Strategic Goal: Provide One VA world-class service to veterans and their families through the effective management of people, technology, processes, and financial resources. VA will operate as a veteran-focused organization that provides high quality, accessible, and timely information and service through the development and maintenance of a high-performing workforce, the application of state-of-the-art technologies, the continuous improvement of processes, and the effective allocation of dollars.

Objective: Improve VA’s overall governance and operational management, and access to benefits and services to meet or exceed the expectations of veterans and their families, while ensuring full compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and financial commitments.

VA will obtain continual feedback from the general veteran population on their satisfaction with service through surveys, focus groups, complaint handling, direct inquiry and comment cards. This feedback is used to build a database on what customers expect and provides information that can be used to revise performance goals and identify areas for improvement. As appropriate, specific groups of customers -- such as Gulf War veterans, minority veterans, and women veterans--are surveyed to determine their special needs and levels of satisfaction. VISNs continue to implement strategies geared to improving patient satisfaction by creating CBOCs, opening weekend clinics, employing case managers, building permanent clinic screening teams, and making infrastructure improvements such as a VISN-wide Guest Services Program. VA seeks input from veterans service organizations to improve access, quality of care, and veteran satisfaction.

Achievement of this goal is not directly dependent on other agencies.

There are no major management challenges that will affect achievement of this performance goal.

The source of these data is the National Performance Data Resource Center (NPDRC) surveys of individual veterans. The annual surveys consist of samples of inpatients and outpatients responding to a question asking them to rate their care on a scale from poor to excellent. An annual report is available on VISN performance. The validity and reliability of the findings are ensured by a research team using standard survey methodologies.

(For additional information on this performance goal, refer to Medical Programs, Volume 2, Chapter 2.)