Hours being cut at American Lake VA center

[David]

The News Tribune


Some 40,000 area veterans are being told this week about a cutback in hours at the urgent care clinic at the Veterans Administration medical center at American Lake.

A letter is going out to veterans getting services at the center, advising them of the reduced hours beginning Feb. 1.

The urgent care clinic, which is now open 24/7, no longer will be open weekends, evenings or holidays, according to the Veterans Administration Puget Sound Health Care System.

The new hours will be from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, VA spokesman Ken LeBlond said.

No jobs will be lost with the cutback. Urgent care staff members will work at the primary care clinic at American Lake, which will expand its daytime services, LeBlond said.

“Since the urgent care clinic was open 24 hours it was often treated as an emergency room,” said Jeri Rowe, public affairs director for VA Puget Sound.

However, urgent care is for people with an injury or illness that needs a medical professional and that is not life-threatening but that could become worse in 24 hours if not treated. American Lake has had no emergency medical services for years, Rowe said.

The result has been a safety issue for patients who might drive a long way seeking help at American Lake rather than going to a community hospital emergency room, she said.

It is also a matter of efficiency, Rowe said.

“We are paying staff to sit there at night with few patients,” she said. Rowe said she didn’t have figures on the number of people using the clinic after hours but said it wasn’t that many.

Veterans with medical emergencies should call 911 and go to the nearest emergency room, Rowe said. The VA business office can work with many local hospitals to cover costs if patients meet VA emergency room criteria, she said.

Veterans who believe they need either physical and mental health help after hours or on weekends should call the VA’s 24-hour Tele-health line or the national mental health crisis hot line.

Both lines can help patients decide what kind of treatment they might need, LeBlond said.

American Lake is working to educate patients about how to use its services more efficiently and to expand primary care, which covers general health care issues. The primary care clinic is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.




EMERGENCY MEDICAL HELP FOR VETS

• Veteran Administration’s Tele-health line: 253-583-2273
• 24-hour mental health crisis hot line: 1-800-273-TALK, press 1 for veterans

• Veterans mental health hot line Web site: www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/Veterans

• Information on local emergency room coverage for veterans at VA Fee Services: 1-800-329-8387 or 253-582-8440 ext. 64545