Don't Diagnose PTSD Say VA Doctor in Texas

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Rocky
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Don't Diagnose PTSD Say VA Doctor in Texas

Post by Rocky »

ALTHOUGH THE VA SEC. HAD DENOUNCED THIS EMAIL HOW MANY VETERANS HAVE BEEN MISDIAGNOSED BY THIS PERSON AND THEIR STAFF IN TEXAS?



Official Urged Fewer Diagnoses of PTSD



By Christopher Lee, The Washington Post, May 16, 2008
16 May 2008 // A psychologist who helps lead the post-traumatic stress disorder program at a medical facility for veterans in Texas told staff members to refrain from diagnosing PTSD because so many veterans were seeking government disability payments for the condition.

"Given that we are having more and more compensation seeking veterans, I'd like to suggest that you refrain from giving a diagnosis of PTSD straight out," Norma Perez wrote in a March 20 e-mail to mental-health specialists and social workers at the Department of Veterans Affairs' Olin E. Teague Veterans' Center in Temple, Tex. Instead, she recommended that they "consider a diagnosis of Adjustment Disorder."

VA staff members "really don't . . . have time to do the extensive testing that should be done to determine PTSD," Perez wrote.

Adjustment disorder is a less severe reaction to stress than PTSD and has a shorter duration, usually no longer than six months, said Anthony T. Ng, a psychiatrist and member of Mental Health America, a nonprofit professional association.

Veterans diagnosed with PTSD can be eligible for disability compensation of up to $2,527 a month, depending on the severity of the condition, said Alison Aikele, a VA spokeswoman. Those found to have adjustment disorder generally are not offered such payments, though veterans can receive medical treatment for either condition.

Perez's e-mail was obtained and released publicly yesterday by VoteVets.org, a veterans group that has been critical of the Bush administration's policies in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a nonprofit government watchdog group.

"Many veterans believe that the government just doesn't want to pay out the disability that comes along with a PTSD diagnosis, and this revelation will not allay their concerns," John Soltz, chairman of VoteVets.org and an Iraq war veteran, said in a statement.

Melanie Sloan, executive director of CREW, said in a statement: "It is outrageous that the VA is calling on its employees to deliberately misdiagnose returning veterans in an effort to cut costs. Those who have risked their lives serving our country deserve far better."

Veterans Affairs Secretary James B. Peake said in a statement that Perez's e-mail was "inappropriate" and does not reflect VA policy. It has been "repudiated at the highest level of our health care organization," he said.
"VA's leadership will strongly remind all medical staff that trust, accuracy and transparency is paramount to maintaining our relationships with our veteran patients," Peake said.

Peake said Perez has been "counseled" and is "extremely apologetic." Aikele said Perez remains in her job.

A Rand Corp. report released in April found that repeated exposure to combat stress in Iraq and Afghanistan is causing a disproportionately high psychological toll compared with physical injuries. About 300,000 U.S. military personnel who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan are suffering from PTSD or major depression, the study found. The economic cost to the United States -- including medical care, forgone productivity and lost lives through suicide -- is expected to reach $4 billion to $6 billion over two years.

Ng said diagnosing PTSD often requires observing a patient for weeks or months because the condition implies a long, lingering effect of stress.
"Most people exposed to trauma, in general, can get better," Ng said. "You don't want to over-diagnose people with PTSD. Whether it's adjustment disorder is one thing. It's usually a temporary disorder with severity that is not as bad as someone with full-blown PTSD."

Source URL:
http://www.citizensforethics.org/node/31726
Rocky
Charlie 75th Rangers '69-'70
Tango Lima, TM 1-1 Satan's Playboys
4/503, 173rd Airborne Brigade '67-'68
(survivor Hill 875 Dak To '67)
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Rocky
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Post by Rocky »

CPTAUSRET wrote:This guy is a Psychologist, ie he's a Ph.D., not an M.D.!
This is true he is a Ph.D however most doctors involved in the PTSD programs in the VA are Ph.D.s and the Psychologist merely sign off on what they say so this man and others like him carry some weight, a lot of weight in fact. In doing PTSD claims I most often see medical reports for Ph.Ds verses Psychologist so all of have to beware of how the system works and how much weight these guys words carry.
Rocky
Charlie 75th Rangers '69-'70
Tango Lima, TM 1-1 Satan's Playboys
4/503, 173rd Airborne Brigade '67-'68
(survivor Hill 875 Dak To '67)
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Rocky
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Post by Rocky »

