The damning internal report that effectively ended Eric Shinseki 's tumultuous tenure as Veteran Affairs secretary describes in the starkest terms the systemic failures of a system charged with providing medical care to America 's veterans . `` Of the 216 site audit reports , many were flagged for further review because of concerns identified by the site audit team about questionable scheduling practices , signaling a systemic lack of integrity within some Veterans Health Administration facilities , '' the audit summary says . Shinseki went to the White House on Friday morning to present Obama with the audit findings . The first phase of the audit looked at scheduling and access management practices from May 12 to 16 at Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers and large community-based outpatient clinics serving at least 10,000 veterans , the audit says . That 's 138 VA medical centers encompassing 216 sites -- a total of 258 separate points of access to medical care and more than 2,100 scheduling staff . An additional audit will cover all remaining VA facilities -- suggesting that the scandal could grow . `` Suspected willful misconduct will be reported promptly to the Office of Inspector General , '' the audit said . `` Where the OIG chooses not to immediately investigate , management will launch either a formal fact finding or administrative investigation . Where misconduct is confirmed , appropriate personnel actions will be pursued promptly . '' Obama on Friday announced the resignation of his only Veterans Affairs secretary after meeting with Shinseki to discuss the growing scandal involving long waits for care at VA hospitals . Calls for Shinseki 's resignation increased in recent days from the across the political spectrum -- Republicans and Democrats as well as veterans ' advocacy groups . The problems gained prominence after CNN began reporting problems at VA facilities in November . The audit said it was `` a rapidly deployed , systemwide assessment '' of scheduling and `` not intended as a formal investigation of individual staff or managers . '' The audit teams were not able to interview all employees , and `` time did not allow assessment of intent or potential culpability . '' The next phase will include smaller clinic sites and anonymous Web surveys . Still , the initial findings were deemed `` a strong basis for immediate action , '' audit said . The findings included : . • Efforts to meet the needs of veterans and clinicians led to an `` overly complicated scheduling process that resulted in high potential to create confusion among scheduling clerks and front-line supervisors . '' • Meeting a 14-day wait-time performance target for new appointments was `` simply not attainable given the ongoing challenge of finding sufficient provider slots to accommodate a growing demand for services . Imposing this expectation on the field before ascertaining required resources ... represent an organizational leadership failure . '' • Of scheduling staff surveyed , 13 % said they received instruction to enter in the `` Desired Date '' field a date different from the one requested . The survey did not determine whether this was done `` through lack of understanding or mal-intent unless it was clearly apparent . '' • In some cases , `` pressures were placed on schedulers to utilize inappropriate practices in order to make Waiting Times appear more favorable . Such practices are sufficiently pervasive to require VA re-examine its entire Performance Management system and , in particular , whether current measures and targets for access are realistic or sufficient . '' The VA 's audit of all remaining sites is scheduled to be completed in early June . Read the VA audit report . Part of the review will be to determine how performance goals were conveyed `` across the chain of command such that some front-line , middle , and senior managers felt compelled to manipulate VA scheduling processes , '' the audit said . It added , `` The overarching environment and culture which allowed this state of practice to take root must be confronted head-on if VA is to evolve to be more capable of adjusting systems , leadership , and resources to meet the needs of Veterans and families . It must also be confronted in order to regain the trust of the Veterans VA serves . '' The audit said the VA will `` ensure that managers and staff engaging in undesired practices are held accountable . '' `` We do n't have time for distractions , '' Obama said in announcing Shinseki 's resignation . `` We need to fix the problem . '' The VA 's troubled history . What Obama is looking for in next VA chief .
Internal audit of what 's happening in VA system effectively ends Eric Shinseki 's job . Audit cites `` questionable scheduling practices '' signaling `` a systemic lack of integrity '' Additional audit will cover all remaining VA facilities , suggesting scandal could grow . Report : VA to ensure those `` engaging in undesired practices are held accountable ''