundreds of scheduled gastroenterology (GI), mammogram, radiation oncology, and breast biopsy fee-basis consults dating back to 2009 place the health of patients at risk; (2) prolonged wait times for GI care lead to delays in diagnosis of colorectal and other cancers, (3) RME issues have not been properly addressed, including unclean scopes that were almost used on patients, equipment failures, and use of new equipment without an approved standard operating procedure. OIG substantiated hundreds of fee-basis GI, mammogram, radiation oncology, and breast biopsy consults requiring action; however, we did not find evidence of patient harm due to delays in follow-up. OIG substantiated GI wait times in excess of VHA requirements following initial positive screenings. In addition, staff indicated that appointments were routinely made incorrectly by using the next available appointment date instead of the patient's desired date. OIG did not substantiate that RME issues have not been properly addressed. OIG made three recommendations.