CPTAUSRET wrote:
Rocky wrote:
CPTAUSRET wrote:This guy is a Psychologist, ie he's a Ph.D., not an M.D.!
This is true he is a Ph.D however most doctors involved in the PTSD programs in the VA are Ph.D.s and the Psychologist merely sign off on what they say so this man and others like him carry some weight, a lot of weight in fact. In doing PTSD claims I most often see medical reports for Ph.Ds verses Psychologist so all of have to beware of how the system works and how much weight these guys words carry.

Rocky:

Looks like I'm out of touch. I just ran this by my wife, she says this is not uncommon.
You are not really out of touch any more than most veterans brother, you would be surprise at how many really don't know what is happening within the VA system, including those who work within the system. This is why, in my opinion, it is so important for us veterans to communicate and pass the word on things we learn through our experiences with the VA. You would be amazed as how many C&Ps are conducted across the country by people not qualified to conduct specific C&Ps, C&Ps for PTSD for example.

There are certain requirements that are "suppose" to be met by those conducting C&P exams but much more often than we realize these requirements are not met. We as veterans, for the most part, do not know what questions to ask the person conducting such C&Ps, thus, we get screwed by the system and our claims get denied. We, and by we I mean the majority of us, think the VA is there to help us. The reality is that many of the doctors and nurses are there to do what they can under the restrictions placed upon them to help us but the people in power, those who sit in the big offices and make policy, are our enemy in that their main concern is not us but the almighty dollar.

It is, also, a reality that the VA does not follow the federal laws which are suppose to govern its operation. Since I do VA claims nation wide under the power given by Title 38 under the Agent Clause, I see how each states Regional Offices differ in their interpretation of the federal laws and how the veterans pay for it via denied claims. In reality the VA has most of us by the balls simply due to our lack of knowledge regarding VA operations in our particular state and the overall governing status of Title 38 U.S.C. which is suppose to govern all Regional Offices equally.

This same problem of unequal treatment, also, comes from the various Service Organizations who handle claims. Many of the Service Officers are not adequately trained, nor, have the on hand experience of other Service Officers and it is just the luck of the draw as to who an individual veteran may get to handle their claim. For example, I noted in one claim that the Service Officer told on vet that he could not file for PTSD since he did not have a medal for valor or a CIB. This Service Office told this veteran that he could not help him for this reason as the VA would not grant his claim without such awards. This is not at all what the federal status state. They state that the awarding of such medals or the CIB can stand as proof of participating in combat operations and give credence to the PTSD claim.

It is very easy for us to become confused brother when it comes to the VA and how things are done. It is beneficial for us to have such sites as this so that we can communicate our experiences with the VA one to another. None of us knows it all, nor will we ever, but each time we can shed some light on issues concerning the VA and it's operation someone benefits and, to me, that is what it is all about, vets helping vets. :wink:
Rocky
Charlie 75th Rangers '69-'70
Tango Lima, TM 1-1 Satan's Playboys
4/503, 173rd Airborne Brigade '67-'68
(survivor Hill 875 Dak To '67)
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Rocky
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Post by Rocky »

Rascon is from my unit, 173rd Airborne Brigade. I was with them my first tour. Good man. Tell you wife thanks.

It is a shame at how many have gotten PTSD claims approved who really do not deserve the rating, some never even went to Nam and bullshitted their way into a 100% claim. Yet, there are others who fight for years for a claim and are still fighting and never receive a thing. I have a brother now who was on Hill 875 with me, one of the 6 of us who survived from our platoon, and he still has not had a claim granted.

Have a great day brother and give my regards to your wife and my thanks too.
Rocky
Charlie 75th Rangers '69-'70
Tango Lima, TM 1-1 Satan's Playboys
4/503, 173rd Airborne Brigade '67-'68
(survivor Hill 875 Dak To '67)
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