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WACO VA'S FORTUNE IMPROVING DRAMATICALLY -- In
an
abrupt about-face, the Waco VA Medical Center
could be
on the verge of becoming a national referral
center
for mental health and medical treatment.
Story here...
http://www.wacotrib.com/news/
content/news/stories/2007/05/0
4/05042007wacVAPLANS.html
Story below:
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Waco VA's fortune improving dramatically
By David Doerr
Tribune-Herald staff writer
In an abrupt about-face, the Waco Veterans Affairs Medical Center could
be on the verge of becoming a national referral center for mental health
and medical treatment only six months after it was spared from being
shuttered.
Although officials so far have kept many details about their proposals
under wraps, there has been a flurry of activity behind the scenes to
transform the Waco VA hospital into a premier facility, said Bruce
Gordon, director of the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System.
Within the next month, local VA officials plan to begin public meetings
to tell community members what could be in store for the future of the
75-year-old institution.
“It is exciting. The potential for what could occur up there is almost
endless,” Gordon said. “But the practical part of me says, ‘It will take
time, it will be done right and the VA will pay the proper attention to
it.’ ”
The Bush administration had been considering closing or downsizing the
Waco VA hospital since 2003 as part of a nationwide restructuring
effort. In December, Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson announced
the hospital would remain open.
“Having gone through the process where the Waco VA was nearly closed to
talking about expansion of the Waco VA and its national leadership role
in the VA health care system is great news for veterans and Central
Texas,” said U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco.
4 areas of enhancement
Thomas Smith, associate director for resources for the Central Texas
system, has worked with “lightening speed” to put together proposals for
a strategic plan for the hospital’s future, Gordon said.
But officials in Washington ultimately will determine how the hospital
is used, he said. Fortunately for Waco, there is “intense interest” from
Washington-level VA officials in the role the hospital could play in
treating veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,
Gordon said.
Driving the attention is the Waco VA’s 2005 designation as a “Center of
Excellence” for mental health care, and the high numbers of returning
soldiers the Central Texas system has signed up for services in recent
years, Gordon said. Almost 7,000 of them have enrolled, the highest
number of any system in the nation, he said.
To better serve the veterans of the ongoing wars, local VA officials
have identified four areas of enhancements they hope to make to the Waco
campus: mental health treatment and research, consolidated outpatient
services, long-term residential care and rehabilitation programs.
The enhancements would require improvements to the current facilities,
meaning multimillion dollar construction projects, Gordon said. But
before such building projects can move forward, plans have to be vetted
by Washington-level VA officials and receive congressional approval.
With Edwards becoming chairman of the appropriations subcommittee over
VA funding this year, the hospital has a powerful advocate in Congress.
“Let there be no doubt that our subcommittee will be very supportive of
what the VA believes is best for the Waco (hospital),” Edwards said.
Edwards said he has been impressed by the speed in which VA officials
have moved ahead with the plans.
“There is no evidence that the VA is dragging its feet on this,” he
said.
While Central Texas VA officials have been feverishly drafting plans, it
could take time for higher-ups and Congress to give final approval to
the improvement proposals, which were submitted in March.
If the bureaucratic process works at its normal pace, it could be 2010
before funding for construction projects makes its way to Waco, Gordon
said. But if government officials make the hospital a priority, the time
line could speed up by a year or 18 months, he said.
A vision of the future
In the meantime, Central Texas VA officials plan to begin fleshing out
the details of their proposals and working to inform community members
about what is in the works. By next week, they hope to announce a date
to unveil their proposed improvements.
“We really want to walk folks through this and then even put up a map of
the Waco campus and say ‘This is how we envision what we are going to do
on the Waco campus, contingent on final approval and funding,’ ” said
Smith, who has led the planning effort.
And now that Waco VA officials have a better idea of what buildings will
be needed for their own use, they can begin letting community
organizations and businesses know which vacant spaces might be available
for outside use, an issue that arose in the three-year review process.
Waco Mayor Virginia DuPuy has been tasked with the effort to develop
community and business partnerships with the hospital.
“I’ve been eager for (these public meetings) to happen,” DuPuy said.
“This puts the community in the position to be able to look at what
complementary services there could be.”
Gordon said the forums will be an opportunity for local VA officials to
explain what they believe are realistic ways to revitalize the hospital.
“We know there are a lot of concerns about what needs to be activated
and what services we are going to keep and those that people would like
to see us put in place,” he said.
But he added, local VA officials must put together a practical proposal
that has the greatest chance of being approved by higher-ups.
“I have to be deliberate in this because I know there is not a blank
check,” Gordon said. “Population demands will drive services up there.
We will address what it takes to meet those demands, but I don’t know
that we will ever be able to just duplicate everything that is provided
elsewhere in Central Texas.”
ddoerr@wacotrib.com
757-5755
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Larry Scott --
