McCaskill: Best way to improve care for veterans is to listen to them

(From Sen. Claire McCaskill)

When it comes to improving care for our military veterans, the best way to do it is also the simplest - by actually listening to veterans.

Nearly three years ago, I launched an effort to bring together veterans, the VA, patient advocates and local communities to strengthen services for our veterans - and I did it with my dad in mind. As the daughter of a World War II veteran, I know there's no substitute for hearing directly from Missouri veterans about the level of care they're receiving at VA hospitals and facilities.

Through our Veterans' Customer Satisfaction Program (VCSP), I'm able to get direct feedback from veterans, and work with our coalition of VA stakeholders, to address any frustrations or obstacles veterans report about their VA healthcare. It's allowed us to generate specific ideas for better services, further assess the overall quality of care, and figure out how to improve their experience.

While we continue to make significant progress correcting the problems, we're not done yet, and that's why I'm asking for your help. I'm looking to hear more from our veterans about the improvements they've seen in their care, as well as areas where we still need to do more work.

If you are a veteran or you know a veteran receiving care at Missouri's VA hospitals visit my website at mccaskill.senate.gov/vcsp to give your confidential feedback.

With the VCSP program, we're putting the power back into the hands of veterans and ensuring that we make good on the promises made to those who served. My goal is to continue to have an aggressive program that holds our VA medical centers accountable for providing the best healthcare possible to our veterans.

If you are a veteran or you know a veteran who is receiving care at one of Missouri's VA facilities, I encourage you to visit my website www.mccaskill.senate.gov/vcsp and take part in this confidential survey. You can complete a survey after each healthcare visit.

The most effective way to ensure we're living up to the promises made to our veterans is to actually stop and listen to what they have to tell us.