Army's Discrimination of the Injured

In the past weeks my ears have been flooded with military health care horror stories. I am currently on transition leave and will soon no longer be active duty, but retired. Even though I have put away the uniform and the boots I am still receiving calls and emails about the Army medical system, TRICARE. The conversation usually starts with a junior enlisted Soldier seeking advice hearing tidbits of my own troubles. Two of the biggest complaints that I hear are in reference to PTSD and joint/bone problems.

All Soldiers are possible victims to the emotional stress and demand on the body. What is worse is the medical system all Soldiers returned to. Those Soldiers with injuries that are not visibly apparent tend to take a back seat. If the Soldier can walk and does not have an open wound he/she can wait months to receive a MRI or see a doctor. The first approach the Army takes is to send Joe to Physicians Assistant (PA). The PA typically gives the Soldier some 800mg Ibuprofen and maybe a week or two of a limited duty profile. If the Soldier is persistent enough and goes back to the PA every week complaining of the same pain they may get a 90 day profile form written on a DA3349.

The 90 day profile is key to this experience. The intent is that the Soldier’s leadership will have a better understanding of what limitations should be put in place for the Soldier so they are not further injured. It also serves to protect the Soldier and aid in his/her healing.

The main complaint with a profile is the negative connotation that comes along with having one. At this point in the game the Soldier usually doesn’t have a real diagnosis, they probably haven’t even seen a real doctor yet. The Soldier cannot tell the unit that they have a herniated disk in their spine. Instead they have to say,”it hurts all day and when I wear gear it’s unbearable.” Ultimately it appears the chain of command isn’t concerned with the Soldier’s health; they are worried about number of qualified and unqualified soldiers. Many Soldiers become discouraged at this point. Future promotions are no longer a possibility and evaluation reports are watered down because of the profile. Even though these actions are against Army regulation they unit still finds a way to punish the Soldier for seeking help. The bullying and verbal abuse put forth by the unit serves to make sure the Soldier stops seeking medical care. Typically the Soldier will drive on making the issue worse. They will use home remedies or ignore the pain.

If one continues to seek medical help they will eventually get to make an appointment with an actual doctor. They will see all of the required personal and hopefully come to some diagnosis that treatment plan. Those Soldiers that ignore the pain will eventually be debilitated and forced to go to a doctor out of necessity.

Care for PTSD is run in a similar fashion. When the Soldier seeks medical treatment they are typically ostracized by their unit. The health care they receive is minimal, and typically consists of medication after one 30 minute session. The counseling is typically only given if the Soldier is persistent or given a quick diagnosis. Unfortunately the Army has set itself up to only recognize those Soldiers who have experienced direct fire. If the Soldier has been sexually assaulted, seen others die on base, or contributed to the death of persons by intelligence collection the Army is turning its back.

Recently the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 has passed. This bill is focused on improving Veteran Affairs (VA) health care for women, PTSD patients, and caregiver benefits. Although I appreciate the sentiment and feel the bill is a great step forward; I ask why aren’t we provided better health care while the Soldier is on Active Duty? Wouldn’t we save money by taking care of these health problems at the earliest stage, rather than waiting until a Soldier is completely broken and then medically boarded out of the Army? All of these health care problems are falling into the lap of the VA.

The Army needs to fix their health care system and make sure that all Soldiers are entitled to timely and immediate treatment. Every Soldier in a leadership position needs to treat their Soldiers with respect especially in regards to their health care, and the discrimination of the injured needs to cease.

Read more about the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1987315,00.html#ixzz0qFkNLNce