Monday, May 19, 2008

Combat PTSD or Adjustment Disorder? Saving Money, Not Lives

Stress Management and Relief

Last year, a firestorm erupted when it was found that 24,000 or
more OEF/OIF veterans had been booted out of the military
with Personality Disorder discharges. PD (once labeled "Section 8")
discharges are a quicker and more cost-efficient way of dealing with
service members who are exhibiting problematic behavior.

The problem, of course, was that some of the discharged were
combat-injured Purple Heart recipients who may have instead been
coping with PTSD, a fact that would allow them access to VA health
care benefits to treat their condition.

This week, we've moved from the military's diagnoses of Personality
Disorder over PTSD to a Texas VAMC PTSD program coordinator
advising that Adjustment Disorder diagnoses should be handed out
over that of PTSD. The reason given? Saving money.

From the Washington Post:
"Given that we are having more and more compensation seeking
veterans, I'd like to suggest that you refrain from giving a diagnosis
of PTSD straight out," Norma Perez wrote in a March 20 e-mail to
mental-health specialists and social workers at the Department of
Veterans Affairs' Olin E. Teague Veterans' Center in Temple, Tex.
Instead, she recommended that they "consider a diagnosis of
Adjustment Disorder." VA staff members "really don't . . . have time
to do the extensive testing that should be done to determine PTSD,"
Perez wrote.

"Adjustment disorder is a less severe reaction to stress than PTSD
and has a shorter duration, usually no longer than six months, said
Anthony T. Ng, a psychiatrist and member of Mental Health America,
a nonprofit professional association.

"Veterans diagnosed with PTSD can be eligible for disability
compensation of up to $2,527 a month, depending on the severity of
the condition, said Alison Aikele, a VA spokeswoman. Those found to
have adjustment disorder generally are not offered such payments,
though veterans can receive medical treatment for either condition. ...

"Veterans Affairs Secretary James B. Peake said in a statement that
Perez's e-mail was "inappropriate" and does not reflect VA policy. It
has been "repudiated at the highest level of our health care organization,"
he said. "VA's leadership will strongly remind all medical staff that trust,
accuracy and transparency is paramount to maintaining our relationships
with our veteran patients," Peake said."

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and VoteVets
released a copy of the email on Thursday.

### of Part One
PART TWO TOMORROW
------------------------------------>

The VA has set up a 24-hour suicide hotline round-the-clock access to mental health professionals. The number is 1-800-273- 8255 (TALK). To learn more about PTSD-- visit the National Center for PTSD website. -----------------------------------> Flashback, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Suicide, and the Lessons of WAR by Penny Coleman

and---> I Can Still Hear Thier Cries, Even In My Sleep... A Journey Into PTSD By E. Everett McFall

Both Books are Available on Amazon.com

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

ILL Gov. Urges Federal VA To Improve Care For Vets with Traumatic Brain Injuries!!!




ILL Gov. Blagojevich urges Federal VA to improve continuation
of care for Vets with traumatic brain injuries. New Federal VA
Inspector General Illinois Warrior Assistance Program
offers 24-hour assistance for Veterans in Illinois through
toll-free helpline at 1-866-554-IWAP (4927)

CHICAGO - Governor Rod R. Blogojevich called on the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs today to improve continuation
of care for Vets with traumatic brain injuries in light of their
Inspector General's report released yesterday finding Veterans
in long term recovery for traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are
not getting the assistance they need. In fact the report found
that Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan with traumatic brain
injuries were receing inadequate follow-up care.


For Veterans in Illinois, the Illinois Warrior Assistance Program
is available and offers 24-hour assistance through a toll-free
helpline for Illinois Veterans suffering from symptoms
associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
or TBI.


"The effects of war remain long after our brave men and women
return home to their families and friends. The U.S. Department
of Veterans Affairs has to do more for the men and women
injured in combat. In Illinois, we are doing everything in our
power to make sure that the people who risked their lives overseas
defending our freedom have the opportunity to lead healthy, stable
lives," said Gov. Blagojevich. "The Illinois Warrior Assistance
Program will help our returning Veterans make the transition from
their tour of duty to everyday life. I am proud that Illinois is the
first state in the nation to develop this type of program, and I hope
to see other states develop similar programs to help our brave
Veterans across the country."

