Coordinated Care Supports Veteran through ICU Stay [Harlan Christianson]

Harlan: My name is Harlan Christianson.

Mary: And I'm his wife Mary. Between us we have 5 kids, 14 grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren. 

How did the Brookings Health staff help with VA benefits during Harlan's Emergency?

It didn't occur to me, he's VA, he's 100% disabled, but afterwards, after he's in ICU, he'd been up there 24 hours I think, they came and talked to me, you don't remember, they came and talked to me about, here's the phone number you have to call, and it has to be done within 72 hours. The hospital had already talked to the VA. They had already set everything up. They had already communicated all these needs, what was going on. I just had to call and confirm he was a patient here. Everything was taken care of. I mean all the worry that I had about paying for part of this, I knew Medicare would cover some of it, but there still could be a chunk left. And no, it's all taken care of.

How was coordination between Brookings Health and the VA?

Harlan: It was all done before we knew that he was doing it.

Mary: It was all done. I mean all I had to do was make the phone call and verify that yes, he was here. They had taken care of everything. I mean they took that worry away. It's something I didn't have to sit there and worry about, you know, we're going to have these bills coming in, because he doesn't have a supplement like a lot of people do, because he's VA. And so there's that 20% you know that's floating out there that you would be responsible for. And with all the care he got, I knew that there would be some bills. It's done. They got it taken care of. I mean all I had to do was call. And she said, no, we've been talking to them and they provided us with all the records. And he saw the VA the next day after he got out and they had the records and confirmed that yeah, exactly, he had the great care.

What is the VA care in the Community Program?

So if we do want something done here, we can. We just, they just set it up and we can have it done here at Brookings. At the time that he was so sick, I didn't care. I just wanted to get the closest facility that we could get him to, because I really felt that he was not going to make it. He was dying.

How does clear communication help the veteran's care?

I think his care is a lot easier. They don't have to sit there and well, I'm sorry we don't have the records yet. We have to repeat those tests. They weren't repeating tests that didn't have to be repeated and it kept the cost down. You didn't even have lab work the next day. No, because it had all been done and they already had the results. And that made it a lot easier on him. At the time you don't think financial. You think care. You got to get him in and get him started, whatever is going on, because time was an essence. He was slipping away.

What is your VA representative's opinion of Brookings Health System?

Courtney is the VA rep for Brookings County and she really appreciates Brookings Health System because they communicate back and forth. She has no problems when it comes to the finances or the sending of records back and forth because it's there, it's laid out, the vet is taken care of, and it's a helping hand. They both help each other out. She says other hospitals they do have some problems with. The communication isn't there. And being a care in the community, I appreciate it being here. I really do. It's not for the facility, it's for the patient, it's for the veteran. And that's where it should all be. And there's no tugging back and forth. It went smooth.

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