Philadelphia VA New Employees Not Trained in Suicide Prevention?

Seven VA Hospitals Flagged on Veteran Suicide
San Diego, Philadelphia, other facilities falling short on best practices
Free Beacon
Morgan Chalfant
February 4, 2016

In total, six of the VA medical centers evaluated since September did not meet requirements for training employees in suicide prevention or risk management. Three facilities, like the Philadelphia hospital, also did not properly execute all suicide prevention plans.

Multiple Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities across the country have been flagged in recent months for insufficiencies in their programs to prevent veteran suicides.

In the last five months, seven VA hospitals have been the subject of reports produced by the agency’s inspector general that highlighted insufficient employee training, patient monitoring, and safety planning in their respective suicide prevention programs.

The inspector general found fault with facilities in Butler, Pennsylvania; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Columbus, Ohio; San Diego, California; Honolulu, Hawaii; Anchorage, Alaska; and Manchester, New Hampshire.

The Philadelphia VA hospital was the site of a reported veteran suicide in November. The review of the Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center in Philadelphia was completed about a month before a disabled veteran allegedly jumped to his death from a parking garage after seeking psychiatric treatment.

According to the Jan. 14 inspector general report, the vast majority of new employees at the Philadelphia hospital were not trained in suicide prevention or suicide risk management within the required time frame. Fourteen of 15 employees did not undergo suicide prevention training within a year of being hired, hospital records indicated.
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WWII Veteran Scared Ax Carrying Burglar at 92!

92-year-old WWII veteran scares off ax-wielding would-be burglar, authorities say 
Los Angeles Times Veronica Rocha February 2, 2016

“I let off a shot and he took off,” Milspaugh told the news station with a laugh. “He left his ax. He left his hat and everything else after that.”

A 92-year-old homeowner armed with a handgun fired a shot and scared off an ax-wielding man trying to break into his San Jacinto residence Sunday, authorities said. World War II veteran Joseph Milspaugh told KNBC-TV he heard a noise coming from his backdoor and quickly armed himself with his handgun. 

When he went to investigate he saw a man smashing an ax through one of his windows. read more here

‘Full Frontal with Samantha Bee’ and GI Janes

‘Full Frontal with Samantha Bee’ to Spotlight Women Veterans 
Variety 
Jackie Maffucci 
Guest Columnist 
FEBRUARY 3, 2016 

In the premiere episode of TBS’ new late night talk show, “Full Frontal,” Samantha Bee investigates how the Veterans Administration will be prepared for the needs of women, given that combat jobs will now be open to them. Guest columnist Dr. Jackie Maffucci offers her perspective on the needs of women in the service, and how they’re treated once they leave active duty.

As a kid, the military was a mystery to me. Service members were embodied by a cartoon and and an action figure: GI Joe. It’s only now that, after working for nearly a decade as a civilian in the military and veteran communities, I’m led to ask, what about GI Jane?

To this day, as a nation, we don’t see women as combat veterans. We only see GI Joe. And yet, the military is at its most diverse point, with women as the fastest growing population both in service and in the veteran community. 

They comprise nearly 20 percent of new recruits, 15 percent of the 1.4 million active duty force, and 18 percent of the 850,000 reserve component. In 2003, they represented six percent of the veteran population; today, they represent 10 percent. 

So what about GI Jane? Why do we still refuse to see her, to support her and acknowledge the sacrifices that she’s made for this country?
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USS Butler WWII Veteran Finally Receives Purple Heart

WWII veteran awarded Purple Heart 70 years after battle 
CNN 
By Amanda Jackson 
February 2, 2016 

(CNN)Ninety-year-old Frederick Stone, a former Navy petty officer from New York, received the Purple Heart on Sunday, more than 70 years after the World War II battle where he gave his heroic service.

A Purple Heart medal is awarded to those service members who were killed or injured while serving.

In 1945, Stone was injured in battle while aboard the destroyer USS Butler off the island of Okinawa, Japan.

Although he was injured, Stone helped his fellow serviceman who was seriously wounded get to safety. After helping, Stone returned to his post.

Stone still has shrapnel embedded in his back, according to CNN affiliate News 12 Long Island.
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Chicago Marine 7 Marathons for Chattanooga Slain Servicemembers

CHICAGO MARINE FINISHES 7 MARATHONS IN 7 DAYS ON 7 CONTINENTS - WITH RECORD TIME
ABC News Chicago
By Ravi Baichwal
Wednesday, February 03, 2016

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A U.S. Marine from Chicago is back home after a whirlwind global tour with an athletic twist that might take a moment or two to sink in.

Daniel Cartica added more than 180 miles to his trip in one of the hardest ways you could imagine: seven marathons in seven days on seven continents.

Starting Saturday, January 23, day one was at Union Pass, Antarctica. From the icy course there, he hop-scotched the world to six other continents, finally finishing his amazing feat in Australia last Friday - and Cartica won the World Marathon Challenge in record time.

His trip around the world started at its bottom, Antarctica, then it was on to the Americas, over to Europe, down to Africa, across to the Middle East, then Down Under. Leading the pack in Antarctica was Cartica, a Marine who teaches at Northwestern University.

"I am always a guy who is trying to get out of his comfort zone," Cartica said.

That meant paying $23,000 for the chance to join a club more exclusive than Mount Everest climbers or the astronaut corps. After finishing, it was back into the group's Russian transport, where what little rest was to be gotten before the next marathon - in Punta Arenas, Chile.

"I wanted to do something for those family members of the servicemen that were killed," he said.

They were the five men who died in Chattanooga, Tenn., last July when they were ambushed by an armed gunman motivated, according to the FBI, by "foreign terrorist organization propaganda."
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