Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 11-17-09

What’s Inside Today’s Local News for Veterans

1. Disability Evaluation System Pilot Program To Be Expanded. 
2. Shinseki Planning To Implement Report’s VA-Med School Recommendations. 
3. Advocate Stresses Importance Of Shinseki’s Vow On Veteran Homelessness. 
4. Columnist Urges Readers To Visit A VA Hospital. 
5. Former VA Nurse Cared For Wounded In Fort Hood Shooting. 
6. Dorn VAMC, Other VA Hospitals, Recognize National Prosthetic Day. 
7. New Fayetteville VAMC Director Planning To Observe, Find Out What Works. 
8. Spivey-Paul Retires From VA. 
9. University Of Louisville, City Propose Downtown VA Hospital.
10.  Cancer Patient At VA Hospital Receives "Unusually Large Dose Of Radiation." 

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HAVE YOU HEARD?
In the midst of providing mental health services and other support to the Ft. Hood community following the tragic shooting, VA learned about its own losses from the violence. Two VA employees, both serving on active duty with their Army Reserve units, were among the slain, along with a former VA employee. A third VA health care worker on reserve duty was seriously wounded. “Speaking for the entire VA family, I offer heart-felt condolences to the families of these dedicated VA employees,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “They devoted their working lives to care for our Veterans, and they died in uniform, preparing to safeguard our Nation’s freedom.” The VA Secretary accompanied President Obama to Fort Hood for memorial services there. VA casualties are: 

• Russell G. Seager, Ph.D., a 51-year old nurse practitioner at the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center in Milwaukee was killed in the deadly attack. He was a captain in the reserves. At VA, he led a mental health team treating a wide variety of Veteran patients, from the youngest combat Veterans just back from deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, to World War II Veterans dealing with depression. He leaves behind a wife and son. 
• VA’s other fatality was Juanita L. Warman, 55, a nurse practitioner at VA’s medical center in Perry Point, Md. She was a lieutenant colonel in the Maryland National Guard, with two daughters and six grandchildren. Herself the daughter of a career Air Force member, she held a masters degree from the University of Pittsburgh. Warman volunteered for “Beyond the Yellow Ribbon,” a program to help members of the Maryland National Guard readjust after returning from overseas deployments. 
• Dorothy Carskadon, 47, a captain in the reserves and a social worker and team leader at the VA Vet Center in Madison, Wis., was wounded in the gunfire that brought Ft. Hood activities to a halt. She is currently in stable condition in the intensive care unit at the Darnall Army Medical Center at Ft. Hood. As a VA team leader, Carskadon oversees other social workers in providing individual and group counseling for combat Veterans experiencing difficulty readjusting to the civilian community following military service. A new Army officer, Carskadon was preparing for her first deployment. 
• Though not currently a VA employee, Michael Grant Cahill from Montana was among the dead and had a record of previous employment as a physician assistant at a number of VA facilities. He was a retired National Guardsman currently working as a contractor at Fort Hood.  

On an average day, more than 850 VA employees don uniforms to serve military commitments in Reserve and National Guard units across the country and overseas.

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1.      Disability Evaluation System Pilot Program To Be Expanded.  The American Forces Press Service (11/17, Carden) notes that on Monday, "Defense and Veterans Affairs officials…announced another step in their efforts to streamline the process of determining veterans’ disability ratings." In "January, the Disability Evaluation System pilot program will expand to six medical facilities at Fort Benning, Ga.; Fort Bragg, N.C.; Fort Hood, Texas; Fort Lewis, Wash.; Fort Riley, Kan.; and Portsmouth Naval Medical Center, Va. Twenty-seven other military facilities already take part in the program," which "addresses redundancy and inconsistent decisions in medical evaluations in separate disability processes used in the DOD and VA." The American Forces Press Service, "More than 5,400 military members have participated in the pilot program. ‘Streamlining our disability claims system and working closely with (the DOD) to care for today’s generation of heroes are among VA’s top priorities,’ said VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki."
      WAVY-TV Norfolk, VA (11/16, 5:46 p.m. ET) broadcast that on Monday, the VA and DOD "announced…that a pilot program designed to eliminate the duplication and run-around associated with disability claims is coming to the Portsmouth Naval Medical Center in January." 

