VA Staff Left Body of Dead Vet in Shower Room for 9 Hours���Then Lied About It

Apparently, outrageous news items about patient mistreatment at the hands of VA staff are going to be regular features in this space.

The latest, unfortunate revelation: According to FOX 13 News in Tampa, Fl., the Department of Veterans Affairs Administrative Investigative Board has released a report detailing a bizarre incident that occurred at Bay Pines (Fl.) VA Healthcare System.

According to the report, staff members at the hospital simply left the body of a deceased veteran in a shower room for nine hours.

That���s not all. The report also says, essentially, that staff lied about it.

The body was first deposited in the hallway of the hospital���s hospice unit for an undetermined period. From there, it was moved into the shower room, where it was abandoned by staff for over nine hours.

The report goes on to say, as well, that an unidentified (to the public) staff member assigned to the hospice unit ���falsely documented post mortem care for the decedent.���

After reading the report, Gus Bilirakis, a Republican congressman serving Florida���s 12th District, released the following statement:

���I am deeply disturbed by the incident that occurred at the Bay Pines VA hospital, and even more distressed to learn that staff attempted to cover it up. The report details a total failure on the part of the Department of Veterans' Affairs and an urgent need for greater accountability. Unsurprisingly, not a single VA employee has been fired following this incident, despite a clear lack of concern and respect for the Veteran. The men and women who sacrificed on behalf of our nation deserve better.���

���Not a single VA employee has been fired over this.���

What a shock.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large