Expanding Lynn VA clinic meets hike in demand
By David Liscio / The Daily Item
LYNN - With ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and baby boomers who fought in the Vietnam War now reaching retirement age with medical needs, the Veterans' Administration clinic on Boston Street is a busy place.
The clinic recently underwent a major expansion, increasing in size from 1,900 to nearly 8,000 square feet. A ribbon-cutting was held last month.
According to Arthur Salkins, 64, of Lynn, a U.S. Air Force veteran and commander of Franco-AMVETS Post 161, the clinic had 900 registered patients when it opened in 1998. Today, there are 2,143, said Salkins, who counts himself among them.
"Lynn has the highest number of veterans of any community in Essex County," he said Wednesday. "That's why this location is so important."
Michael Sweeney, the city veterans' agent, explained the expansion required gutting the first floor. "It was worth it and work is still under way in some parts of the building," he said. "The clinic provides a level of comfort. It's close by, so there's easy access. For some of the young returning veterans, that may make the difference of whether they come in for services or not."
U.S. Rep. John F. Tierney, a Salem Democrat and longtime proponent of the clinic, said the five-year fight during the Bush Administration to keep the facility in Lynn paid off. "We were able to convince them not to consolidate the clinic. Their proposals didn't stand up to what the actual facts were," he said Wednesday. "
read more here
Expanding Lynn VA clinic meets hike in demand
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Murder in Tampa studied by Russian President Medvedev?
This is a National Security issue but the US media have other things to report on.
Julie Schenecker admitted killing her two children in Tampa. There have been a lot of cases in the US and around the world like this but what could have been so important about this case that the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences had to prepare a report for President Medvedev?
This case not only involves this but an Army Colonel with US Central Command. The report prepared by the academy also took a look at the drugs being used like Zoloft, Prozac, Paxil and Cymbalta.
Why Medvedev is so interested in this case? Is he interested in the mental health of our military? Looking for ways to avoid it happening to his military? What is really behind this interest?
In a way it makes our own media a disgrace when they can focus in on topics for days leaving no time for real reporting on stories like this. It is a shame that Russia would be taking a harder look at all of this than our own media does. Issues with these drugs has been reported in print media for years with little being done about any of it. A few minutes here and there talking about what happens to our troops and veterans does not allow the pubic to be informed enough to force politicians to do the right thing. Now a foreign nation is paying more attention to all of this than they are. This is not a good thing at all.
Murder in Tampa studied by Russian President Medvedev
Julie Schenecker admitted killing her two children in Tampa. There have been a lot of cases in the US and around the world like this but what could have been so important about this case that the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences had to prepare a report for President Medvedev?
This case not only involves this but an Army Colonel with US Central Command. The report prepared by the academy also took a look at the drugs being used like Zoloft, Prozac, Paxil and Cymbalta.
Why Medvedev is so interested in this case? Is he interested in the mental health of our military? Looking for ways to avoid it happening to his military? What is really behind this interest?
In a way it makes our own media a disgrace when they can focus in on topics for days leaving no time for real reporting on stories like this. It is a shame that Russia would be taking a harder look at all of this than our own media does. Issues with these drugs has been reported in print media for years with little being done about any of it. A few minutes here and there talking about what happens to our troops and veterans does not allow the pubic to be informed enough to force politicians to do the right thing. Now a foreign nation is paying more attention to all of this than they are. This is not a good thing at all.
Family Massacre In US Linked To American Military ‘Murder Drugs’
Posted by EU Times on Feb 9th, 2011
A chilling report prepared for President Medvedev by the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences (RAMS) says that a massacre in the United States committed during the past fortnight has as its “most likely cause” what are described as “murder drugs” being given by the millions to American Soldiers by their Military Leaders for the fighting of their Nations wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
According to this report, Julie Schenecker, the wife of US Army Colonel Parker Schenecker, shockingly murdered her two children, Carlyx, age 16, and Beau, age 13, in a sudden bloody rampage that has left family and neighbors stunned as to why a devoted wife and mother would point blank shoot her most beloved possessions to death.
US media reports about Julie Schenecker describe a devoted wife to her career US Army Officer husband (who at the time of his family’s massacre was stationed in the Middle East) and loving mother to her children, all being described as the “perfect” all-American family.
Educated at the University of Iowa, Julie Schenecker had also accompanied her husband to the many US Military bases he served at around the world, including in Germany where she worked as a Russian linguist for the US Army in Munich.
In 2008, Julie Schenecker and her family moved to Tampa, Florida where her husband, by then a US Army Colonel assigned to the US Central Command which oversees the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and began living a life described by her childhood friend Sylvia Carroll as being the “epitome of what wholesome is”.
