A MESSAGE FROM THE SECRETARY The Road to Veterans Day With just two months remaining before Veterans Day 2014, it’s time for me to report to you on what we’ve accomplished in our first 30 days together and on what we intend to accomplish in our next 60 days. Our “Road to Veterans Day” begins with our mission and our immediate objective: To better serve and care for those who have borne the battle and for their families and survivors. To that end, we are moving quickly and decisively on three fronts: • Rebuilding trust with Veterans and other Stakeholders • Improving service delivery focusing on better Veteran outcomes • Setting the course for longer-term excellence and reform We are already making important progress: Rebuilding trust: We have reaffirmed our commitment to our mission and our “I-CARE” values — Integrity, Commitment, Advocacy, Respect, and Excellence — and are working to make reaffirmation an annual requirement. We’re also connecting with Veterans and VA employees during visits to the field, listening to their concerns and identifying both problems and solutions, and we’re demonstrating accountability by meeting with stakeholders, talking to the press, and taking action in cases of poor performance or wrongdoing. Improving service delivery: We already have the foundation of a great VA Strategic Plan; now we are preparing to renew and redeploy that plan to set performance requirements that clearly link the mission to individual performance plans. We are also developing better ways to gauge Veteran satisfaction, instituting the organizational strategy known as “Lean Management” throughout more of VA, and exploring options for reorganizing VA along common regional service boundaries, with integrated organizations focused on service to the Veteran as viewed by the Veteran. We’re calling the concept “My VA” because that’s how Veterans should view us. Setting the course for longer-term excellence and reform: As we continue our efforts to accelerate access to care, we will also be working on many longer-term improvements, including a new patient scheduling system, a “Blueprint for Excellence” for VHA, a new Digital Services Team to better connect Veterans with their care-givers, expanded recruitment efforts to fill the need for well-qualified medical professionals, and implementation of the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014. We’ll also be reviewing other key areas such as human resources, financial management, and VBA transformation. That’s a lot to do in the next 60 days, and there’s even more you’ll be hearing about from me or from others in coming weeks, but the work we do on the Road to Veterans Day will pay dividends for years to come. It’s an exciting time to be at VA. I’m grateful to all of you for your contributions to making the most of the months ahead. Thank you for your hard work on behalf of Veterans. May God bless both you and them. Robert A. McDonald
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 14:18:47 +0000
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