The report found that for Veterans of the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan with TBIs, "long-term case management is not
uniformly provided for these patients, and significant needs
remain unmet." These were the findings even though and earlier
report found that, "specific attention to the long-term needs of
those living with TBI is warranted in part because cognitive and
emotional impairments compromise patients' capacity to seek
help on their own. Unlike other types of injury, brain injury often
causes long lasting emotional difficulties and behavioral problems.
Further, in contrast to amputations and other disabilities, these
problems are often not apparent to casual observers even though
they exact a huge toll on patients and families."


"So many of the men and women serving in the armed forces are
deployed overseas multiple times as the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan continue," said Illinois Department of Veterans'
Affairs Director L. Tammy Duckworth. "We must make sure
that our soldiers returning from combat are able to make the
difficult transition from combat life to civilian life, and the
llinois Warrior Assistance Program provides the assistance
Veterans need to make their daily life easier."

The Illinois Warrior Assistance Program confidential helpline,
1-866-554-IWAP (4927), is available and staffed around
the clock by health professionals to assist Veterans, day or night,
with the symptoms associated with PTSD and to screen for a
possible TBI. Information about the program can also be found at http://www.illinoiswarrior.com/.

The Illinois Warrior Assistance Program provides confidential
assistance for Illinois Veterans as they transition back to their
everyday lives after serving our country. Its goal is to help
service members and their families deal with the emotional
and psychological challenges they may be facing. The program
has three major parts: It offers a 24-hour, toll-free helpline at
1-866-554-IWAP (4927), which is staffed by health
professionals to assist veterans, day or night, with the
symptoms associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD).

It also provides Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) screening to
all interested Illinois veterans over the phone via the helpline
or through the State of Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs
(IDVA) Veteran Service Officers (VSOs).It makes TBI
screenings mandatory for all returning members of the Illinois
Army National Guard and Air National Guard.
----------------------------------->


The VA has set up a 24-hour suicide hotline
round-the-clock access to mental health professionals.
The number is 1-800-273- 8255 (TALK).
To learn more about PTSD-- visit the
National Center for PTSD website.
----------------------------------->
Flashback, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Suicide,
and the Lessons of WAR by Penny Coleman
and--->I Can Still Hear Thier Cries, Even In My Sleep
...A Journey Into PTSD By E. Everett McFall

Both Books are Available on Amazon.com

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

YES, YOU CAN! Online


YES, YOU CAN! Online

by Speedy - Support Veterans
May 13, 2008 11:26 AM EDT


Popular SCI self-care guide now freely available on the web
Washington, DC-YES, YOU CAN!, Paralyzed Veterans of America's
(Paralyzed Veterans) popular self-care guide for people with spinal
cord injury (SCI), is now accessible online for free.
"Making vital self-help information accessible to millions of people
with disabilities, their families and their caregivers is an important
part of Paralyzed Veterans' mission," said Randy L. Pleva, Sr,
National President of Paralyzed Veterans. "Information is power
and Yes, You Can! has helped to empower so many disabled
people by giving them the information they need to help themselves.

Now this essential resource can be accessed by anyone who has a
computer with an Internet connection."
YES, YOU CAN!, A Guide to Self-Care for Persons with Spinal Cord
Injury, is written and edited by experts. This third edition includes
six new chapters on pain, substance abuse, exercise, alternative
medicine, equipment, and staying healthy.

It is the most comprehensive self-care guide for people with SCI,
including newly injured patients in our nation's SCI units and SCI
patients who are out of the hospital. Family members of people with
SCI will also find this a useful resource.
With this online version of YES, YOU CAN!, you'll be able to:
•· Download the book for free
•· Email the book to a friend
•· Take an online tutorial on how to use the book
•· Conduct keyword searches
•· Bookmark any page
•· Print any page
•· Instantly click on dozens of website references
that are all hot-linked
To access YES, YOU CAN! online and to purchase print copies.
please visit http://www.pva.org/.
***************************************************************
Sounds like valiant measures have been taken to ensure betterment
for our paralyzed veterans. I'm so glad to hear this!
Kimberly Ripley, May 13, 2008, 12:05pm EDT

I'm with Kimberly. For years now we haven't done enough for those
who protect us. Any improvement is welcome.
Pamela L., May 13, 2008, 1:13pm EDT