2.      Shinseki Planning To Implement Report’s VA-Med School Recommendations.  Modern Healthcare (11/17, Robeznieks, 72K) reports, "Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki has pledged to issue an implementation plan by January for several recommendations contained in a new report on the affiliation between the VA" and US "medical schools, including a recommendation to create a federally chartered, standing committee to help ensure that these affiliations realize their full potential." The report, "issued by the ‘Blue Ribbon Panel on VA-Medical School Affiliations,’" which was formed in 2006, "urged the creation of a permanent committee tasked ‘with developing mechanisms whereby VA-academic medical center partners could form local or regional strategic alliances and/or joint ventures.’" 

3.      Advocate Stresses Importance Of Shinseki’s Vow On Veteran Homelessness.  Writing for the Huffington Post (11/16), Nan Roman, the president of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, noted that Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki has "vowed to end veterans homelessness in five years. It’s a goal as noble as the men and women it honors; and one that should be taken very, very seriously," because the "latest numbers show that 131,000 United States veterans will be homeless tonight." Roman added, "The VA stands at the helm of this fight as the agency closest to returning veterans and most capable of offering assistance. Let’s make sure that Congress charges them with the clear responsibility — and all the necessary tools — to get the job done." 
 

4.      Columnist Urges Readers To Visit A VA Hospital.  In his New York Daily News (11/17, 588K) column, Charles Grodin writes, "According to the secretary of Veteran Affairs, Gen. Eric Shinseki, veterans lead the nation in depression, suicide, substance abuse and homelessness. This past Veterans Day, I visited a VA hospital in Connecticut," and the "memory that most resonates is the youngest man I saw, a veteran from Iraq" with post-traumatic stress disorder. Grodin says his "crowning achievement of the day" was making that veteran laugh. Grodin adds, "Consider visiting a VA hospital, just to say thank you. It will make your day." 

5.      Former VA Nurse Cared For Wounded In Fort Hood Shooting.  According to the Austin (TX) American-Statesman (11/16, Toohey) Paulette Smith-Kimble, a "41-year-old Army Reserve major serving at Fort Hood, was among those on the scene administering care in the moments after the Nov. 5 shooting rampage that left 13 dead and more than two dozen wounded." Prior to being called to active duty, she worked at the "Olin E. Teague Veterans Center hospital" in Temple, Texas, "where she…supervised the 18-bed intensive care unit as a civilian." Then, in 2008, she "began working…for Fort Hood’s Warrior Transition Brigade, a unit that allows soldiers to remain on active duty while healing from physical wounds, illness or psychological trauma." Smith-Kimble, who "said she has started seeing a psychological counselor" about the events of early November, has "met with nine survivors of the shooting" and "asked…if they would consider joining" the Warrior Transition Brigade. The American-Statesman added, "All nine, Smith-Kimble said, have decided to enter the program."
      Hundreds Pay Respects To Man Killed In Attack.  The WISC-TV Madison, WI (11/16) website reported, "Hundreds gathered on Monday to pay their final respects to a Wisconsin native who was gunned down in the Fort Hood…massacre. Russell Seager, 51, was laid to rest near his hometown of Wonewoc." Those "who remember Seager said he lived that dream and helped his fellow soldiers with the psychological stress associated with combat. ‘Capt. Darcie Greuel," with the Veterans Affairs hospital in Milwaukee. After noting that Capt. Darcie Greuel with the Veterans Affairs hospital in Milwaukee said Seager was "very compassionate and extremely dedicated to his work," WISC added, "Gov. Jim Doyle ordered all Wisconsin" and US "flags be flown at half-staff Monday at all state buildings, grounds and military installations in Seager’s honor." The WTMJ-TV Milwaukee, WI (11/16, Murray) website, which also covered this story, noted, "Colleagues are planning another service at the VA Hospital Chapel in Milwaukee at 1 p.m. on Thursday."

