Troubled Soldiers
Brenda Stretch
The government has employed the services of our young men and women to fight wars but have failed to support them in their personal war against the emotional scars left behind. The armed forces must review and implement new strategies for insuring the proper care of our soldiers returning from war. The government must either guarantee the financial support needed to provide adequate doctors and facilities to carry out proper care or allow soldiers to seek care in the private sector subsidized by military benefits.
As the mother of a veteran, I have seen the emotional scars left on a soldier. My daughter Stephanie spent twelve months in a combat situation. Not only did she worry about being shot at each day, she saw dead bodies in the streets as part of her everyday life. Her job as a Military Police Officer was to take a photograph of the deceased and help place them in wood coffins. The vision of the eight year old little girl she had to place in a coffin is one that doesn’t go away.
At a Congressional briefing, Stephanie reported, “As the months wore on, my experiences began to take their toll. Sleep became a luxury. Any loud noise made me jump. I was constantly terrified that the next piece of trash we drove over was going to kill us. My lowest point was when I witnessed my Platoon Leader critically wounded by an Improvised Explosive Device. I was devastated to see one of our own injured. I was sure at the time that I had just witnessed my Platoon Leader being killed. I can describe almost every detail of that event because it is a never-ending repeat in my mind” (Stretch, 2005, p. 2). My daughter felt a lot of guilt over the event, assuming she could have done something to prevent the attack. She was the gunner that day, stationed on top the Humvee. In her mind, she should have seen what was about to happen. The platoon leader survived, but he ultimately had to have one leg amputated. Although her fellow soldiers were there to listen, she knew they were all dealing with the same issues. So, she just buried all the emotion, worked hard, and focused on getting home.
When my daughter left home she was 19. I knew she would grow up a lot and would change because of the events of the last year. But, her behavior in the months following her return was very troubling. It was as if she didn’t care about anything. There was no tomorrow. She didn’t sleep and seemed anxious all the time. I continually urged her to seek treatment, but of course she refused. Each day was becoming more troubling, and the tension was growing. No one could understand what she was going through, and we all tried to be sensitive, but enough was enough. I demanded that she seek professional help, and she finally agreed.
She started by calling her unit contact and found out where she could go to get help. After two months of calling and paperwork, she finally got into the VA hospital. She had her first visit with a counselor approximately eight months after her return home. After an evaluation and review of her symptoms, it was determined that she had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The counselor indicated that she needed to continue with treatment, but the next available appointment was more than two months away, which was February, 2005. Then the next scheduled appointment wouldn’t be until June, 2005.
Fortunately, for my daughter, she was still covered under her parent’s health plan and sought the help of private counselors to assist with her recovery. While the VA hospital is a free service, her problems were not going to be solved by seeing a counselor every few months. If it weren’t for her parents’ insurance, she would have not received timely care.
In USA Today Zoroya (2005) reported that military divorce rates have increased sharply since the deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. The stress of combat, long separations and difficulty readjusting to family life are key reasons for the surge, Army officials say. Dennis Orthner, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who has studied military families for 28 years, says he isn’t surprised by the rise in divorces: “If the numbers are right, then we have more to worry about than just fighting a war.” He says, “We’re trying to fight a war with families that are struggling, and that’s a real challenge” (p.1).
In a report of statistics compiled by Meagher (2007), Meagher reported that Veterans make up 25% of the total U.S. suicide population. For those serving in the Iraq and Kuwait, the rate is 2 times the national average. The U.S. PTSD incidence in the general population is 7.7 million Americans. The National Center on PTSD estimates that 40% of the troops who have served may have or will acquire PTSD. 78% of the vets that showed no signs of PTSD after one month from returning home; developed PTSD within 7 months after returning home (pp. 4-6).
