Infections From Contaminated VA Equipment

VA: 16 patients of problem clinics infected 03/27/09. Viral infections, including hepatitis, have been found in 16 patients exposed to contaminated equipment at Veterans Affairs medical facilities, a department spokeswoman said Friday. So far, 10 colonoscopy patients from the VA medical center in Murfreesboro, Tenn., have tested positive for hepatitis, VA spokeswoman Katie Roberts told The Associated Press. AP via Yahoo News

Veterans Corps

'Veterans Corps' Bill Moves Forward 03/26/09. Senators moved Wednesday toward creation of a "Veterans Corps" of up to 5,000 paid volunteers to work on aid programs for vets, their families and the families of active-duty troops. Military.com

Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report - Veterans Health Care

Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Highlights Recent Developments in Veterans' Health Care 03/26/09.

• Reimbursements: The House Veterans' Affairs Committee on Wednesday approved a bill (HR 1377), sponsored by committee Chair Bob Filner (D-Calif.), that would allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to reimburse veterans who receive emergency care at non-VA facilities, CQ Today reports.
• Unsterile equipment: Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) have requested that VA disclose information and account for mistakes with medical equipment that possibly exposed more than 10,000 patients to infectious diseases, the AP/Miami Herald
• Service-related injuries: A World War II-era law defining service-related injuries is outdated and is preventing some veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from receiving the medical treatment they need, members of veterans groups testified during a House Veterans' Affairs Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee hearing, the AP/Chicago Tribune reports.
• PTSD: VA has hired outreach specialists to assist veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in enrolling in programs that aid them in transitioning back to civilian life, the AP/Kansas City Star reports.

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VAOIG Review of Madison, WI. Veterans Hospital

Combined Assessment Program Review of the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital Madison, Wisconsin 03/25/09. During the week of December 1–5, 2008, the OIG conducted a Combined Assessment Program (CAP) review of the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital (the hospital), Madison, WI. The purpose of the review was to evaluate selected operations, focusing on patient care administration and quality management (QM). During the review, we also provided fraud and integrity awareness training to 121 employees. The hospital is part of Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 12. VAOIG

Assessing Combat Exposure & PTSD

Assessing Combat Exposure and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Troops and Estimating the Costs to Society: Implications from the RAND Invisible Wounds of War Study 03/25/09. Testimony presented before the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs on March 24, 2009. RAND

New Definition of Combat Needed?

Vet groups: Definition of combat is outdated 03/25/09. A World War II-era law established that veterans who "engaged in combat with the enemy" receive special treatment when they seek disability compensation, making it less burdensome for them to prove the injury was from their time in the service. But members of veterans groups testified Tuesday that the law is outdated, and some veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are struggling to obtain disability benefits because they don't meet the definition. Yahoo News

Unlearning Fear

Forget it! A biochemical pathway for blocking your worst fears? 03/25/09. A receptor for glutamate, the most prominent neurotransmitter in the brain, plays a key role in the process of "unlearning," report researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. Their findings, published in the current issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, could eventually help scientists develop new drug therapies to treat a variety of disorders, including phobias and anxiety disorders, particularly post-traumatic stress disorder. Salk Institute via Eurekalert!

VA Study of Rheumatoid Arthritis

VA Conducting Large-Scale Study on Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment 03/23/09. A recently begun Department of Veterans Affairs cooperative study is pitting different pharmaceutical treatments for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) against each other and promises to take a comprehensive look at what drugs work in what combination for which patients in the hope of improving RA therapy across the board. The study will also generate a dense database of patient information that will allow future researchers to examine links between a patient’s genetic blueprint and the success of different drugs. U.S. Medicine

New Therapies for TBI

New Brain Therapies Help Wounded 03/23/09. Innovative therapies that have assisted previously comatose patients regain consciousness may be incorporated on a greater scale to treat troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries, a brain injury expert said here today. Dr. Philip A. DeFina, chief executive and scientific officer at the not-for-profit International Brain Research Foundation Inc., in Edison, N.J., said that, over the past four years, electronic brain stimulation, oxygen-induction, drugs and other therapies were used to bring 43 people, including five injured soldiers, out of minimally-conscious or vegetative states. DefenseLink

Gulf War Syndrome & Response to Environmental Chemicals

Gulf War Veterans Display Abnormal Brain Response to Specific Chemicals 03/23/09. A new study by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers is the first to pinpoint damage inside the brains of veterans suffering from Gulf War syndrome – a finding that links the illness to chemical exposures and may lead to diagnostic tests and treatments. UT Southwestern Medical Center via Newswise