President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors Issues Six Groundbreaking Patient and Family Centered Recommendations to Serve, Support and Simplify Care

    WASHINGTON, July 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Calling its
 recommendations a "bold blueprint for action" to serve, support and
 simplify the care for our injured service members, the President's
 Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors today approved
 six recommendations that make sweeping changes in the delivery of health
 care and services. The recommendations include the first major overhaul of
 the disability system in more than 50 years; creation of recovery plans
 with recovery coordinators; a new e-Benefits website; and guaranteeing care
 for PTSD from the VA for injured service members from Iraq and Afghanistan.
 The nine-member Commission called upon the White House and Congress to
 implement its recommendations as quickly as possible to ensure that those
 who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan are able to successfully transition
 back to civilian life or active duty service.
     "These are bold, innovative recommendations that are doable and can be
 acted upon quickly. Our motto is 'put patients and families first.' The
 system should work for the patient, instead of the patient working for the
 system," said Shalala.
     "Our injured service members deserve a system that serves their
 different needs, supports them and their families while they recover and
 simplifies the delivery of care and services," said Dole. "We will not let
 these recommendations sit on a shelf. They need to be acted upon now to
 improve the quality of lives for our brave men and women and their
 families."
     The Commission report: Serve, Support, Simplify presents six
 recommendations with specific action steps for the Administration and
 Congress:
     1. Immediately Create Comprehensive Recovery Plans to Provide the Right
 Care and Support at the Right Time in the Right Place
     Recommendation: Create a patient-centered Recovery Plan for every
 seriously injured service member that provides the right care and support
 at the right time in the right place. A corps of well-trained,
 highly-skilled Recovery Coordinators must be swiftly developed to ensure
 prompt development and execution of the Recovery Plan.
     Goals: Ensure an efficient, effective and smooth rehabilitation and
 transition back to military duty or civilian life; establish a single point
 of contact for patients and families; and eliminate delays and gaps in
 treatment and services.
     Seriously injured service members -- approximately 3,100 in the current
 conflicts -- require assistance in navigating complex medical systems in
 general. The Commission's research, including site visits and the work of
 previous studies, indicate that individuals both need and benefit from this
 support, and that too often, it is not available.
     2. Completely Restructure the Disability Determination and Compensation
 Systems
     Recommendation: DoD maintains authority to determine fitness to serve.
 For those found not fit for duty, DOD provides a payment for time served.
 VA then establishes the disability rating, compensation and benefits.
     Goals: Update and simplify the disability determination and
 compensation system; eliminate parallel activities; reduce inequities; and
 provide a solid base for the return of injured veterans to productive life.
     According to initial findings of a survey conducted by the Commission
 among wounded and evacuated members, the current disability rating system
 in both DoD and VA is poorly understood and a source of dissatisfaction.
 Just over 40% fully understood the disability evaluation process. Virtually
 all recent evidence has pointed to the need for major reform.
     3. Aggressively Prevent and Treat Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and
 Traumatic Brain Injury
     Recommendation: VA should provide care for any veteran of the
 Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts who has post-traumatic stress disorder
 (PTSD). DoD and VA must rapidly improve prevention, diagnosis, and
 treatment of both PTSD and traumatic brain injury (TBI). At the same time,
 both Departments must work aggressively to reduce the stigma of PTSD.
     Goals: Improve care of two common conditions of the current conflicts
 and reduce the stigma of PTSD; mentally and physically fit service members
 will strengthen our military into the future.
     DoD and VA have stepped up screening for these conditions with almost
 three-quarters of survey respondents reporting being screened for PTSD and
 TBI, and over 40% of them reporting symptoms of PTSD or other mental health
 problems
     4. Significantly Strengthen Support for Families
     Recommendation: Strengthen family support programs including expanding
 DoD respite care and extending the Family and Medical Leave Act for up to
 six months for spouse and parents of seriously injured.
     Goals: Strengthen family support systems and improve the quality of
 life for families.
     Approximately two-thirds of injured service members reported that their
 family members or close friends stayed with them for an extended time while
 they were hospitalized; one in five gave up a job to do so.
     5. Rapidly Transfer Patient Information Between DoD and VA
     Recommendation: DoD and VA must move quickly to get clinical and
 benefit data to users. In addition, DoD and VA should jointly develop an
 interactive 'My eBenefits' website that provides a single information
 source for service members.
     Goals: Support a patient-centered system of care and efficient
 practices.
     Most of the time, the role of information technology is invisible to
 the service member. They often notice when information is not available. A
 common complaint is lost paperwork. For example, 40% reported having to
 resubmit paperwork during the disability evaluation process.
     6. Strongly Support Walter Reed By Recruiting and Retaining First Rate
 Professionals Through 2011
     Recommendation: Until the day it closes, Walter Reed must have the
 authority and responsibility to recruit and retain first rate professionals
 to deliver first rate care. Walter Reed Army Medical Center has a
 distinguished history and, with one in five injured service members going
 directly to Walter Reed, continues to play a unique and vital role in
 providing care for America's military.
     Goals: Assure that this major military medical center has professional
 and administrative staff necessary for state-of-the art medical care and
 scientific research through 2011.
     "Our recommendations do much more than place band-aids on problems,"
 added Shalala. "Together, they simplify the pathway to recovery and ensure
 that injured service members achieve their maximum potential."
     Of the more than 1.5 million service members deployed in 2.5 million
 deployments,
     -- 37,851 had illnesses or injuries serious enough that they were air
        evacuated from the field
     -- 23,270 have been treated and returned to their units within 72 hours
     -- 2,726 have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury
     -- 644 have had amputations
     -- 598 have had serious burns
     -- 94 have had spinal cord injuries
     -- 48 have sought vision services from the VA
     "We heard time and time again about the overall high quality of care
 received," added Dole. "In the Vietnam era, five out of every eight
 seriously injured service members survived. Today, seven out of eight
 survive, many with injuries that would have been fatal in past wars."
     The Commission's charge was to focus specifically on service members
 from the current conflicts. However, the Commissioners believe these
 recommendations will also benefit past and future generations of veterans.
     Serve, Support, Simplify is rooted in the work done by the Commission
 since it was created by Presidential order March 8th and builds on the work
 of other Task Forces and Commissions that have been examining similar
 issues. The Commission heard testimony at seven public meetings and
 conducted 23 site visits to military bases, VA hospitals and treatment
 centers and public sector facilities across the country. On April 14th, the
 Commission launched an interactive website which included a "Share Your
 Story" feature for service members and their families.
     To reach a new generation of service members, the Commission is
 distributing its recommendations through "You Tube".
     The final Commission report, including reports from the Commission
 subcommittees and survey findings, will be made available to the public by
 July 31, 2007. A complete list of Commission members can be found in the
 press kit or online at http://www.pccww.gov.
     About the President's Commission on Care for America's Returning
 Wounded Warriors:
     The nine-member Commission was established by the President to "conduct
 a comprehensive review of the care America is providing our wounded
 servicemen and women returning from the battlefield."
     * The Commission conducted its own nationwide survey of more than 1700
 service men and women from June 7 to June 19, 2007. Participants were
 military members and veterans who had undergone medical treatment for
 wounds or injuries sustained in Iraq and Afghanistan that led to evacuation
 to the United States.
     Contact:  Nicholas J. Graham
     571/451-6165 (cell)
     Nicholas.graham@wso.whs.mil
 
     Joann Donnellan
     571/438-3939 (cell)
     Joann.donnellan@wso.whs.mil
 
     Main: 703/588-0440
 
 

SOURCE President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded