VA clinic photos of a filthy patient examining room in Salt Lake City went viral on social media (Twitter photo), prompting an apology from the leaderless Veterans Affairs department after one of the posts was directed to President Donald Trump.
KUTV reported that Army veteran Christopher Wilson arrived for a podiatry appointment at the VA clinic on April 5 and, after waiting 45 minutes, was placed in an exam room with debris on floor. A thick white fluid covered the sink, dripped down cabinets and splattered on the floor. The garbage can overflowed. Cutting tools and a soda cup littered the counter and medical kits were left open on shelves.
"I figured they would say, 'Oh, this room's not clean' and take me somewhere else, but they just kind of blew past it, didn't acknowledge it," Wilson told the Deseret News. "They're doctors, right? So I figure one of them was going to say 'Let's go somewhere else' or 'Give us a minute to clean it,' but nothing."
The veteran, who had served two tours in Iraq, took photos of the disorganized room to show his wife, KUTV said.
Wilson later posted the photos on Facebook and then his father Stephen Wilson took it a step farther by adding the photos to his Twitter account and tagging Trump.
That post went viral as it was retweeted some 15,000 times and commented on more than 2,000 times.
Dr. Karen Gribbin, the VA Salt Lake City's chief of staff told KUTV that she talked with Wilson after the photos were posted and apologized for his experience. Gribbin told the television station that she took details from him to investigate the state of the room.
"I was taken aback by the condition of the room," Gribbin told KUTV. "Mr. Wilson should not have been placed in that room in that condition."
Stephen Wilson said on Twitter that he was happy with the attention the issue was receiving.
The Department of Veterans Affairs endured years of problems under former President Barack Obama that have continued well into Trump’s term. David Shulkin was fired as the holdover secretary via a Trump tweet in March and last week Navy Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson withdrew from his nomination to lead the embattled agency, CNN reported.
Jackson withdrew after allegations about his professional conduct that charged that he was allegedly "abusive" to his colleagues, loosely handled prescription pain medications, and was periodically intoxicated, even once wrecking a government vehicle while drunk, CNN reported.
Jackson had denied the allegations, the network stated.
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