The same, however, cannot be said about her husband, US Army Colonel Parker Schenecker, who, like all American Military personnel heading towards their war zones in the Middle East and Asia, was “more than likely” given one, or a combination of the powerful psychotropic drugs Zoloft, Prozac, Paxil or Cymbalta, all of which carry mandatory “suicide warnings” and have been linked to nearly every single massacre in the United States for the past two-decades.read more here
Family Massacre In US Linked To American Military Murder Drugs
Murder in Tampa studied by Russian President Medvedev
Texas National Guard sees a spike in suicides
Texas National Guard sees a spike in suicides
Grim statistic: More took their own lives than died in combat
By LINDSAY WISE
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Feb. 8, 2011, 9:50PM
A spike in the number of Texas National Guard soldiers who took their own lives last year has resulted in a sobering statistic: More members of the Texas Guard have been lost to suicide than to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A total of 12 Texas Army National Guard troops have been killed in action since 2001. During that same time period, 18 killed themselves, according to Texas Army National Guard headquarters at Camp Mabry in Austin.
That grim tally includes seven suicides in 2010, a jump from just one, two or none in previous years.
Senior Texas Guard officials said they're distraught by the sharp increase.
"We can only hope that it's a temporary thing, and we are certainly concerned about it, and we're looking at how can we change that," said Chaplain Lt. Col. Stephen Vaughn, operations chaplain for Texas Army National Guard.
"Losing a soldier in combat is horrible, but losing a comrade here in the States is unacceptable," said Col. Orlando Salinas, director of Joint Family Support Services for Texas Military Forces. "We take that very personally, and we want to do all we can to help all our service members and their families."
The statistics in Texas reflect a nationwide trend in the Army, which recently reported that suicides among National Guard and Reserve forces jumped significantly last year from 80 deaths in 2009 to 145 deaths in 2010, even as the number of active-duty soldiers who took their own lives went down slightly, from 162 in 2009 to 156 in 2010.
"It's emblematic of a string of broken systems, and in the National Guard and Reserve, some of the support structures you have on the active-duty side, you just don't get," said Tom Tarantino, senior legislative associate for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, a nonprofit advocacy group based in Washington .
read more here
Texas National Guard sees a spike in suicides
Grim statistic: More took their own lives than died in combat
By LINDSAY WISE
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Feb. 8, 2011, 9:50PM
A spike in the number of Texas National Guard soldiers who took their own lives last year has resulted in a sobering statistic: More members of the Texas Guard have been lost to suicide than to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A total of 12 Texas Army National Guard troops have been killed in action since 2001. During that same time period, 18 killed themselves, according to Texas Army National Guard headquarters at Camp Mabry in Austin.
That grim tally includes seven suicides in 2010, a jump from just one, two or none in previous years.
Senior Texas Guard officials said they're distraught by the sharp increase.
"We can only hope that it's a temporary thing, and we are certainly concerned about it, and we're looking at how can we change that," said Chaplain Lt. Col. Stephen Vaughn, operations chaplain for Texas Army National Guard.
"Losing a soldier in combat is horrible, but losing a comrade here in the States is unacceptable," said Col. Orlando Salinas, director of Joint Family Support Services for Texas Military Forces. "We take that very personally, and we want to do all we can to help all our service members and their families."
The statistics in Texas reflect a nationwide trend in the Army, which recently reported that suicides among National Guard and Reserve forces jumped significantly last year from 80 deaths in 2009 to 145 deaths in 2010, even as the number of active-duty soldiers who took their own lives went down slightly, from 162 in 2009 to 156 in 2010.
"It's emblematic of a string of broken systems, and in the National Guard and Reserve, some of the support structures you have on the active-duty side, you just don't get," said Tom Tarantino, senior legislative associate for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, a nonprofit advocacy group based in Washington .
read more here
Texas National Guard sees a spike in suicides
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Florida investigates contractors of Lake Nona VA Hospital
State investigates VA Center contractors
By Mary Shanklin, Orlando Sentinel
4:14 p.m. EST, February 9, 2011
Contractors for the VA Medical Center's new $665 million complex at Lake Nona are being investigated by state and federal agencies for employment practices, according to the state Department of Financial Services.
"It is an ongoing investigation involving multiple state and federal agencies into the employment practices of some contractors," said Nina Ashley, a spokeswoman for the Financial Services Department.
Officials with the Department of Veteran Affairs offices in Orlando would not comment on the investigation and referred inquiries to the state agency. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has agents at the site assisting in the investigation, which is being conducted by the Financial Services' Division of Insurance Fraud.
With a 134-bed hospital, community living center and 60-bed nursing home, the VA project represents possibly the largest construction project in the region. It's slated for completion in 2012.
No one would disclose what companies were being investigated.
State investigates VA Center contractors
By Mary Shanklin, Orlando Sentinel
4:14 p.m. EST, February 9, 2011
Contractors for the VA Medical Center's new $665 million complex at Lake Nona are being investigated by state and federal agencies for employment practices, according to the state Department of Financial Services.
