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DAYTON — The Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center ranks among the worst of the nation's 146 VA facilities for patient satisfaction and last among six VA medical facilities in Ohio for employee satisfaction, according to U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs surveys obtained by the Dayton Daily News.

Those findings surprised Dave Nielsen, who represents members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars treated at the Dayton VA.

"I'm sure you would have no trouble finding stories out there that are good and bad," he said. "I'm a satisfied customer myself."

But Brett Anderson, the Ohio Nurses Association representative for the nursing staff at the Dayton VA, said the findings tap into long-simmering issues at the Dayton facility. The nurses at the Dayton VA "work very, very hard, and they're not very satisfied," Anderson said.

A 2006 patient survey found that the Dayton VA ranked 116th out of 146 VA facilities nationwide in satisfaction with inpatient care, with 73.1 percent of responding patients saying it was either very good or excellent. In outpatient services, the Dayton VA ranked 137th out of 146, with 70.9 percent if respondents saying their care was either very good or excellent.

Top areas of concern included pay, supervision, senior management, promotion opportunities and work conditions.