Sometimes "they" attempt to do the right things. Thanks for the info.
Marilyn M., May 13, 2008, 3:19pm EDT
***************************************************************
The VA has set up a 24-hour suicide hotline
round-the-clock access to mental health professionals.
The number is 1-800-273- 8255 (TALK).
To learn more about PTSD-- visit the
------------------------------------>
and the Lessons of WAR by Penny Coleman

...A Journey Into PTSD By E. Everett McFall

Both Books are Available on Amazon.com

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Combating P.T.S.D. and Preventing Suicides

May 10, 2008
By Jennifer Litz Editor




The founders of the new PTSD treatment center in San Angelo,
First Gulf War veteran Steve Olness and paramedic Rosendo
"Rosey" Velez. ( Photo/Sarah Balderas)

Combating P.T.S.D. and Preventing Suicides

One of the most progressive treatment centers for Post Traumatic
Stress Disorders in the country is coming to San Angelo, made
possible by an $80,000 grant from the TRIAD Fund of Permian
Basin Area Foundation. But what’s really special about the new
center at 2607 Johnson Street is not its christening by foundation
funds. The people conducting counseling services there are not your
typical government bureaucratic types. They’re veterans of war,
and even Ground Zero.

Gulf War vet Steve Olness is program manger for veteran’s services
for Mental Health Mental Retardation Services of the Concho Valley.
MHMR will share digs on Johnson Street with Emergency Services
Respite Center to provide care for recently returned soldiers and
other crisis responders suffering from Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder.

“I was in the army in the first Gulf War, and when we came back,
there was nothing like this,” says Olness. “Our war was nothing
like this one, but there was nobody waiting to try to get you used
to civilian life again. Or get you used to peacetime. There wasn’t
anything. We just came back, and a lot of guys who got out of the
military right after that, you got a handshake and goodbye.”
Olness says the soldiers coming back from tours in Iraq and
Afghanistan are going to need lot of help—and so are the military
resources set up to receive them.

“It’s going to be like a tidal wave,” Olness says. “Because some
of these kids are pulling three, four, and five tours over
there. And when you pull an 18-year-old kid fresh out of high
school, send him to training and he goes to a combat area, and
all he knows is what he was taught to do, sometimes that means
he has to take another person’s life. And then he comes back
home, and everyone lauds him as a hero—but he doesn’t feel
like a hero.”

Olness says there’s a stigma to having PTSD. “If a [solider comes
back with] diagnosed PTSD, the military has to pay ‘x’ number
of dollars for the rest of his life,” he says. “It is easier for them
to say, ‘You’re not doing your job; you’re late for formation; I hear
you’ve had problems with your wife . . .’, they take the easy way...
because it’s easier to put him out of the military and give him
limited benefits if any at all.”

Olness says the new program will offer counseling to vets without
the stigma. “If you’re on active duty, you get labeled right away,”
he says. “You don’t want to be the NCO that is in charge of troops
that’s the guy that can’t handle it. He’s done his time in combat, and
now he’s training other troops, and you don’t want to be trained by
a guy who can’t take it.” The program created with TRIAD funds
features counselors and doctors on staff who can see patients and
even prescribe medicine. Many staffers are veterans themselves.

The Problem with the VA

Pat Dugan was a reconnaissance marine corporal in Vietnam for
19 months, starting in 1966. “There’s a big difference between
being a combat person and a non-combat person,” explains Pat
Dugan. “I’m a marine, and I’m proud to be a marine, but I’m
even more proud to be a combat marine.” He’s now a
passionate voice for veteran help that resounds throughout
West Texas. Dugan says the problem with the Department
of Veteran’s Affairs, is that they haven’t delivered on
the promise, such as: the military will take care of you for
your service.

Instead, Dugan, like Olness, paints the picture of a disrespectful,
mainly incompetent VA system. He foresees bad times ahead
for the “kids” currently turning several tours, who will come home
to bureaucratic red tape rather than help from government agencies.


“I am seeing one of the biggest mushroom clouds,” Dugan says of
times ahead for Iraq/Afghanistan veterans. “’Cause I’m thinking,
the public runs around with yellow ribbons on their cars, but what
I don’t see, except with Congressman Ciro Rodriguez (TX-23), is
people realizing that everyone in this war has PTSD. Because there
are no front lines in this war. You can be [in a non-combat service]
and get your butt blown off the road there with anyone else.
Everyone’s sitting around waiting for an explosion to go off, and
they send you back and back for more tours.”

