Who gives better care to us veterans? VA Hospital / Clinic or Private / Public Hospitals

Never having used the VA (and with no plans to do so), I can't comment on them.

Now, I did work in a private hospital (owned by Catholic Health Initiatives, CHI) for about a year and a half, so I will give you my viewpoint on what I observed as an employee.

The quality of care in a hospital is dependent on what the "culture" and overall morale of the hospital is like. Many things can effect this, such as the quality of the equipment, the standards in hiring practices, how the senior staff and executive personnel run things, what part of town the hospital is located in, what kind of clientele is being served, etc, etc, etc. Basically, what it boils down to is how much the staff actually CARES about you and what you are currently going through.

If your nurse doesn't care if you live or die, and spends the whole night sitting at her work station shopping for shoes on the internet, you are going to have a bad time. But if your nurse actually does care and is willing to go the extra mile to get you whatever you need, that alone can overcome a lot of other factors. The same applies to other staff members as well.

Now, the factors that impact the quality of care can also vary from one department to the next. If you broke your arm and needed to be seen in the emergency department at my hospital, you were going to receive some of the best care in the world. On the other hand, if you needed to be seen in the psych department... God help you!

Quality may vary, but strictly on a cost basis, IMHO, VA is better.
I have yet to spend even remotely the amount that private health care has cost at the VA...