Dr. Henrike Beate Kroemer, PhD

To any veteran considering an examination with Dr.Kroemer. I write this warning after my own devastating experience. Having read previous accounts of her tendency to jump to conclusions, I hoped my case might be different - it was not. From the first moments of our appointment, I felt treated as an inconvenience rather than a veteran seeking fair evaluation. The examiner's impatient demeanor and dismissive interruptions made clear her priority was speed over understanding. When attempting to describe my service-connected trauma and its ongoing effects, I was met with reductive comments that stripped away all nuance - "Yeah yeah, so you have anxiety" - as if years of suffering could be summarized so simply. The examination became actively harmful when discussing my most vulnerable symptoms. Only after disclosing how our interaction was triggering suicidal thoughts did her tone shift slightly, though the damage was already done. What should have been a clinical assessment instead… became another traumatic event to process. Most concerning was her pattern of forming conclusions before hearing complete explanations. Repeated attempts to clarify my history and diagnoses were overridden by her assumptions. The VA's own guidelines require examiners to conduct "thorough and compassionate" evaluations - this was neither. I cannot in good conscience recommend this examiner to any veteran, particularly those who: - Struggle to discuss their trauma - Have difficulty asserting themselves in clinical settings - Are currently in fragile mental states The risk of further psychological harm is simply too great. Veterans deserve assessors who approach these sensitive evaluations with professionalism and basic human empathy - qualities entirely absent here. Until the VA addresses such conduct, I urge fellow service members to request alternative examiners whenever possible. To the VA administration: This is not how we care for those who have borne the battle. When an examiner's conduct leaves veterans more distressed than when they arrived, the system has failed at its most fundamental level.