When these vets do come back home—or in between myriad
deployments—they’re still fighting—for their benefits. “In
Del Rio, for example, we’ve got people with problems,”
Dugan says. “And they have to travel 150 miles to get help
[at a VA clinic]. And then when you get up there, I’m not being mean,
but when you go up there and apply to get help, you get some
VA muffin that’s not a veteran, and they put you through mental
gymnastics like you wouldn’t believe. [Vets] don’t want to be
humiliated and go through that process.”

Dugan praises programs like the new MHMR/ESRC building.
He can even name one state agency that does things right—
The Texas Veteran’s Commission, whom he sees as a shining
example for others like it.

“I think the Texas Veteran’s Commission is as fine as any in
the US,” he says. “They treated me with dignity and respect,
talked with me, and took their time with me. They are an
example.” Conversely, Dugan describes nightmarish situations
at Audie Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital and others.
During one visit, Dugan was chastised loudly for allowing an
80-year-old woman on oxygen to cut ahead of him for treatment.
Another time, Dugan was rebuked for offering his Marine Corps
serial number as identification. “We don’t use those anymore, we
only use social security numbers,” an administrator scoffed. But
Dugan says the Corps had taught him to be proud of his serial
number. Everyone has a social security number; Dugan felt he
earned that serial number.

“I was so pissed off, I came home and gave my Jack Russell
Terrier my serial number, so now he’s 2164539USMC,” Dugan
says. “That was my rebuke to the VA.” But not only do many
vets express their feeling that VA administrators, many of who
have never served, lack respect for veterans, they also lack some
basic “industry” knowledge. “One of my friends had a Navy Cross
—it’s the second highest medal awarded, for an extreme act of
heroism,” Dugan says. He walked into the VA, and the lady asked
him [about a combat action ribbon]. She said they didn’t issue those
until ’71, and he had gotten out of the service in ‘69. So she says,
‘Do you have any proof that you saw combat?’ And he said, ‘I got a
Navy Cross, does that count?’ And she said, [thinking is was akin to
a Blue Cross/Blue Shield policy]
‘Did I ask you about your insurance? I asked you about your
Combat Action Ribbon!’ She didn’t even know what a Navy
Cross was. She thought it was insurance.”
------------------------------------>
The VA has set up a 24-hour suicide hotline
round-the-clockaccess to mental health professionals.
The number is 1-800-273- 8255 (TALK).
To learn more about PTSD-- visit the
National Center for PTSD website.
------------------------------------>
Flashback, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Suicide,
and the Lessons of WAR by Penny Coleman
and--->I Can Still Hear Thier Cries, Even In My Sleep...
A Journey Into PTSD By E. Everett McFall
Both Books are Available on Amazon.com
Posted by E. Everett McFall at 10:28 PM

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

1 in 5 Iraq, Afghanistan Vets Suffer PTSD

1 in 5 Iraqi, Afghanistan Vets Suffer PTSD

Published on April 19th, 2008
Posted by Eideard in General

Nearly 20 percent of military service members
who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan —
300,000 in allreport symptoms of post
traumatic stress disorder or major depression, yet only
slightly more than half have sought treatment, according to a new
RAND Corporation study.

In addition, researchers found about 19 percent of returning
service members report that they experienced a possible
traumatic brain injury while deployed, with
7 percent reporting both a probable
brain injury and current PTSD or major depression.

Many service members said they do not seek treatment for
psychological illnesses because they fear it will harm their
careers. But even among those who do seek help for PTSD
or major depression, only about half receive treatment that
researchers consider “minimally adequate” for their illnesses…

“There is a major health crisis facing those men and
women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan,”
said Terri Tanielian, the project’s co-leader and a researcher
at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. “Unless they receive
appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions,
there will be long-term consequences for them and for
the nation. Unfortunately, we found there are many barriers
preventing them from getting the high-quality treatment they
need.”

Another cost of Bush’s War ignored beforehand - and since - by our
grand imperial wizards.

------------------------------------>
The VA has set up a 24-hour suicide hotline round-the-clock
access to mental health professionals.
The number is 1-800-273- 8255 (TALK).
To learn more about PTSD-- visit the
National Center for PTSD website.
------------------------------------>
Flashback, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Suicide,
and the Lessons of WAR by Penny Coleman
and--->
I Can Still Hear Thier Cries, Even In My Sleep...
A Journey Into PTSD By E. Everett McFall
Both Books are Available on Amazon.com