Federal Reports

This Office of Inspector General (OIG) Care in the Community healthcare inspection program report describes the results of a focused evaluation of community care processes at seven VA Sierra Pacific Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 21 medical facilities with a community care program. This evaluation focused on five domains:
•    Leadership and Administration of Community Care
•    Community Care Diagnostic Imaging Results
•    Administratively Closed Community Care Consults
•    Community Care Provider Requests for Additional Services
•    Care Coordination: Scheduling and Communication with Patients Referred for Community Care
The OIG issued 13 recommendations for improvement in the five domains:
•    Leadership and Administration of Community Care
o    Community oversight councils functioning according to charters
o    Entering patient safety events in the Joint Patient Safety Reporting system
o    Briefing patient safety trends, lessons learned, and corrective actions
o    Scanning community care documents into the electronic health record
•    Community Care Diagnostic Imaging Results
o    Using the significant findings alert for abnormal diagnostic imaging results
•    Administratively Closed Community Care Consults
o    Confirming patients attended appointments obtaining medical documents
o    Making two attempts to obtain medical documents after administratively closing consults
•    Community Care Provider Requests for Additional Services
o    Processing requests
o    Sending approval and denial letters to community providers and patients
•    Care Coordination: Scheduling and Communication with Patients Referred for Community Care
o    Timely scheduling of patients
o    Confirming patients attended appointments
o    Using the Community Care–Care Coordination Plan note to document care coordination activities