"It is an ongoing investigation involving multiple state and federal agencies into the employment practices of some contractors," said Nina Ashley, a spokeswoman for the Financial Services Department.
Officials with the Department of Veteran Affairs offices in Orlando would not comment on the investigation and referred inquiries to the state agency. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has agents at the site assisting in the investigation, which is being conducted by the Financial Services' Division of Insurance Fraud.
With a 134-bed hospital, community living center and 60-bed nursing home, the VA project represents possibly the largest construction project in the region. It's slated for completion in 2012.
No one would disclose what companies were being investigated.
State investigates VA Center contractors
After war, an Air Force pilot's life spirals out of control
After war, an Air Force pilot's life spirals out of control
February 8, 2011
The Air Force ordered Maj. Chad Bushman to have no contact with his wife and children for almost two years.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Pilot faces military inquiry that may result in being discharged
His wife detailed years of abuse upon her husband's return from duty
Military may have missed the early signs of PTSD
Board to determine whether it's in best interest of Air Force to keep the pilot in its ranks
San Francisco (CNN) -- Air Force Maj. Chad Bushman vividly remembers the worst day of his life, the sound of handcuffs gripping his wrists as six military officers took him away and told him he faced criminal charges for abusing his wife.
"It's shameful. There's no honor in it." Bushman said. "I'm very ashamed of how I had gotten."
What Bushman didn't know at that moment was that a military psychologist would soon determine that he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, and, he says, it led to years of abusing his wife. The diagnosis may have come too late, and the decorated pilot's military career could soon come to a disgraceful end. But Bushman says that he deserves a second chance and that the Air Force has let him down.
"I think they're trying to wash their hands of me," Bushman said. "Instead of looking at the whole picture of 'how did he get this way, and what could we have done to make him better or help him?' "
The secretary of the Air Force will ultimately decide whether Bushman can continue his career as a military pilot. This week, the case goes before a board of inquiry at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.
How Bushman's career reached this point is a sad and often disturbing tale that raises questions about whether the military missed PTSD warning signs along the way.
read more here
After war, an Air Force pilot's life spirals out of control
UPDATE
Feb. 10, 2011
I think they're trying to wash their hands of me instead of looking at the whole picture.By Ed Lavandera, CNN
--Maj. Chad Bushman
February 8, 2011
The Air Force ordered Maj. Chad Bushman to have no contact with his wife and children for almost two years.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Pilot faces military inquiry that may result in being discharged
His wife detailed years of abuse upon her husband's return from duty
Military may have missed the early signs of PTSD
Board to determine whether it's in best interest of Air Force to keep the pilot in its ranks
San Francisco (CNN) -- Air Force Maj. Chad Bushman vividly remembers the worst day of his life, the sound of handcuffs gripping his wrists as six military officers took him away and told him he faced criminal charges for abusing his wife.
"It's shameful. There's no honor in it." Bushman said. "I'm very ashamed of how I had gotten."
What Bushman didn't know at that moment was that a military psychologist would soon determine that he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, and, he says, it led to years of abusing his wife. The diagnosis may have come too late, and the decorated pilot's military career could soon come to a disgraceful end. But Bushman says that he deserves a second chance and that the Air Force has let him down.
"I think they're trying to wash their hands of me," Bushman said. "Instead of looking at the whole picture of 'how did he get this way, and what could we have done to make him better or help him?' "
The secretary of the Air Force will ultimately decide whether Bushman can continue his career as a military pilot. This week, the case goes before a board of inquiry at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.
How Bushman's career reached this point is a sad and often disturbing tale that raises questions about whether the military missed PTSD warning signs along the way.
read more here
After war, an Air Force pilot's life spirals out of control
UPDATE
Feb. 10, 2011
Air Force panel: Pilot with PTSD should be discharged
By Ed Lavandera, CNN
February 10, 2011 -- Updated 0257 GMT (1057 HKT)
Criminal charges against Chad Bushman were dismissed after his wife learned of his PTSD prognosis.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Board of Inquiry recommends honorable discharge for Maj. Chad Bushman
Bushman was accused of abusing his wife after deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan
His lawyer says Air Force failed to promptly diagnose his PTSD
Montgomery, Alabama (CNN) -- A three-member Board of Inquiry is recommending that a veteran Air Force pilot who has post-traumatic stress disorder be discharged under honorable conditions, according to the pilot's attorney.
Maj. Chad Bushman's 17-year flying career unraveled in November 2008 after he was arrested by military police and accused of abusing his wife in the four years after he returned home from war deployments into Iraq and Afghanistan.
Shortly after the board issued its recommendation Wednesday afternoon, Bushman said that, despite the discharge ruling, he was still hopeful that he could stay in the military. The board could have recommended a harsher ruling of a dishonorable discharge.
"I get to be back with my family. I'm blessed," Bushman said. "The family is the most important part. I'm accepting this is what's going to happen."
