Veterans Administration Medical Center

Ok. So we all know the VA is slow. But once I was see the service was better than any private doctor that I’ve ever been to. Nurse was super nice. Doctor was honest and funny. X-​ray techs we understanding of how much pain I was in. All in all a good experience. Checked in ER at 11am discharged at 2:45. Not bad!

I am a disable VET. I have a service dog for brace and balance. This hospital seems to let anyone in with a dog. Having rat size dog for a service dog it’s not. The law says that there is really only 3 types dogs. Blind, hearing and mobility. All three normal size. Beware that most the handler s have no idea what or how to control their dog. Having your dog in your coat is not a service dog. They need to clear the area where the dogs restroom. All the snow is dangerous but again the staff won’t get the bonuses. All the cleaning staff are or hanging out in the cafeteria for at least hours, being loud and obnoxious. A new hospital will not change the bad employees. Fire and get VETS a job. But with this government now they want to kill of vets. I think they don’t care what pres. Lincoln said. Kill is bigger bonuses for them
My PCP and MTHC are the best but at the hospital staff, (Admin) needs to be removed.

I don’t know about anyone else but I have always received excellent care from all the departments at the VA and I have been coming here for the last 10 years.
They have a great staff of professional, caring and helpful people, especially Dr. Mathes, Dr. Currie, Carol Baird, Dr, Gopal and too many others to mention by name.
They also have a great number of awesome volunteers!

What can I say? I’m waiting for my Humana Medicare to kick in on January 1^st so I can get totally out of the VA. It’s impossible to get an appointment and half the time when you do, they cancel it, or it’s three — four months down the road.
The E/​R department is a joke. I’ve had to wait for four to five hours before just for triage. I now go to University of Colorado Hospital Emergency Department when ever I need to go.
The facility is old and disgusting in places. There are usually three to four beds in a room that is dark and gloomy. There is no telling who you will be in with. There is no room for visitors to sit. It’s just a bad situation all around.
I’m afraid the new hospital (if they ever get it done) will not be any different.

My sister and I brought our dad here this morning for eye surgery and it’s unbelievable how unprofessional and rude the hospital staff is! I have to say the ONE nurse that tended to him was very nice, professional and respectful!
The person that came to wheel our dad away to the OR walked over to where we were waiting and didn’t say I’m here to take you or anything along those lines. He stood in front of me and said, «excuse me!»
I kind of looked around because I didn’t know where he was going, I wasn’t blocking a door or anything and the only thing I was by was a wall. He says again, «excuse me!» So I asked, «where are you trying to go?» He still never said a word, but pointed in my dads direction so I got up and he began to roll my dad away still saying absolutely nothing!!!
We were never told where to go to wait, no one asked for either of our numbers to be notified if there were any complications or when he comes out of surgery so we just left got a bite to eat and called to check on him.
When we returned we asked if he was out, he wasn’t so we found a waiting room and asked if someone would please let us know when he comes out.
The doctors did find us and told us how surgery went and they were nice. But when it was time to leave I requested a wheelchair for him and the lady that came to wheel him out took off with him and left me (I walk with a cane and not very fast) went to an elevator I wasn’t familiar with and by the time I made the corner she was inside the elevator and doors were closing
Like she never saw me and didn’t know I was with him. My sister had gone to the pharmacy to pick up his mess and that’s where we were going to meet her, but I had never been there and didn’t know where I was going. My dad told her to wait and she put her arm in the doors to stop it from closing so I was able to go with him, but it was rude for her to take off and leave me!

So i finally had my visit with an orthopedic surgeon today after my M.R.I. revealed I have a completely detached ACL. I went in hoping to get told what date i was gonna have this repaired especially since after years… i mean years of dealing with the pain on a daily basis, hoping that it finally was gonna get some type of stability and pain relief. Did i mention also that this was my 1^st MRI ever done a a knee that was messed up in 1990 while in Germany (torn ligaments, put in a non walking cask for 8 weeks, sent on my way) been going to the V.A. for almost 15 years for this same knee and today i was told that the only thing he wanted to do was drain the fluid and give me a cordizone shot… not repair the acl… wow !!!
V.A. sucks big time and doesn’t care about us… I’m going to an outside doctor… AGAIN to ger another opinion !!!

