PEMBROKE, N.H. – The regional director for veterans hospitals across New England is facing criticism for his role in problems at the Manchester VA Medical Center.

The House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation held a field hearing in Pembroke on Monday, two months after a Boston Globe report highlighted allegations of substandard conditions and treatment at the hospital.

U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., right, and U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., center, listen to Secretary of Veterans Affairs David J. Shulkin during a visit to the Veterans Administration Medical Center in, Manchester, N.H., in August. Some doctors at the center have alleged substandard care at New Hampshire's only hospital for veterans. Associated Press/Charles Krupa

The panel’s chairman, Republican Jack Bergman of Michigan, said he’s concerned not just about longstanding leadership failures and other deficiencies in Manchester, but a lack of urgency at the regional office to fix them. Dr. Michael Mayo-Smith, the regional director, said officials are committed to understanding what went wrong and what procedures need to change.

Bergman was joined by Democrat Annie Kuster, the subcommittee’s ranking member, and New Hampshire’s Democratic U.S. senators.

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