H
Harry Hope
Guest
A recent investigation by the Government Accountability Office found
that just 22 percent of U.S. troops returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan who showed signs of PTSD were being referred by Pentagon
health care providers for mental health evaluation, citing
inconsistent and subjective standards in determining when treatment
was needed.
From The Associated Press, 5/4/07:
http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,134577,00.html
Health Care System Puts Troops at Risk
Associated Press
WASHINGTON -
The military is putting already-strained troops at greater risk of
mental health problems because of repeated deployments to Iraq and
Afghanistan, a Pentagon panel said Thursday in warning of an
overburdened health system.
Issuing an urgent warning, the Defense Department's Task Force on
Mental Health chaired by Navy Surgeon General Donald Arthur said more
than one-third of troops and veterans currently suffer from problems
such as traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder.
With an escalating Iraq war, those numbers are expected to worsen, and
current staffing and money for military health care won't be able to
meet the need, the group said in a preliminary report released
Thursday.
"The system of care for psychological health that has evolved in
recent decades is not sufficient to meet the needs of today's forces
and their beneficiaries, and will not be sufficient to meet the needs
in the future," the 14-member group says.
Branding Pentagon policies overly conservative and out-of-date, the
task force called for more money and a fundamental shift in treatment
to focus on prevention and screening - rather than simply relying on
soldiers to come forward on their own.
It cited a significant stigma in which soldiers believe they would be
ridiculed or their careers damaged if they were to acknowledge having
problems.
The four-page summary of findings, which will be incorporated in a
final report to Defense Secretary Robert Gates in June, comes amid
renewed attention on troop and veterans care following recent
disclosures of shoddy outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical
Center.
The task force found 38 percent of Soldiers and 31 percent of Marines
report psychological concerns such as traumatic brain injury and
post-traumatic stress disorder after returning from deployment.
Among members of the National Guard, the figure is much higher - 49
percent - with numbers expected to grow because of repeated
deployments.
In recent weeks, several U.S. senators have pointed to problems in the
Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs' mental health care,
citing the Army's Fort Carson in Colorado where some troops have said
their pleas for mental health care went unanswered or were met with
ridicule.
In its report, the task force - which visited 38 military bases in the
four armed services within the past year - underscored many of the
lawmakers' fears.
Without citing specific examples, it said soldiers too often don't
seek the care they need.
Care for family members also needed improvement, the report said.
Many base mental health programs have had to limit their practices to
active-duty military, shutting family members out or forcing them to
try to access civilian providers through the cooperative program known
as Tricare.
But in many places, the list of Tricare providers is small, inadequate
or even incorrect.
Both the VA and the Pentagon in recent weeks have acknowledged a need
to improve mental health treatment.
Jan Kemp, a VA associate director for education who works on mental
health, has estimated there are up to 1,000 suicides a year among
veterans within the VA system, and as many as 5,000 a year among all
living veterans.
A recent investigation by the Government Accountability Office found
that just 22 percent of U.S. troops returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan who showed signs of PTSD were being referred by Pentagon
health care providers for mental health evaluation, citing
inconsistent and subjective standards in determining when treatment
was needed.
__________________________________________________
Shows ya how much Bush gives a **** about our troops.
Harry
that just 22 percent of U.S. troops returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan who showed signs of PTSD were being referred by Pentagon
health care providers for mental health evaluation, citing
inconsistent and subjective standards in determining when treatment
was needed.
From The Associated Press, 5/4/07:
http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,134577,00.html
Health Care System Puts Troops at Risk
Associated Press
WASHINGTON -
The military is putting already-strained troops at greater risk of
mental health problems because of repeated deployments to Iraq and
Afghanistan, a Pentagon panel said Thursday in warning of an
overburdened health system.
Issuing an urgent warning, the Defense Department's Task Force on
Mental Health chaired by Navy Surgeon General Donald Arthur said more
than one-third of troops and veterans currently suffer from problems
such as traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder.
With an escalating Iraq war, those numbers are expected to worsen, and
current staffing and money for military health care won't be able to
meet the need, the group said in a preliminary report released
Thursday.
"The system of care for psychological health that has evolved in
recent decades is not sufficient to meet the needs of today's forces
and their beneficiaries, and will not be sufficient to meet the needs
in the future," the 14-member group says.
Branding Pentagon policies overly conservative and out-of-date, the
task force called for more money and a fundamental shift in treatment
to focus on prevention and screening - rather than simply relying on
soldiers to come forward on their own.
It cited a significant stigma in which soldiers believe they would be
ridiculed or their careers damaged if they were to acknowledge having
problems.
The four-page summary of findings, which will be incorporated in a
final report to Defense Secretary Robert Gates in June, comes amid
renewed attention on troop and veterans care following recent
disclosures of shoddy outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical
Center.
The task force found 38 percent of Soldiers and 31 percent of Marines
report psychological concerns such as traumatic brain injury and
post-traumatic stress disorder after returning from deployment.
Among members of the National Guard, the figure is much higher - 49
percent - with numbers expected to grow because of repeated
deployments.
In recent weeks, several U.S. senators have pointed to problems in the
Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs' mental health care,
citing the Army's Fort Carson in Colorado where some troops have said
their pleas for mental health care went unanswered or were met with
ridicule.
In its report, the task force - which visited 38 military bases in the
four armed services within the past year - underscored many of the
lawmakers' fears.
Without citing specific examples, it said soldiers too often don't
seek the care they need.
Care for family members also needed improvement, the report said.
Many base mental health programs have had to limit their practices to
active-duty military, shutting family members out or forcing them to
try to access civilian providers through the cooperative program known
as Tricare.
But in many places, the list of Tricare providers is small, inadequate
or even incorrect.
Both the VA and the Pentagon in recent weeks have acknowledged a need
to improve mental health treatment.
Jan Kemp, a VA associate director for education who works on mental
health, has estimated there are up to 1,000 suicides a year among
veterans within the VA system, and as many as 5,000 a year among all
living veterans.
A recent investigation by the Government Accountability Office found
that just 22 percent of U.S. troops returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan who showed signs of PTSD were being referred by Pentagon
health care providers for mental health evaluation, citing
inconsistent and subjective standards in determining when treatment
was needed.
__________________________________________________
Shows ya how much Bush gives a **** about our troops.
Harry
