Tag Archives: wounded

When pain is too much: noncombat injuries

Posted on by Chris

The Houston Chronicle has a good piece on the recent increase in noncombat injuries related to neck, back, and joint problems. While most wartime injuries are associated with combat or IED detonations, an increasing number of service members in the VA health system are found to be suffering from neck, back, or joint pain, which results from accidents or overuse. In fact, “A recent Johns Hopkins study found that the top reasons for medical evacuation from Iraq and Afghanistan are musculoskeletal and connective tissue disorders, not combat injuries.”

Anthony Clark was honorably discharged with injuries to his back, knee, shoulder and neck. Photo courtesy Houston Chronicle

“As equipment gets more complicated and more sophisticated, there’s a cost that we have to pay to protect you better, but this is the indirect cost,” said Dr. Steven Cohen, an associate professor of anesthesiology at Johns Hopkins and director of pain research at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Untreated musculoskeletal and connective tissue disorders can combine with post traumatic stress, depression or other injuries to become more severe over time, negatively affecting a veteran’s quality of life, Cohen said.

“That’s why early and aggressive treatment of pain is important,” he said.

Read the full article here.

Proposed increase in the family separation allowance

Posted on by Chris

GOOD Magazine has a nice piece on the struggles of being wounded in battle, and a proposed increase to the family separation allowance. The family separation allowance is a benefit paid out to servicemembers separated from their families during a tour of duty. As the author of the article notes, the family separation allowance can make a big difference when a servicemember is wounded and is taken to a military hospital back in the US. Since the military hospital is often located far from the wounded servicemember’s family, it is costly for the family to come visit. The family separation allowance can help to reduce this financial burden.

The family separation allowance is currently set at $250 per month, but Congressman Jerry McNerney of California is proposing that the allowance be increased to $450 per month, in addition to increases for a number of other benefit payments (read here for more details on Congressman McNerney’s proposed legislation).

Imagine how difficult your life would be, and how much more money you would have to spend, if your husband or wife left home for seven to 15 months at a time. Would you have to pay more often for babysitters, lawn services, and prepared food? Would you have to take extra time off from work to do all those things that usually take two?

Now imagine the stress on you and the rest of your family if your spouse wasn’t just gone from home, but in Iraq or Afghanistan, and you spent every day scared to death of a phone call. Or imagine yourself as the deployed service member, trying to focus on the mission in front of you, worrying from afar if your family has enough money to pay for food, rent, and utilities. Isn’t it worth $200 more per month to help alleviate the psychological and physical stress, heartache, lack of sleep, and the cost of a missing spouse and parent?

Read more: http://www.good.is/post/from-the-hurt-locker-to-capitol-hill/#ixzz0fAmLBW1V
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

Read the full article here.

Blind soldier becomes company commander

Posted on by Chris

A nice story of overcoming obstacles from the American Forces Press Service: Army Capt. Scott M. Smiley, an OIF veteran who lost his vision in the line of duty in 2005, was named commander of the Warrior Transition Unit at the U.S. Military Academy.

Captain Scott M. Smiley salutes 1st Sgt. Deon E. Dabrio after returning the guidon during the U.S. Army Warrior Transition Unit at West Point change of command ceremony Feb 1. Smiley is the first blind officer and second Wounded Warrior to hold a position of command. Photo courtesy of the American Forces Press Service

After his injury, Smiley returned to active duty, but was selected by the Army to attend graduate school. He received an MBA at Duke, then was eventually selected to teach a leadership course in the Behavioral Sciences and Leadership department at the Academy.

“There were some very long dark days, physically and mentally, but I just had to keep pushing on,” Smiley said.

Smiley said he’d looked at what had happened to him in Iraq and made the decision that he was not going down the same path as the character Gary Sinise played in the 1994 movie Forrest Gump. Sinese’s character of Army Lt. Dan had been grievously wounded in Vietnam and was initially portrayed as bitter and self-destructive.

“The decisions that Lt. Dan made after his injuries never came into my mind. I wanted to take care of myself — physically, mentally and spiritually,” Smiley said. “I just did not want to give up because of something that negatively happened to me.”

In addition to his roles as leader, teacher, and soldier, Smiley also counts himself a husband, father, combat diver, mountain climber, skier, tri-athlete, and surfer, and he was also asked to give a speech to the US national basketball team in 2007, before the competed in the world championships.

Read the full article here.

Scott Vycital at the State of the Union

Posted on by Chris

For anyone who missed the State of the Union address last week, one of Michelle Obama’s guests was Scott Vycital, a wounded warrior who was represented that night as a successful participant in the National Organization on Disability (NOD)‘s Wounded Warrior Career Demonstration program. The program is a joint effort between the NOD and the Army Wounded Warrior Program (AW2), and aims to connect wounded warriors with careers in the civilian sector. In Scott’s case, he received a job with the Federal Highway Administration in Colorado.

Scott and Jarah Vycital (center) with Brigadier General Gary H. Cheek, Assistant Surgeon General of Warrior Care and Transition and Commander of the Warrior Transition Command and Sergeant Major Ly M. Lac. Image courtesy of the NOD

Watch a video telling his story here. You can also read more here.

Lawsuit results in possible benefits increases for veterans with PTSD

Posted on by Chris

This article in the Washington Post tells about a recent legal agreement that will result in the military reviewing the medical records of thousands of OEF/OIF veterans with PTSD that were denied benefits for the disorder.

The agreement stems from a judge’s order in a class action lawsuit originally filed by seven combat veterans. They alleged the military illegally denied benefits to those discharged, at least in part, because of the disorder during a six-year period that ended Oct. 14, 2008.

Legal notices are currently being mailed to about 4,300 veterans informing them they can “opt-in” to the lawsuit until July 24 to be part of the expedited review. Attorneys for the veterans estimate that millions of dollars could be paid to veterans under the agreement, with some veterans receiving hundreds or more dollars in increased monthly benefits.

More information on the lawsuit can be found here. For the full article click here.