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Log inOrono: Brain injuries' effect on troops topic of forum
Orono: Brain injuries' effect on troops topic of forum
by Outspoken on Thu Jun 12, 2008 6:26 am
Orono: Brain injuries' effect on troops topic of forum
By Meg Haskell
Staff Writer Bangor Daily News
ORONO, Maine - Traumatic brain injury, affecting an estimated 15 percent of American troops who have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, is widely considered the "signature injury" of the current military conflicts. On Wednesday, about 30 civilian health care providers attended a daylong program at the University of Maine to learn more about diagnosing and treating TBI in the servicemen and -women they may treat in their practices.
Active-duty service members typically obtain their mental and physical health care from military-run hospitals and clinics. But the "citizen soldiers" of National Guard units, along with military reservists, usually return to their hometowns after a deployment and attempt to resume their disrupted lives. This means their health care is most often provided by nonmilitary professionals who may not be familiar with the problems associated with physical injury of the brain or the range of psychological responses to the dangers and stresses of combat.
Wednesday’s conference was aimed at familiarizing civilian health professionals with the nature of these disorders as well as with aspects of the military culture that may make identifying them more difficult.
About 2,500 Maine Army and Air National Guard troops have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003. About 700 more are scheduled to deploy in the next two years.
"This is not going away," said Maj. Mike Backus, a spokesman for the Maine Army National Guard, who spoke at the event on behalf of Maj. Gen. John "Bill" Libby, Adjutant General of the Maine Army National Guard.
Modern-day soldiers are more likely to survive deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan than their counterparts in previous wars, thanks in large part to improvements in vehicular and body armor, Backus said. But roadside explosives and suicide bombers have exacted a terrible toll nonetheless, both in the form of life-changing physical injuries and amputations and in the less visible but still devastating disorders associated with mild traumatic brain injury, or MTBI, and post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.
The two conditions share many symptoms — including emotional instability, headaches, insomnia, fatigue, loss of concentration and slowed mental responses — but both too often go unrecognized and untreated, Backus said, affecting soldiers, families, friends, employers and society in general. The military has made "great strides" in addressing the mental health needs of soldiers in recent years, he added, but more needs to be done. "We owe it to our soldiers to provide the very best care we can," he said.
Most soldiers absorb military values such as resilience, endurance and attention to detail, said Lt. Col. Andrew Gibson, a chaplain assigned to Joint Forces Headquarters at Camp Keyes in Augusta. The culture discourages complaining, and soldiers may fear ridicule, loss of respect and demotion if they acknowledge mental or physical distress.
For many, Gibson said, the culture is so ingrained that soldiers don’t realize they’re denying their symptoms. They may not recognize that their headaches, sleep problems, irritability and poor job performance are related to their deployment. It’s important for mental health care providers to help service members make the connection and feel safe in seeking treatment.
http://bangornews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=165555&zoneid=500
By Meg Haskell
Staff Writer Bangor Daily News
ORONO, Maine - Traumatic brain injury, affecting an estimated 15 percent of American troops who have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, is widely considered the "signature injury" of the current military conflicts. On Wednesday, about 30 civilian health care providers attended a daylong program at the University of Maine to learn more about diagnosing and treating TBI in the servicemen and -women they may treat in their practices.
Active-duty service members typically obtain their mental and physical health care from military-run hospitals and clinics. But the "citizen soldiers" of National Guard units, along with military reservists, usually return to their hometowns after a deployment and attempt to resume their disrupted lives. This means their health care is most often provided by nonmilitary professionals who may not be familiar with the problems associated with physical injury of the brain or the range of psychological responses to the dangers and stresses of combat.
Wednesday’s conference was aimed at familiarizing civilian health professionals with the nature of these disorders as well as with aspects of the military culture that may make identifying them more difficult.
About 2,500 Maine Army and Air National Guard troops have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003. About 700 more are scheduled to deploy in the next two years.
"This is not going away," said Maj. Mike Backus, a spokesman for the Maine Army National Guard, who spoke at the event on behalf of Maj. Gen. John "Bill" Libby, Adjutant General of the Maine Army National Guard.
Modern-day soldiers are more likely to survive deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan than their counterparts in previous wars, thanks in large part to improvements in vehicular and body armor, Backus said. But roadside explosives and suicide bombers have exacted a terrible toll nonetheless, both in the form of life-changing physical injuries and amputations and in the less visible but still devastating disorders associated with mild traumatic brain injury, or MTBI, and post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.
The two conditions share many symptoms — including emotional instability, headaches, insomnia, fatigue, loss of concentration and slowed mental responses — but both too often go unrecognized and untreated, Backus said, affecting soldiers, families, friends, employers and society in general. The military has made "great strides" in addressing the mental health needs of soldiers in recent years, he added, but more needs to be done. "We owe it to our soldiers to provide the very best care we can," he said.
Most soldiers absorb military values such as resilience, endurance and attention to detail, said Lt. Col. Andrew Gibson, a chaplain assigned to Joint Forces Headquarters at Camp Keyes in Augusta. The culture discourages complaining, and soldiers may fear ridicule, loss of respect and demotion if they acknowledge mental or physical distress.
For many, Gibson said, the culture is so ingrained that soldiers don’t realize they’re denying their symptoms. They may not recognize that their headaches, sleep problems, irritability and poor job performance are related to their deployment. It’s important for mental health care providers to help service members make the connection and feel safe in seeking treatment.
http://bangornews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=165555&zoneid=500
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Plato (427-347 BC)
Plato (427-347 BC)
