After a report came out in April of 2017 declaring “troubling deficiencies” at the Washington D.C. VA Medical Center, the Medical Director, Brian Hawkins was let go from his position in July. Some of the problems found were related to the storage of sterile supplies and the assurance that recalled equipment and supplies are not used on patients.
After Hawkins appealed his termination, the federal Merit Systems Protection Board ordered him to back to work. Although Hawkins is not currently in a position working with patients, he is on the VA payroll, again, as an administrative employee.
According to a written statement by VA Secretary David Shulkin, “No judge who has never run a hospital and never cared for our nation’s veterans will force me to put an employee back in a position when he allowed the facility to pose potential safety risks to our Veterans.”
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