Bushman's attorney said the decorated pilot should be allowed to remain in the Air Force because the abuse would not have occurred had the Air Force properly diagnosed his PTSD after returning from war in 2004.
Stephen Karns, Bushman's attorney, argued before the review board that warning signs of the pilot's mental state were missed because the pilot was not given a psychological exam until four years after returning from the battlefield.
read more of this here
Pilot with PTSD should be discharged
Florida Veterans Face Budget Cuts and Agency Changes
Florida Veterans Face Budget Cuts and Agency Changes
Posted Wed, Feb 09, 2011 at 06:02 am
Retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Bob Milligan.
By Bobbie O'Brien
TAMPA
At first glance, it appears there is a 44 percent slash in the governor's proposed budget for the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott's budget cuts and agency reductions are now available online. Floridians can compare his recommendations to the agency’s requests and to current budgets.
If you compare the current state veterans affairs budget of $81 million to the governor’s proposed budget of $45.5 million, it appears as if Scott is cutting the agency 44 percent.
But that’s not the case. Veterans Affairs spokesman Steve Murray said the governor’s proposal reflects the transfer of the department’s six nursing homes and one assisted living facility, the largest portion of the budget, to a public corporation.
“This public corporation could report directly to the governor and cabinet," Murray said. "It would operate in the sunshine. Our agency the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs would work hand in hand with the corporation on veterans issues. We would be able to retain VA funding."
read more here
Florida Veterans Face Budget Cuts and Agency Changes
Posted Wed, Feb 09, 2011 at 06:02 am
Retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Bob Milligan.
By Bobbie O'Brien
TAMPA
At first glance, it appears there is a 44 percent slash in the governor's proposed budget for the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott's budget cuts and agency reductions are now available online. Floridians can compare his recommendations to the agency’s requests and to current budgets.
If you compare the current state veterans affairs budget of $81 million to the governor’s proposed budget of $45.5 million, it appears as if Scott is cutting the agency 44 percent.
But that’s not the case. Veterans Affairs spokesman Steve Murray said the governor’s proposal reflects the transfer of the department’s six nursing homes and one assisted living facility, the largest portion of the budget, to a public corporation.
“This public corporation could report directly to the governor and cabinet," Murray said. "It would operate in the sunshine. Our agency the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs would work hand in hand with the corporation on veterans issues. We would be able to retain VA funding."
read more here
Florida Veterans Face Budget Cuts and Agency Changes
Fort Bliss soldier faces charges of killing another soldier after Super Bowl Party
Fort Bliss soldier killed at East El Paso bar
By Daniel Borunda \ El Paso Times
Posted: 02/08/2011 04:09:43 AM MST
A shooting early Monday outside a popular East Side bar left one Fort Bliss soldier dead and another facing a murder charge.
El Paso police said an altercation broke out just after 1 a.m. inside the Three Legged Monkey and then spilled into the parking lot where Spc. Zareef Quasim Saleel allegedly shot Spc. Alex Gabriel Jaime once in the chest, killing him.
Police and paramedics arrived to find Jaime, 23, dead in the parking lot of the bar on Hawkins Boulevard by Montana Avenue.
After the shooting, Saleel was arrested when a patrol officer stopped him in a vehicle a short distance from the bar, police spokesman Darrel Petry said. Saleel, 25, was jailed in lieu of a $100,000 bond.
read more here
Fort Bliss soldier killed at East El Paso bar
By Daniel Borunda \ El Paso Times
Posted: 02/08/2011 04:09:43 AM MST
A shooting early Monday outside a popular East Side bar left one Fort Bliss soldier dead and another facing a murder charge.
El Paso police said an altercation broke out just after 1 a.m. inside the Three Legged Monkey and then spilled into the parking lot where Spc. Zareef Quasim Saleel allegedly shot Spc. Alex Gabriel Jaime once in the chest, killing him.
Police and paramedics arrived to find Jaime, 23, dead in the parking lot of the bar on Hawkins Boulevard by Montana Avenue.
After the shooting, Saleel was arrested when a patrol officer stopped him in a vehicle a short distance from the bar, police spokesman Darrel Petry said. Saleel, 25, was jailed in lieu of a $100,000 bond.
read more here
Fort Bliss soldier killed at East El Paso bar
Flag from U.S. base in Iraq brought to injured Orlando soldier
Special delivery: Flag from U.S. base in Iraq brought to injured Orlando soldier
Army Sgt. Matthew Garwood gave injured comrade Sgt. Noe "Lito" Santos a signed American flag once flown in Iraq.
By Bianca Prieto, Orlando Sentinel
8:18 p.m. EST, February 8, 2011
The dirt-stained, rain-soaked flag that had flown over Joint Base Balad in Iraq for the last two months was carefully tucked into Army Sgt. Matthew Garwood's duffle bag.
Garwood, an Evans High graduate on his fourth tour of duty, took special care because he knew the flag had a meaningful destination – the Winter Park apartment of an honorably discharged soldier he had served beside in Iraq.