6.      Dorn VAMC, Other VA Hospitals, Recognize National Prosthetic Day.  On its website, WSPA-TV Asheville, NC (11/16, Kasko) reported, "On Monday," Veterans Affairs hospitals "across the country recognized the second annual" National Prosthetics Day. At one such hospital, the Dorn VA Medical Center in South Carolina, "staff was on hand to display some of the prosthetic devices and services available to veterans."

      VA Hospital In New York Given National Prosthetic Facility Of The Year Award.  The WIVB-TV Buffalo, NY (11/16) website noted that on Monday, the "Department of Veterans Affairs presented" the VA hospital in Buffalo "with the National Prosthetic Facility of the Year award. The Buffalo VA was singled out for its outstanding service and care to the disabled veterans who come through its doors." The "award was presented on National Prosthetics Day, during a vendor fair at the hospital showcasing prosthetic equipment and devices."  

7.      New Fayetteville VAMC Director Planning To Observe, Find Out What Works.  In continuing coverage, the Fayetteville (NC) Observer (11/17, Ramsey, 61K) reports, "Ralph Gigliotti spent his first day in charge" of the Fayetteville Veterans Affairs Medical Center "on Monday in town hall" meetings, "telling employees he’s here to help. Gigliotti, 49, took over as interim director a week earlier than planned from former director Bruce Triplett, who retired this month after The Fayetteville Observer reported dissatisfaction among employees and patients at the hospital. Gigliotti spent the past 41/2years as director of the VA in Durham. For the next two weeks," he "plans mostly to watch and take notes on what works well and what doesn’t. ‘I really want a period of observation,’ Gigliotti said," adding, "I don’t want to rush off with solutions and make the problems worse." 

8.      Spivey-Paul Retires From VA.  The Fort Wayne (IN) News-Sentinel (11/17, Smith) reports, "A woman credited with being an advocate in keeping" the Veterans Affairs "inpatient hospital in Fort Wayne retired from her leadership position earlier this month. Cathi Spivey-Paul, medical center director for the VA Northern Indiana Health Care System, stepped down from her position Nov. 3 after four years as director and 41 years of Federal service. ‘She brought a cheery face and a sense of optimism and really helped us with this transitional period,’ said" US Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN), "who was a supporter of keeping the inpatient care here. ‘She came in at a very critical moment.’" The News-Sentinel adds, "Currently, Kimberly Radant is the interim director until a new permanent director is found." 

9.      University Of Louisville, City Propose Downtown VA Hospital.  The Louisville (KY) Courier-Journal (11/17, Ungar) reports, "The University of Louisville and the city have proposed a specific site for Louisville’s new" Veterans Affairs "hospital – a downtown location supported by some veterans but adamantly opposed by others who want to keep the medical center on Zorn Avenue. The downtown site is on five blocks bordered by East Broadway and South Clay, East Madison, East Chestnut and South Jackson streets." It is "large enough to hold an inpatient hospital and an outpatient center, although officials said the outpatient facility could also go elsewhere. But Terry Jemison, spokesman" for the US VA, "said his agency hasn’t picked a site, a decision that he said will be made ‘in the next two to three months.’"
 

10.    Cancer Patient At VA Hospital Receives "Unusually Large Dose Of Radiation."  The San Diego Union-Tribune (11/16, Darcé, 278K) reported, "A thyroid cancer patient at the San Diego VA Medical Center recently received an unusually large dose of radiation after radioactive iodine became stuck in his feeding tube for nearly four days, Federal regulators and the hospital’s officials said." Veterans Affairs "officials have reported the Sept. 21 incident to the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission and halted the practice of administering radioactive iodine through feeding tubes."