3 Vets HIV Positive From Clinical Procedure Contamination

VA: 3 patients HIV-positive after clinic mistakes 04/17/09. Three patients exposed to contaminated medical equipment at Veterans Affairs hospitals have tested positive for HIV, the agency said Friday. Initial tests show one patient each from VA medical facilities in Murfreesboro, Tenn.Augusta, Ga.; and Miami has the virus that causes AIDS, according to a VA statement. AP via Yahoo News

Incidence at VA's Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans

Med Center Official Tried to Silence Vet 04/17/09. The experience of 56 year-old Army veteran Tommie Canady at the Washington, D.C., Veterans Medical Center was not the only story members of a VA panel heard when they gathered for a town hall-type meeting. But when he attempted to tell his story to the press a hospital official and security guards stepped in. Military.com

Civilian Contractors Often Denied Insurance Claims

Health Insurers Routinely Deny Claims of Civilian Workers Seriously Injured in Iraq, Afghanistan Wars, According to Los Angeles Times 04/17/09. Civilian contractors injured while serving the U.S. war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan often face delays obtaining or are denied insurance coverage for basic medical care, artificial limbs, psychological counseling and other services, according to a joint investigation by the Times and ProPublica. Kaisernetwork.org

VAOIG Inspection of San Juan VA

Healthcare Inspection Alleged Anesthesia Staffing and Quality of Care Issues VA Caribbean Healthcare System, San Juan, Puerto Rico 04/16/09. The purpose of this review was to evaluate the validity of allegations regarding insufficient anesthesiologist staffing and inadequate intra-operative and post-operative patient monitoring by anesthesiologists at the San Juan VA Medical Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico. We did not substantiate the allegation of insufficient anesthesiologist staffing. Although Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist vacancies existed, we identified no negative impact on patient outcomes as a result. We also did not substantiate the allegation that surgical patients were not monitored appropriately before, during, and after the administration of anesthesia. We found, however, that anesthesia staff failed to properly document the identity of the practitioner who administered medications during a procedure. We recommended that managers ensure that anesthesia staff properly document medication administration in the anesthesia record. VAOIG

Disability Survey

Largest Known Disability Survey to be Released April 21st at National Press Club 04/16/09. On Tuesday, April 21st at 10:00 a.m. a first-ever, independent survey of over 33,000 households will be released. Join us to learn specific details of the survey, which was initiated by the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation and conducted by the University of New Mexico’s Center for Development and Disability. More than 30 experts from fourteen leading universities and medical centers and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set the parameters for the research. WEBINAR ACCESS: http://www.visualwebcaster.com/Reeve-Foundation-Prevalence-Study/ Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation via Newswise

Is Mild TBI Overdiagnosed?

Care of War Veterans with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury — Flawed Perspectives (full text requires subscription) 04/15/09. Researchers estimate that more than 300,000 U.S. veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have sustained a mild traumatic brain injury. Dr. Charles Hoge, Herb Goldberg, and Carl Castro write that the clinical definition of “concussion/mild TBI” adopted by the Department of Defense and the VA is inadequate for achieving the objectives of their well-intentioned initiatives. New England Journal of Medicine

Army officials say war concussions overdiagnosed 04/15/09. Mild brain injuries - once considered an under-recognized problem in returning military troops - are being overdiagnosed because the government is using soft criteria instead of hard medical evidence, an Army doctor and two other officials contend. AP

TBI & Sleep Disorders

Treating sleep disorders in people with traumatic brain injury may not eliminate symptoms 04/15/09. A study in the April 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine is the first to assess the effectiveness of treating sleep disorders in adults with a traumatic brain injury. Results indicate that treatment may result in the objective resolution of the sleep disorder without improvements in daytime sleepiness or neuropsychological function. American Academy of Sleep Medicine via Eurekalert!

News on New Electronic Health Records Integration

Obama Announces Effort To Create New Electronic Health Record System for Veterans That Will Link DOD, VA Records 04/13/09. The new program is a part of DOD's $47 billion health care budget for fiscal year 2010, the Obama administration said. According to the administration, VA's overall budget is set to increase by $25 billion over the next five years (Hefling, AP/Kansas City Star, 4/9). Currently, the two agencies have different medical systems, which has led to delays for veterans entering the VA system and a six-month backlog in disability claims at VA (CongressDaily, 4/9). White House officials said that the goal is to integrate the two systems, but no details have been released about how that could be achieved, the Post reports (Washington Post, 4/10). Kaisernetwork.org

60 Minutes: Creating the Bionic Arm

The Pentagon's Bionic Arm 04/12/09. New technology is making it possible for amputees to pick up small, delicate objects they never thought they would master thanks to the biggest innovation in prosthetic arms since World War II. Scott Pelley reports. Watch video (with short leading commercial). via 60 Minutes

New VA Nursing Academy Sites

VA Announces New Nursing Academy Sites 04/09/09. To provide compassionate, highly-trained nurses to serve the health care needs of the nation’s Veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is establishing new partnerships with five of the country’s finest nursing schools. With these new partnerships, the VA Nursing Academy will expand the number of collaborations between the department and nursing schools from 10 to 15. VA

Proposed Mental Health Services for Vets

VA Budget Adds Mental-Health Services 04/09/09. The proposed Department of Veterans Affairs funding request will provide more post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury services to combat veterans, as well as other mental-health care and services for wounded warriors. DefenseLink.mil

Lifetime E-records

Obama Announces Vets e-Records System 04/09/09. President Obama announced plans to provide servicemembers with an electronic health records system that will follow them from the day they put up their hands to serve until the day they die. The streamlined records system will help alleviate a six-month backlog of claims, according to Obama. Military.com

PTSD & Panic Attacks

No Direct Link Between Panic Attacks, PTSD 04/07/09. New Geisinger research sheds light on panic attacks shortly after disasters and the long-term likelihood a person will experience PTSD related to the disaster. Leading PTSD researcher Joseph Boscarino shows that factors such as a prior history of depression, a person’s emotional support network and self-esteem are better indicators of a person’s susceptibility to PTSD. Geisinger Health System via Newswise

VAOIG Review of Honolulu VA

Healthcare Inspection Administrative Issues VA Pacific Islands Health Care System Honolulu, Hawaii 04/07/09. The purpose of the review was to respond to questions raised by Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Daniel Akaka regarding oversight, equipment, and staffing in the inpatient psychiatric unit (Ward 3B2) operated through a sharing agreement with Tripler Army Medical Center. Responsibilities for Ward 3B2 are defined in a joint policy and generally appear to be clear to managers at both facilities. Equipment and staffing issues have been addressed adequately. Therefore, we made no recommendations. VAOIG

Regaining Lost Functional Ability

VA/UAB study looks at functional decline in older patients after hospitalization 04/07/09. Motivation and expectation may be factors in helping older adults regain lost functional ability after hospitalization, say researchers with the Birmingham VA Medical Center and UAB. In findings published in March in the Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers found that patients hospitalized for surgery returned to normal baseline function more quickly and more completely than did patients hospitalized for illness. University of Alabama at Birmingham via Eurekalert!