Garwood has long wanted to honor his buddy, Army Sgt. Noe "Lito" Santos, a former member of the Personal Security Detachment in Iraq who lost his left leg in 2005 when an Improvised Explosive Device blew up while the soldiers were in their vehicles near Taji, Iraq.
This week, while home on leave, Garwood finally had the chance.
read more here
Flag from U.S. base in Iraq brought to injured Orlando soldier
Army Sgt. Matthew Garwood gave injured comrade Sgt. Noe "Lito" Santos a signed American flag once flown in Iraq.
By Bianca Prieto, Orlando Sentinel
8:18 p.m. EST, February 8, 2011
The dirt-stained, rain-soaked flag that had flown over Joint Base Balad in Iraq for the last two months was carefully tucked into Army Sgt. Matthew Garwood's duffle bag.
Garwood, an Evans High graduate on his fourth tour of duty, took special care because he knew the flag had a meaningful destination – the Winter Park apartment of an honorably discharged soldier he had served beside in Iraq.
Garwood has long wanted to honor his buddy, Army Sgt. Noe "Lito" Santos, a former member of the Personal Security Detachment in Iraq who lost his left leg in 2005 when an Improvised Explosive Device blew up while the soldiers were in their vehicles near Taji, Iraq.
This week, while home on leave, Garwood finally had the chance.
read more here
Flag from U.S. base in Iraq brought to injured Orlando soldier
GI Bill Payments Delayed to 55,000 Vets
GI Bill Payments Delayed to 55,000 Vets
February 09, 2011
Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK -- The Department of Veterans Affairs is blaming bad weather for a paperwork backlog that's left tens of thousands of college students without their February GI Bill money, and it says some may not see their payments for another week or so.
About 300,000 veterans across the United States will receive tuition money and housing assistance this semester under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. Their February payments were supposed to be deposited into their bank accounts by the first of the month, but so far only about 245,000 students have been paid, according to the VA.
That means about 55,000 -- including many in Hampton Roads -- are still waiting.
"It's been really tough," said Titian Maples, a pre-med student at Old Dominion University who served five years in the Navy. "When the government says the money is going to be there and then it's not, it doesn't leave you a lot of options, especially when you're in school and you're living paycheck-to-paycheck."
She said she began calling the VA last week to ask why her payment didn't arrive, and no one could give her answers.
The VA now says January snow storms are behind the delay.
read more here
GI Bill Payments Delayed to 55,000 Vets
February 09, 2011
Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK -- The Department of Veterans Affairs is blaming bad weather for a paperwork backlog that's left tens of thousands of college students without their February GI Bill money, and it says some may not see their payments for another week or so.
About 300,000 veterans across the United States will receive tuition money and housing assistance this semester under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. Their February payments were supposed to be deposited into their bank accounts by the first of the month, but so far only about 245,000 students have been paid, according to the VA.
That means about 55,000 -- including many in Hampton Roads -- are still waiting.
"It's been really tough," said Titian Maples, a pre-med student at Old Dominion University who served five years in the Navy. "When the government says the money is going to be there and then it's not, it doesn't leave you a lot of options, especially when you're in school and you're living paycheck-to-paycheck."
She said she began calling the VA last week to ask why her payment didn't arrive, and no one could give her answers.
The VA now says January snow storms are behind the delay.
read more here
GI Bill Payments Delayed to 55,000 Vets
Fix the VA, don’t break it
Fix the VA, don’t break it
February 9, 2011 posted by Chaplain Kathie · Leave a Comment (Edit)
One of the biggest problems tracking reports across the country is that there are days when I get hit with more news than I can stand. It makes my head hurt to think of how far we’ve come, then get whacked with one bad news report after another.
Florida
And then we have Gov. Scott and his plans to cut the budget off veterans' backs.
Another story on Cochran VA Medical Center.
February 9, 2011 posted by Chaplain Kathie · Leave a Comment (Edit)
One of the biggest problems tracking reports across the country is that there are days when I get hit with more news than I can stand. It makes my head hurt to think of how far we’ve come, then get whacked with one bad news report after another.
Florida
More war veterans at risk of HIV infection after VA hospital error
A dozen more South Florida veterans were being notified Tuesday the colonoscopies they had at the Miami VA hospital might have been with improperly cleaned equipment. It’s the third time such notices have been made.
BY FRED TASKER
FTASKER@MIAMIHERALD.COM
The Veterans Administration said Tuesday it has found another 12 South Florida veterans who never were notified they might have received colonoscopies with improperly cleaned equipment at the Miami VA hospital as far back as 2004. It’s the third such notification, totaling nearly 2,500 veterans.
The VA, which last year said it had taken extensive steps to prevent another such notification error, again blamed the way in which the hospital keeps medical records.