I have always received good care from the VA, especially at the clinic when I see my PCP. The Denver VAMC is a quite dated and overwhelmed with patients. Many of whom simply need to stop drinking so much, eat a vegetable and perhaps go for a brisk walk ever day.
I must say though the emergency room is a horrible, dirty and nasty shop of horrors. My single encounter their was for a cut on my hand. The Doogie Howser looking child man that called himself «Doctor» ordered a tetanus shot. The next thing I knew I was being mauled by this enormous obese hair hat wearing black women with a needle who attempted to give me an injection without wearing gloves or sterilizing the injection site. I took one look at her bacteria laden Petri dish 3 inch long fingernails gaudily decorated with pink stars and god knows what else and got the hell out of there. I was still bleeding all over the place but, there was NO WAY IN HELL, I was going to let those people touch me.
Close call! Sorry Dept. of the Army, they didn’t kill me and you still have to pay my retirement benefits.

My husband is a disabled Veteran who is suffering from frequent stroke, it has been going on over 1 year, He just had 3^rd stroke while he was driving. It takes forever to get appointment with Neurologist in Denver VAMC, It should happen right after 1^st stroke but never happened since. He was told to wait until January 2015. He already waited about a month and has to wait for another month.

Sadly I am suck with this VA, I just moved here from Missouri where I was actually treated in a humane manner. Here I am treated like a cattle. No one has been able to help me as they just send me off to the next person. Calling them is a waste of time and sanity. I tried getting a prescription refilled because I just moved here which I am now out of. I am having terrible withdrawals now which is 20 X worse than the actual problem I am having. I am on the verge of not wanting to live because of the mental pain I am going through.
The doctors and all the staff that work here are useless and it shows our tax money is not being put to good use. Waiting 2 months for appointments is disgusting and sickening. It almost makes me want to leave this state how badly veterans are treated at this piece of crap facility.

90 Miles away from Denver VA and STILL have to wait FOUR MONTHS for a doctors appointment for a 5 minute procedure. This is costing me a fortune in loss of work! I have called there 8 times to talk to someone and been over a month and NO ONE has bothered to even call me back. NOTHING HAS CHANGED! Very poor service for me as a Veteran that needs medical attention and can’t afford to go to a regular doctor down here as would cost me about $ 3000 out of pocket for the injections!

Good luck trying to park.
Large campus, right next to the Rose Medical Center.
The Denver VA is supposedly expanding.
Traffic on the main road can make the hospital hard to get to– it takes 20 minutes to go 2 miles.

I’m reviewing the nursing home part as that’s what I am most familiar with. My grandfather was here doing his cancer treatments and he was treated with nothing but the highest respect by all the staff who work in the nursing home. Everyone from the dining staff to the nurses and doctors were excellent during his stay to both him and my family. I spent A LOT of time at the VA while he was sick and I must say, they honored him when the day he passed just like they did while he was alive.
He did have to be transferred to the hospital part and was in the ER as well. We never experienced anything but competency and well trained staff in all parts of the hospital complex. Yes, the facilities are dated and they are moving to a new «hi-​tech» hospital soon but the staff doesn’t let that bother them. They do their jobs and take care of the patients with very good care.
My grandfather had to be driven from the VA to U of CO Hospital Monday through Friday for radiation treatments and they always had him ready to go, the staff doing transports was always friendly and helpful and he enjoyed his nursing staff and caregivers there. He was on a first name basis with every nurse he had and wanted to know all about them, and would remember every detail!
We stopped by on Memorial Day to say thank you as it had been a couple years since they had taken care of my grandfather. The staff still remembered us and had fond memories of my grandfather and family, telling me to make sure I told them all hello. The personal service is far beyond any other nursing homes I’ve ever encountered as this staff love their jobs here.
I definitely recommend utilizing their services for your loved ones should you ever need it. They make you feel like part of the family day or night and NEVER make you feel like you’re a burden.

Place is old until they move to the new Fitzsimmons location. Service can be slow and inconvenient but for most veterans it’s free, so can’t complain too much.

I am a Veteran and due to economic conditions, am working contract jobs with NO BENEFITS. I suddenly came down with pancreatitis and went to the VA Medical in Denver. The ER evaluated me and immediately took me to ICU where I stayed for 6 days then, CCU for 6 days. I would not be alive today if it were not for Dr. Anderson and his team. They continue to work with me to find the cause. Thank YOU.

