Nurses trusted to care for our wounded warriors

By Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs– May 11, 2011

Lt. Col. Rebecca Giese

Lead Nurse Case Manager, Wisconsin Army National Guard

Its National Nurses Week – celebrating nurses and all they do.  I’ve been a nurse for more than 20 years and while I enjoy all types of nursing, I am humbly honored to serve our wounded – the Soldiers who have given so much for our nation.

I’ve been a nurse case manager for wounded Soldiers since 2004 — first with the community-based Warrior transition unit, and then with the Wisconsin Army National Guard. There are currently six of us with Health System Services, or HSS, at Joint Force Headquarters in Madison. We work with Soldiers dealing with medical or mental health issues that affect their physical fitness, military performance and deployment status.After Soldiers are identified and assigned a case manager, we help gather medical documentation to generate military profiles that will give them the time and conditions to heal and prepare for Army physical fitness tests. We help coordinate care at VA hospitals, VA clinics and civilian health care providers covered by TRICARE, and we routinely provide emotional support and medical advice.

We’ve helped with thousands of issues and advocate for approximately 600 Soldiers on a regular basis who are having medical and/or mental health issues. We maintain contact with the Soldiers and their unit representatives to assist with their recovery. We help the state surgeon determine military retention eligibility, and we help Soldiers who no longer meet retention standards with their physical disability evaluation boards.

We do our part to ensure that our deploying Soldiers are as fit and healthy as they can be — they represent Wisconsin, and it’s our job to ensure their medical readiness. It’s gratifying to see units deploy overseas and do a great job. It’s also gratifying to see Soldiers overcome severe medical issues to deploy again. Not every Soldier succeeds in this — it’s tough when medical issues prevent a Soldier from deploying with his or her unit.

I enlisted in the National Guard at age 17, and deployed as a combat medic in Desert Storm. After coming home from that deployment, I became a licensed practical nurse and then a registered nurse. I’ve performed numerous duties in various settings as a nurse, but I get the greatest satisfaction working with Soldiers. It’s my way of helping the war effort.

Have you gotten the help you need?