OIG Determination of Veterans Health Administration’s Occupational Staffing Shortages Fiscal Year 2021

Pursuant to the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017, the OIG conducted a review to identify clinical and non-clinical occupations experiencing staffing shortages within Veterans Health Administration (VHA). This is the eighth iteration of the staffing report and the fourth evaluating facility-level data. The OIG evaluated severe occupational staffing shortages identified through surveying VHA facilities and compared this information to the previous three years. The OIG found that 98 percent of VHA facilities identified at least one severe occupational staffing shortage. The total number of identified severe occupational staffing shortages was 2,152. Every year since 2014, Medical Officer and Nurse occupations were identified as severe shortages. Within the Medical Officer occupational series, Psychiatry was the most frequently reported clinical severe occupational staffing shortage in fiscal year (FY) 2021, with 50 percent of facilities identifying this occupation. Medical Support Assistance was the most frequently reported non-clinical occupation in FY 2021, with 45 percent of facilities identifying occupational staffing shortages with this occupation. Medical Support Assistance was also the most frequently reported Hybrid Title 38 occupation. The OIG observed annual decreases in the overall number of severe shortages since FY 2018. The number of occupations reported by at least 20 percent of facilities decreased from 30 in FY 2018 to 19 in FY 2021. Facilities reporting no severe occupational shortages increased from zero to three over the last four FYs. The OIG made no recommendations.