Patient travel to the Loma Linda VA Health Care System, pictured here, from the Barstow Veterans Home is one of several issues touched on by CalVet’s ongoing 2021 Barstow Report. (Photo: www.lomalinda.va.gov)
The California Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for input from veterans in San Bernardino County and veterans service organizations on how to improve operations at the Barstow Veterans Home, according to an internal stakeholder email.
CalVet’s 2021 Barstow Report, which was originally published Feb. 1, currently provides data for several new policies and general improvements it will deliver to the California Legislature later this year. Among them is a “plan that ensures no residents of the home are involuntarily discharged without being provided alternate placement options,” “options for expansion of the home’s skilled nursing facility,” as well as plans for continued operations should the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic worsen.
More notably, the report also references an “option for full closure of the home” but does not elaborate on the context. However, the report also says that it is not intended to relay “specific recommendations for the future of the Barstow Home.” Instead, it is only meant to supply policymakers with actionable data.
CalVet previously reached out to VSOs like the California American Legion last September to discuss ongoing issues affecting the veteran community in Barstow. The meeting revealed that CalVet has a shortage of backup vendors in the area that supply “supplemental services” like psychiatric treatment and does not possess data relating to the number of veterans in the county whose needs are not being met. It is currently unclear if either of these issues will be addressed by CalVet and the California Legislature once the final review is submitted.
Currently, the Barstow Veterans Home can house 220 veterans. Regular medical treatment is provided by Jerry L Pettis Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Loma Linda, another point of contention for some veterans in the VSO stakeholder meeting. Concerned parties note that the travel time between the Barstow Veterans Home and the medical center in Loma Linda may be inaccurately portrayed, possibly to the detriment of patients.
CalVet notes that stakeholders can offer their input here: stakeholderinput@calvet.ca.gov.
Author: Christian Southards
Coming from a family with a proud military background and wanting to contribute his writing skills to a worthy cause, Christian began writing for the California American Legion in August of 2020. His father is a 25-year Army Veteran and his grandfather served in the Navy during Vietnam.