The two star rating «Meh. I’ve experienced better.» sums up the VA Medical Center experience in many ways. I am not a veteran but I had to escort someone who is to the ER a few times. The first time, the wait was horrendous. When we asked about how long it would take (waiting an hour or two between asking), the staff was rude and short with us. It’s frustrating to be with someone who is in pain, especially if they’re not showing many outward signs of it. And I do realize they had a lot of people to manage that day.
On our most recent visit, we tried to get a wheelchair escort to get my friend from the car to the ER. They explained that there were 3 people ahead of him and they did not have any help, so we’d be waiting a while. After waiting 45 minutes, we headed to the parking garage and began the search for a wheelchair. The corral on the 1^st floor was oddly empty. The reception desk was not staffed, either because that’s the norm for Fridays or they couldn’t find a replacement for a call-​out. Lucky for us, there was a wheelchair at the desk. We managed to get to the ER, where the waiting room was not as full. The admissions staff was a lot more friendlier, and and my friend didn’t have to wait so long, thankfully.
The gift shop and cafeteria employees are very friendly and helpful. So are the people selling stuff in the atrium by the garage. The VA police are also polite and friendly, and getting a parking sticker was not a hassle. The people who visit here are generally nice and polite to each other. More often than not, a vet has put a smile on my face because respect and common courtesy are often not lost here.
I am very appreciative of those who have served in the military, and I really think they deserve to have the best. The VA Medical Center is often short-​staffed in many areas, so the employees who are on site are often overworked, underpaid, and trying to do the best they can. To avoid getting too political, I’ll just say that I hope something gets worked out so the VA Medical Center receives what they need to improve their resources so veterans get what they deserve, which is much more than they are getting now.

I just returned… boy is my blood boiling. You know, aside from being treated like cattle from every other person in this place besides my primary care doctor, I swear the people here age discriminate. I hate having to go down to this place, it takes no less than 2 hours of my time and that’s on a good day.
Today I had the pleasure of having a parking space that I waited 10 minutes for in the garage stolen by some old couple who completely ignored that I was there long before they were, holding up parking garage traffic waiting for the spot. When confronted about it they ignored the fact that they did anything unsavory and I had to deal with some other old man waggling his finger at me for piping up. What am I, 5?
On top of that, I went the cashier to find out if I owed any money at the pharmacy and literally was completely ignored for 5 minutes. I stood there at the window without so much as a ‘hello’ or a head nod from the person in the box. Nearly every person I have ever had to deal with in this place seems highly incompetent, save my doctor and her staff at the firm.
I also went down to records release today, and sat there for 10 minutes waiting for two people who had come in before me to be seen. When the administrator finally finished with the last person in front of me, he came out and walked right by me without even acknowledging my presence and helped the woman who came in 5 minutes after I did. When I finally got taken in to be helped the guy that was helping me just got up and left after slapping a form on the desk for me to fill out. Next thing I know I was being helped by another woman who came in after him.
If this is any indication of what the ‘improved’ healthcare system that Obama’s administration forced through this country is in for a rude awakening. Unless I’m visiting the ER I must make an appointment, and my primary doctor here has a 2 MONTH wait to be seen. Isn’t that ridiculous?! It’s a good thing my ailments aren’t life threatening or anything…

We just had Veteran’s Day. It started as Armistice Day, a day of Peace where we all honor those that have served our country in the armed forces. I hope you had the day off, thanked a Veteran if you know one or could find one, and didn’t get discouraged because the bank was closed .
I wanted to do this review on Veteran’s Day but my appointment was for the following day. I wanted to have another day of excellent service to bolster my recommendation.
You might have heard some disquieting news about Walter Reed Hospital in Washington. Well my experience in the Denver VA Medical Center couldn’t be further from that.
This is a hospital that is a wonderful safe place to be in times of need.
Everyone that has taken care of me was of the highest professional caliber. Well except for the late night emergency room doctor that I woke up from his nap once. He had those bed sheet wrinkles on his face, there was no way getting around it. Grumpy that night, three weeks later there he was again. He sure was surprised to see me and rewarded me with a visit the following morning with the most beautiful angel of a doctor for a day of intensive care.
My primary care physician, though clearly overworked, is always attentive and shows true care and concern.
And I have a specialist that deals with my problems that would remind everyone of Debbie Reynolds. She hasn’t done any song and dance routine yet of any category.
Now here is the real reason I wanted to post this review, and I’ll let the Veteran’s Administration say it,
«All veterans are encouraged to enroll in the VA Health Care System. To begin the process, please complete an Application for Health Care Benefits. You can submit the form online, or you may print the form and mail it to us at:»
Eastern Colorado Healthcare System
Business Office — Eligibility (136)
1055 Clermont Street
Denver, CO 80 220