I knew where every single armored brigade and division and mechanized infantry brigade and division of the Iraqi Army and Iraqi Republican Guard was located as we commenced operations during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.

My team, based at U.S. Central Command forward headquarters in Qatar, used all available assets to locate the enemy: geospatial and imagery intelligence, signals intelligence, human intelligence, allied reports and other indicators.

That was my job as the deputy team chief for Iraqi Ground Forces at USCENTCOM’s Joint Intelligence Center. My team would convey that information to our operators so they could take swift and decisive action. We would review all possible reporting, process that data, then exploit it to ensure the best outcomes for our coalition troops.

What my USCENTCOM intelligence team did in the Middle East is not all that different than what my VA team does for veterans.

We use reports from independent agencies, gather input from employees, and cross-check that with survey results and feedback from veterans so that we can, similarly, take swift and decisive action.

Allow me to “vet-splain” this to my readers, using our VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System as an example.

Our dedication to constant improvement is supported by VA’s critical, and necessary, independent oversight partners such as VHA’s Office of the Medical Inspector (OMI) and VA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), who audit and investigate our VA sites to ensure the highest standards of integrity, professionalism and accountability.

Last month, VA OIG published a couple of reports identifying areas for improvement.

It’s difficult to acknowledge that we let somebody down. That “somebody” is my fellow veteran, or one of my colleagues who has dedicated their profession to serving our veteran community. We need to recognize each instance and acknowledge each decision when we should have done better because the only thing worse is not admitting it at all.

And just like at the Joint Intelligence Center, we at VA will always seize upon good intel! Any OIG findings will be used to improve outcomes for the veterans we serve. At VA we’re not perfect — and we don’t claim to be. However, we are committed to identifying — then correcting — areas where veterans are not receiving the very best health care. Our goal is not just to provide the best veteran care in VA, but to provide the best veteran care in the country.

This acceptance of review is what my boss likes to call “fearless accountability.” Simply put, we’re not afraid of independent review. In fact, we welcome it because it helps us get better, it improves patient safety, and it elevates our outcomes. We’re certainly not going to achieve perfect scores during every review, but we’ll use the results to continue to make advancements.

Compared to the other 171 VA health care systems nationwide, it is evident that results of evaluations, surveys and investigations clearly demonstrate a health care team committed to ensuring excellence here in eastern Colorado.

In 2023, Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center was one of the 67% of VA hospitals to receive either four or five stars from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in overall quality measures and patient survey ratings. Comparatively, only 41% of non-VA hospitals received similar ratings.

VA Eastern Colorado is the fifth-best VA health care system in the nation for veteran’s positive perceptions of their hospital care, ranking in the 97th percentile.

VA Eastern Colorado is the 15th-best VA health care system in the nation for coordinating between inpatient and outpatient care, ranking in the 91st percentile.

I could go on, but I’ll stop there. This data shows that VA Eastern Colorado providers do an excellent job keeping people out of the hospital, and when they are admitted, they have very positive outcomes.

Trust among our veteran patients has risen to 90%, a 9% increase from 2018, when the VA began surveying veterans. In fact, trust at VA Eastern Colorado has risen the most among the nearly 750,000 eligible veterans we serve at eight health care systems in Colorado, Montana, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming.

Trust ratings are based on a survey of veteran patients who received care in the past 90 days. Within one week of using services, these veterans were asked if they trusted VA for their health care needs across a variety of categories — including scheduling an appointment, health care visits, in-person pharmacy, mail-order pharmacy, labs/imaging and veteran safety. There is no private health care system equivalent.

Pardon the cliché, but don’t take my word for it: Listen to our customers. Nine out of 10 of them are telling us they trust VA for their health care needs.

I realize knowing where enemy tanks are located and understanding assessments of our health care services are two very different things. However, acting based on that analysis is quite similar. With every decision and action we take, we can be a part of a veteran’s healing, strength and the quality of their life.

I assure you that the team at VA Eastern Colorado will not rest on the results of the past but will continue to work toward achieving even better outcomes for our veterans in the future.

Thanks for allowing me to walk alongside you behind friendly lines.

Victory!