New director for troubled Atlanta VA hospital
DECATUR, Ga. -- The Atlanta VA hospital may be the most dysfunctional
hospital in town. Leslie Wiggins now has the daunting job of leading
it. She will oversee a facility that has a patient load of more than
89,000 veterans -- and a staff of nearly three thousand.
"This is a public trust we have. We are taking care of our nation's
heroes," Wiggins said at a news conference during her first day on the
job Monday. She transferred from her job as COO at the Detroit VA Medical Center.
Wiggins leads a hospital that took a two-fisted beating from government auditors just last month.
Two inspector general reports cited mismanagement of the facility for
the suicides of three mental health patients. The investigation
criticized long wait times for mental health patients. It said the
facility sometimes lost track of patients, and failed to control
contraband.
