The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is in Miami to get to the bottom (no pun intended) of the case of the unsanitized colonoscopy machines.

After discovering that colonoscopy equipment at the Miami Veterans Affairs hospital was not properly sanitized -- possibly exposing thousands of veterans to hepatitis or HIV -- the DVA has ordered all colonoscopies  suspended until an investigation to determine the cause has been completed.

''Was it human error? If it was, there could be potential disciplinary action,'' department spokesperson Katie Roberts told the Herald in response to the discovery that the equipment was simply rinsed after every use, not sterilized.

The review of equipment in Miami was spurned by similar, previous issues at VA hospitals in Tennessee and Georgia. The company that makes the equipment used in the MVA hospital, Olympus America, had issued an alert in February that some users (later identified as the Tennessee hospital) were misassembling the equipment and failing to clean it between uses, increasing the chance of hazardous situations.

'There are manufacturers' recommendations about how things should be handled," Miami VA chief of staff Dr. John Vara stated at a press conference earlier this week. "Not infrequently in healthcare it may not be implemented in quite that way.''

Charles Buford, founder and senior director of Miami-based Make-a-Wish Veterans, told the Miami Herald he has heard from several members who are affected. He said they are worried but at the same time convinced that the VA will conduct a thorough investigation.

''Generally speaking we believe the VA facilities are the best the nation have to offer, and we believe this VA is among the best of VA hospitals. But we will stay on top of this to make sure that investigators find an answer,'' Buford said.

In the meantime, the Florida chapter of Veterans of Foreign Wars is urging any members who have had a colonoscopy in the past five years to get blood work done.