VA officials said this error was discovered when the Miami U.S. Attorney’s Office, gathering information related to veterans who have filed lawsuits in the matter, asked the Miami VA hospital to recheck its records. While the VA hospital has electronic medical records, it said the errors were found by checking supplemental paper log books.
It wasn’t clear why the 12 new names would be on paper but not electronic records. Notification to the 12 veterans began Tuesday; by late afternoon all but three had been reached, a spokeswoman said.
And then we have Gov. Scott and his plans to cut the budget off veterans' backs.
Ohio
Scott wants to privatize veterans homes
Uncategorized — posted by aaron deslatte on February, 8 2011 1:31 PM
Discuss This: Comments(3) | Add to del.icio.us | Digg it
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott’s $65.8 billion spending pitch to lawmakers includes privatizing veterans homes, mental health facilities and developmental disability centers, which the governor’s budget staff has concluded will save $103.9 million.
Scott health-care policy coordinator Jane Johnson said the governor’s office was still working with Veterans Affairs director Bob Milligan on the specifics of how to hand veterans homes over to private enterprise, a concept she called “public instrumentality.”
“The homes would be operated as a private entity and the employees would not be public employees,” Johnson told the House Health Care Appropriations Committee on Tuesday.
The Veteran Affairs budget would get cut $38 million as part of the plan to hand over those nursing homes for vets to a quasi-public organization like the state’s housing finance corporation. Johnson said 80 percent of the department’s budget goes to 700 veterans in nursing homes, and that the department felt its funding would be better-spent on the other 1.8 million Florida veterans.
535 Veterans possibly exposed to HIV and Hepatitis by dentist in DaytonThen there is the case of the St. Louis VA
VA Dentist May Have Exposed Veterans To HIV, Hepatitis
DAYTON: 535 Vets Possibly Infected At Dental Clinic
Jill Del Greco, Reporter
Posted: 10:30 am EST February 8, 2011
Updated: 11:28 pm EST February 8, 2011
DAYTON, Ohio — More than 500 local veterans may have been exposed to diseases like HIV and Hepatitis.
On Tuesday, officials at the Dayton VA Center said 535 veterans may have been exposed to infectious diseases during visits to the dental clinic over the past eighteen years.
A testing clinic has been set up on the grounds of the Dayton VA Center effective immediately.
Federal Investigation Begins Into Missouri VA CenterYou can read more and find links at my blog Wounded Times Blog
Tuesday, February 08 2011
(St. Louis, MO) — The U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs will discuss conditions at a St. Louis VA hospital this week.
Members of Congress are hoping to get answers about the the John Cochran VA Center.
The Department of Veterans says John Cochran is the worst VA hospital in America in some areas, and among the very worst in many others.
Another story on Cochran VA Medical Center.
Lawmakers seek action on Cochran VA Medical CenterLaredo Veterans Health Clinic
By Robert Koenig, Beacon Washington correspondent
Updated 10:56 am, Tue., 2.8.11
WASHINGTON – Disturbed by reports of continued problems at the John Cochran VA Medical Center in St. Louis, all four U.S. senators and six House members from Missouri and Illinois are asking the Department of Veterans Affairs to investigate and “find solutions” to the safety issues at the hospital.
Russ Carnahan
In a letter sent Tuesday to Veterans Department Secretary Eric Shinseki, the lawmakers urged the VA to address concerns about patient safety as soon as possible. “Potential problems in quality management cause grave concern, not just for veterans served by Cochran, but the entire community,” they wrote.
“We offer to work with you and area veterans to find solutions to these concerns so that we can restore the trust of our veterans and bring [Cochran], and all area VA facilities, to the highest level of quality customer service and safety.”
The lawmakers asked the VA to list measures taken to prevent future contaminations and to report any health problems discovered as a result of the most recent incident. They also requested to be informed of the results of instrument handling reviews conducted in response to an incident last June that caused the VA to suspend services in the dental clinic.
The letter was signed by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.; Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.; Roy Blunt, R-Mo.; and Mark Kirk, R-Ill. House members signing the letter included U.S. Reps. William Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis; Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis; Jerry Costello, D-Belleville; John Shimkus, R-Collinsville; and Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth.
Veteran’s upset over V.A. Clinic Service
Feb 8, 2011
For years, the United States has been criticized for the way they have handled their war veterans. Local veterans are up in arms as frustration builds over what they say is a lack of quality service at the Laredo Veterans Health Clinic.
Laredo war veterans thought their fighting days were over after putting their lives on the line for their country, but they are in another battle over what they say is a lack of quality health care. Vietnam veteran, Jesus Guerra, says, “We went to war because we believe in freedom. We merit respect and services and we aren’t getting them.”
On Tuesday morning, clinic administrators met with a committee of Laredo war veterans to discuss possible improvements for the clinic that has had countless complaints of poor customer service. With plans to expand the clinic in the works, Congressman Henry Cuellar says there needs to be some changes. Currently the clinic is understaffed after unexpected departures from numerous employees. While they do say they plan to hire a new physician in about a week, V.A. officials refused to discuss the state of the Veteran’s Clinic on camera – leaving some veterans wondering about the future employees of the clinic.