Meagher further reported that there are 150 VA hospitals, along with approximately 800 clinics available to serve 750,000 veterans. Within those facilities only about 80-85% of the psychiatrist/psychologist positions are filled. And, 90% of these professionals are not trained or supervised in the four PTSD therapies recommended by the VA. Of those same professionals, 1-in-3 report high burnout/low motivation or morale. Most soldiers sit and wait months to receive help from the VA hospital. The doctors at the VA seem skilled and willing to assist, but getting appointments seem impossible. Meagher’s (2007) report noted that only 39% of the patients at Loma Linda, CA hospital were given an appointment within 30 days. VA staff considering limiting services and adding a waiting list were 15 out of 60. And, 30% of those said they needed more staff (pp. 4-6). One other soldier in my daughter’s unit called to get an appointment to see a counselor. She was asked if she had thoughts of suicide. The soldier’s response was, “if I say I have, will that get me an appointment sooner?”
The paperwork required to receive services is enough to deter soldiers from seeking treatment. Furthermore, VA hospitals can be a far distance to drive. And, even though you have scheduled an appointment well in advance, quite often the appointments are cancelled and have to be rescheduled. If you want immediate care, something that needs attention in less than a week, you have to go to the emergency room at the VA hospital. My daughter once waited for four hours in the waiting room and another hour and a half in the exam room, only to be told she could not see a doctor because of time constraints. Many of the facilities don’t offer certain specialties like gynecology or chiropractic care. Many soldiers, like my daughter, experience numbness and tingling in their arms and legs due to the weight in the packs they carried around every day. The VA hospital she uses does not have a doctor that can provide the care she needs for these symptoms. There are not enough doctors and facilities to properly care for the number of veterans that need help.
My daughter’s story is just one of thousands of returning soldiers. It is sad to see so many soldiers not receiving the care they deserve. Gaul (2005) reports that “since 1995, the VA says, the number of patients it is treating has doubled, to about 5.2 million. At the same time, the department reports that it has trimmed its staff by about 12,000 people, opened hundreds of outpatient clinics and shifted its focus to primary care, while cutting costs per patient by about half.” Gaul reported Peter S. Gaytan, Director of veterans affairs for the American Legion, saying, “The quality of care has improved greatly, and we are grateful for that. But the timeliness of care is suffering. We have vets waiting in line because the funding is inadequate to meet the need.”
I believe the government is ill prepared for the repercussions of war. A lot of funding goes in to the war effort itself, but the funding falls short when it comes to the total cost of war, the aftermath. If the military continues with its path of their own healthcare system, I would propose the government increase funding for military healthcare. Increased effort should be placed on recruiting more physicians. Care must be made more accessible by constructing smaller clinics throughout major cities. But, government funding is not stable. It cannot be counted on year after year to provide the necessary financial support. Therefore, further consideration should be given to allowing veterans to seek care in the private sector. Costs can still be controlled by establishing a HMO style plan. The military can contract with a network of doctors that are “approved” healthcare providers. Instead of investing in bricks and mortar for VA hospitals, that money should be put toward subsidizing healthcare for veterans in the private sector. The private sector can make up for the shortfall the government is experiencing.
The government needs to take immediate action to support the healthcare needs of our returning soldiers. Our country has become the guardian around the world, so this problem will not be going away any time soon. The government owes it to those that have diligently served their needs.
References
Gaul, G.M. (2005, August 22). Revamped veterans’ health care now a model. Washington Post. Retrieved November 26, 2007, from http://washingtonpost.com
Meagher, Ilona (2007, March). The war list:OEF/OIF Statistics. Retrieved November 27, 2007 from http://www.ptsdcombat.com/documents/ptsdcombat_war-list_oef-oif-statistics.pdf
Stretch, S. (2005, July). Congressional briefing, house armed services personnel subcommittee, hearing on medical issues. Retrieved November 23, 2007, from http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/congress/2005_hr/050726-stretch.pdf
Zoyora, G. (2007, June). Soldier’s divorce rate up sharply. USA Today. Retrieved December 1, 2007, from http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-06-07-soldier-divorces_x.htm
The Sleepy Weasel ● Vol. 12 (2007-2008)