Veterans seeking care at the Hampton, Va.-based VA Medical Center wait an average of 30.53 days after their preferred appointment time to see a primary care physician, according to The Virginian-Pilot.
That's the longest wait of any VA center in the country and 23.58 days longer than the national average for VA centers. Just four VA clinics nationwide reported wait times over 20 days, according to the report. The second longest wait time is at the Fayetteville, N.C.-based VA clinic, where the wait lasts 28.45 days. Wait times are measured from the preferred time of the appointment to the actual appointment, according to the report.
The Hampton VA Medical Center also has the fourth longest wait for mental health, at 14.7 days, but its wait for specialty physicians has improved to 12.7 days on average.
Hampton VA Director Michael Dunfee told the Pilot the clinic was struggling due to lack of space and challenges recruiting and retaining primary care physicians. The medical center lost nine physicians between June 2013 and December 2014, while demand for services increased 7.5 percent from September 2013-14.
The medical center is actively hiring physicians, Mr. Dunfee said. One was hired already this month, with two more physicians expected by the end of January and seven more in February. Two expansion projects are also underway and expected to add 11 primary care rooms to the medical center's main campus in Hampton and up to 20 more rooms at their Virginia Beach, Va.-based clinic.
Wait times are expected to decrease to about 20 days in six months, Mr. Dunfee told the Pilot.
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