The Veterans Affairs Learners' Perceptions Survey: the foundation for educational quality improvement.

Purpose: The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) supports 8,700 resident positions nationally to enhance quality of care for veterans and to educate physicians.

The VA National Quality Scholars Fellowship Program: current status, future directions.

The National Quality Scholars Fellowship Program has been highly successful in recruiting excellent fellows for training in process improvement and quality principles. Opportunities for improvement include improved communication with facility personnel and closer alignment with local improvement needs. Retention/recruitment of these skilled physicians and creation of a network of trained Veterans Affairs (VA) physicians are newly articulated goals.

Thalidomide therapy for cicatricial pemphigoid.

Cicatricial pemphigoid is a chronic, presumed autoimmune, blistering disease of the mucous membranes and occasionally of the skin. The characteristic feature is scarring at the sites of healing. We report the use of thalidomide as a therapeutic agent to control previously resistant disease.