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WALTER REED SEEING MORE PATIENTS WITH
BRAIN TRAUMA
AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS -- Official cites
better
recognition of brain injuries by doctors and a
lessening of
the stigma associated with some psychological
diagnoses.
For more about care at Walter Reed Army Hospital,
click here...
http://www.yourvabenefits.org/sesse
arch.php?q=walter+reed&op=ph
Story here...
http://www.stripes.co
m/article.asp?section=104&article=60982
Story below:
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-------------------------
Torso injuries fall, brain traumas rise at Walter
Reed
By Leo Shane III
Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON — Doctors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center are treating fewer
torso and limb injuries in troops returning from combat but more brain
trauma and psychological disorders, the top Pentagon health official said
Wednesday.
Ward Casscells, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, said
that’s largely due to the drop in violence in Iraq, and could reverse as
fighting intensifies in Afghanistan in coming months.
But he also credited better recognition of brain injuries by doctors and a
lessening of the stigma associated with some psychological diagnoses. For
example, physicians saw an increase in the number of patients reporting
symptoms of depression over the last year.
"Guys are telling us they would still much rather be diagnosed with
traumatic brain injury than post-traumatic stress disorder," Casscells
said. "But we’re getting at some of that stigma. We’ve reduced it a bit.
"And as we increase dwell time, we hope to see decreases in those numbers
as well."
More than 80 percent of "wounded warrior" patients at Walter Reed are
dealing with traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress disorder,
concussion complications and similar wounds, hospital officials said.
On Tuesday, Casscells and other military health experts toured the
facility to see changes made in the two years since a Washington Post
investigative report found poor living conditions and frustrating
regulations for some patients.
Commander Col. Norvell V. Coots touted improvements in communication with
patients and living quarters but acknowledged that more than half of
patients still complain about difficulties getting timely appointments
with their doctors.
"In the civilian sector you have your doctor … but when you call here, Dr.
Jones may be in Iraq or Afghanistan or assigned somewhere else," he said.
"So we’re trying to get to a team approach to help
 address
that.
"But they want to make an appointment
quickly, and we need to do better to help with that."
Coots said Walter Reed officials are also surveying patients regularly to
better gauge their complaints and will have front-desk "greeters" on call
around the clock starting next month to provide more access to help for
troops and their families.
Casscells said he’s pleased with the improvements thus far, noting that
the most of the feedback he receives from patients now during regular
visits focuses on improving family housing on campus.
-------------------------
posted by Larry Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
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