The congressman says Laredo’s war veterans have earned the right of quality health service, and there is no room at the clinic for any employee who stands in the way of that right. He goes on to add, “If somebody is misleading the veterans there at the clinic I think its time for that person to go and find a new job. I don’t want people to think I’ve got a government job and I can do whatever I want to.”
read more here
Fix the VA, don’t break it
More South Florida war veterans at risk of HIV infection
More war veterans at risk of HIV infection after VA hospital error
A dozen more South Florida veterans were being notified Tuesday the colonoscopies they had at the Miami VA hospital might have been with improperly cleaned equipment. It’s the third time such notices have been made.
BY FRED TASKER
FTASKER@MIAMIHERALD.COM
The Veterans Administration said Tuesday it has found another 12 South Florida veterans who never were notified they might have received colonoscopies with improperly cleaned equipment at the Miami VA hospital as far back as 2004. It’s the third such notification, totaling nearly 2,500 veterans.
The VA, which last year said it had taken extensive steps to prevent another such notification error, again blamed the way in which the hospital keeps medical records.
VA officials said this error was discovered when the Miami U.S. Attorney’s Office, gathering information related to veterans who have filed lawsuits in the matter, asked the Miami VA hospital to recheck its records. While the VA hospital has electronic medical records, it said the errors were found by checking supplemental paper log books.
It wasn’t clear why the 12 new names would be on paper but not electronic records. Notification to the 12 veterans began Tuesday; by late afternoon all but three had been reached, a spokeswoman said.
Read more:More war veterans at risk of HIV infection
A dozen more South Florida veterans were being notified Tuesday the colonoscopies they had at the Miami VA hospital might have been with improperly cleaned equipment. It’s the third time such notices have been made.
BY FRED TASKER
FTASKER@MIAMIHERALD.COM
The Veterans Administration said Tuesday it has found another 12 South Florida veterans who never were notified they might have received colonoscopies with improperly cleaned equipment at the Miami VA hospital as far back as 2004. It’s the third such notification, totaling nearly 2,500 veterans.
The VA, which last year said it had taken extensive steps to prevent another such notification error, again blamed the way in which the hospital keeps medical records.
VA officials said this error was discovered when the Miami U.S. Attorney’s Office, gathering information related to veterans who have filed lawsuits in the matter, asked the Miami VA hospital to recheck its records. While the VA hospital has electronic medical records, it said the errors were found by checking supplemental paper log books.
It wasn’t clear why the 12 new names would be on paper but not electronic records. Notification to the 12 veterans began Tuesday; by late afternoon all but three had been reached, a spokeswoman said.
Read more:More war veterans at risk of HIV infection
Federal Investigation Begins Into Missouri VA Center
Federal Investigation Begins Into Missouri VA Center
Tuesday, February 08 2011
(St. Louis, MO) -- The U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs will discuss conditions at a St. Louis VA hospital this week.
Members of Congress are hoping to get answers about the the John Cochran VA Center.
The Department of Veterans says John Cochran is the worst VA hospital in America in some areas, and among the very worst in many others.
read more here
http://ozarksfirst.com/fulltext?nxd_id=400766
Tuesday, February 08 2011
(St. Louis, MO) -- The U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs will discuss conditions at a St. Louis VA hospital this week.
Members of Congress are hoping to get answers about the the John Cochran VA Center.
The Department of Veterans says John Cochran is the worst VA hospital in America in some areas, and among the very worst in many others.
read more here
http://ozarksfirst.com/fulltext?nxd_id=400766
535 Veterans possibly exposed to HIV and Hepatitis by dentist in Dayton
VA Dentist May Have Exposed Veterans To HIV, Hepatitis
DAYTON: 535 Vets Possibly Infected At Dental Clinic
Jill Del Greco, Reporter
Posted: 10:30 am EST February 8, 2011
Updated: 11:28 pm EST February 8, 2011
DAYTON, Ohio -- More than 500 local veterans may have been exposed to diseases like HIV and Hepatitis.
On Tuesday, officials at the Dayton VA Center said 535 veterans may have been exposed to infectious diseases during visits to the dental clinic over the past eighteen years.
A testing clinic has been set up on the grounds of the Dayton VA Center effective immediately.
read more here
VA Dentist May Have Exposed Veterans To HIV, Hepatitis
DAYTON: 535 Vets Possibly Infected At Dental Clinic
Jill Del Greco, Reporter
Posted: 10:30 am EST February 8, 2011
Updated: 11:28 pm EST February 8, 2011
DAYTON, Ohio -- More than 500 local veterans may have been exposed to diseases like HIV and Hepatitis.
