Nine of 10 have mental disorders. Two of every three suffer from PTSD, and 40% suffer from traumatic brain injury. Nine of 10 are on 100% disability. Four of five also suffer from diseases of the nervous system, and diseases of …
Traumatic Brain Injury
Scapegoating Doctors
This is a hard post to write. It is with deep sadness and conflicted feelings that I have learned about the controversy on PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) diagnoses at Madigan Army Medical Center. I want to defend my former …
They Don’t Seem to Get Better…
That might be one conclusion to be drawn from this wrenching chart in a new Congressional Budget Office report on how the Department of Veterans Affairs is handling wounded troops suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. The chart shows that nearly all the troops afflicted with both ailments remain …
Chiarelli: A True Model for Future Military Leaders
General Peter Chiarelli retired three weeks ago. He was the Vice Chief of Staff (VCSA) of the U.S. Army, which means the service’s second most powerful general with four stars, his only boss being the Chief of Staff of the Army. …
The Pentagon’s New IED Report: Impressively Expressed Dawdling
IEDs are an interesting tool of war: they have accounted for nearly half of the U.S. KIAs in recent years, and their very simplicity is an erect middle finger to U.S. military might and technological prowess. The Pentagon’s Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization has just issued its Counter-Improvised Explosive Device …
The PTSD Hand Grenade
PTSD is another kind of explosive often brought to you by the U.S. military, especially after a decade of war by the same troops over and over again. No, the Army didn’t break due to those rigors like many thought it would, but some individual troops were not so lucky. Diagnosing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder isn’t as easy as …
Oops!
Thanks, General Chiarelli
Tuesday marks the final day in uniform for General Pete Chiarelli, the Army’s vice chief of staff. As the service’s No.2 officer, he has been the key driver on fighting to reduce the mental toll of the nation’s wars on its …
The Army Venn Diagram from Hell
Buried on page 43 of the Army’s 196-page mental health study released last week is this striking illustration, about which the Army notes:
“Numerous co‐occurring physical and behavioral health issues can share common manifestations and symptoms, which further complicate diagnosis and treatment of any one health issue, let …
Getting Disability Pay to the Vets Who Need it
The Department of Veterans Affairs’ inspector general is out with a report assessing how well the VA’s regional office in White River Junction, Vt., does when it comes to awarding disability pay to vets:
True, it’s only a half-million dollars in over-payments. But when you extrapolate that sum – White River Junction is …
Taking the ‘D’ Out of P.T.S.D.
Ever since Battleland raised this issue with then-top-Army doc Lieut. General Peter Schoomaker four years ago, there’s been a whirring debate over changing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder to Post-Traumatic Stress, or some other less-stigmatizing label. The logic is pretty simple: in the nooks and crannies of our brains where bad …
On War and Faith
So of all the elements that can cushion a soldier’s return to civilian life from Afghanistan and Iraq, what’s the most important? Well, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center, it’s a soldier’s faith, or …
Thanks, Doc
Wednesday is the final day in office for the Army’s surgeon general, Lieutenant General Eric Schoomaker. He became the Army’s top doctor four years ago this month. He got the slot after helping improve conditions at the (now …