On Tuesday, officials at the Dayton VA Center said 535 veterans may have been exposed to infectious diseases during visits to the dental clinic over the past eighteen years.
A testing clinic has been set up on the grounds of the Dayton VA Center effective immediately.
read more here
VA Dentist May Have Exposed Veterans To HIV, Hepatitis
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Coalition's mental health strategy inadequate
Coalition's mental health strategy inadequate, warns thinktank
Government accused of failing to consider impact of dysfunctional families on mental health of children and adults
Nicholas Watt, chief political correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Monday 7 February 2011
A thinktank founded by Iain Duncan Smith today criticises the government for failing to take account of the impact of family breakdown on mental health.
Days after Nick Clegg launched the government's mental health strategy, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) says ministers should have assessed the impact of dysfunctional families on the mental health of children and adults.
The report by the CSJ, which defines family breakdown as "divorce or separation, dysfunction or dad-lessness", says: "The government's mental health strategy launched recently makes no mention of the effect on children's mental health of conflict between parents and living in fractured families. Working with the whole family not only prevents many children from being labelled as mentally ill but can also tackle the causes of their problems – often rooted in or sustained by the dynamics of family relationships."
Clegg and Paul Burstow, the Liberal Democrat care services minister, placed children and teenagers at the heart of the government's mental health strategy, which they launched last week. Talking therapies are to be offered to children and teenagers who show signs of anxiety and depression.
read more here
Coalition's mental health strategy inadequate
Government accused of failing to consider impact of dysfunctional families on mental health of children and adults
Nicholas Watt, chief political correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Monday 7 February 2011
A thinktank founded by Iain Duncan Smith today criticises the government for failing to take account of the impact of family breakdown on mental health.
Days after Nick Clegg launched the government's mental health strategy, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) says ministers should have assessed the impact of dysfunctional families on the mental health of children and adults.
The report by the CSJ, which defines family breakdown as "divorce or separation, dysfunction or dad-lessness", says: "The government's mental health strategy launched recently makes no mention of the effect on children's mental health of conflict between parents and living in fractured families. Working with the whole family not only prevents many children from being labelled as mentally ill but can also tackle the causes of their problems – often rooted in or sustained by the dynamics of family relationships."
Clegg and Paul Burstow, the Liberal Democrat care services minister, placed children and teenagers at the heart of the government's mental health strategy, which they launched last week. Talking therapies are to be offered to children and teenagers who show signs of anxiety and depression.
read more here
Coalition's mental health strategy inadequate
Anthony "Sarge" McDowell, Iraq Vet shot by police, laid to rest
Family and friends bury Anthony McDowell, soldier shot by Gresham police
Published: Monday, February 07, 2011
By Steve Beaven, The Oregonian
Family and friends gathered Monday under an iron-gray sky at Willamette National Cemetery to honor Anthony McDowell, a military veteran who was shot to death by Gresham police last week outside his home.
They grieved, but they also wondered: How did it come to this? How could a man so dedicated to his community and fellow soldiers die such a violent death at the hands of police officers?
"There's a lot of unanswered questions," said Sharon Brunner, a friend who was waiting for the funeral procession at the cemetery.
McDowell, 50, was holding a rifle when he was killed on Jan. 31 during an encounter with officers.
The Gresham Police Department said in the immediate aftermath of the shooting that officers were dispatched to the house after McDowell's wife called to report that he was suicidal. A full account of the shooting has not been released.
Family and friends bury Anthony McDowell
Published: Monday, February 07, 2011
By Steve Beaven, The Oregonian
Family and friends gathered Monday under an iron-gray sky at Willamette National Cemetery to honor Anthony McDowell, a military veteran who was shot to death by Gresham police last week outside his home.
They grieved, but they also wondered: How did it come to this? How could a man so dedicated to his community and fellow soldiers die such a violent death at the hands of police officers?
"There's a lot of unanswered questions," said Sharon Brunner, a friend who was waiting for the funeral procession at the cemetery.
McDowell, 50, was holding a rifle when he was killed on Jan. 31 during an encounter with officers.
The Gresham Police Department said in the immediate aftermath of the shooting that officers were dispatched to the house after McDowell's wife called to report that he was suicidal. A full account of the shooting has not been released.
McDowell was remembered as a devoted father, husband and a "patriot."read more here
He had been in the Navy and the Army Reserve and served in Iraq. He was also the founder of a nonprofit that aids veterans called Sergeant McDowell's Military Relief. His friends called him "Sarge."
McDowell raised money to help veterans and their families. He threw Christmas parties. He bought gifts for children. And he helped soldiers who'd recently returned from war in their efforts to re-engage with society.
Sometimes, friends have said, money for Sergeant McDowell's Military Relief came out of Anthony McDowell's pocket.
"He bent over backward in helping those soldiers," said Kenneth Claiborne, one of the mourners who said he knew McDowell through the military.
Family and friends bury Anthony McDowell
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)