San Francisco - In a case that has raised questions about the appropriate role of the three branches of the U.S. government, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last month that veterans may look to the courts to seek relief from their claims about VA’s failure to provide adequate or timely care to veterans in need.

Washington - One of the greatest challenges for the Defense Centers for Excellence (DCoE) is educating providers on the complexities of PTSD, which is far more difficult to treat than routine illnesses for which patients can just pop a pill.

From maps to the weather to tracking how far they’ve walked today, people are relying more and more on their Smartphones. “There’s an app for that,” has grown from novel phrase to punchline to a simple fact of life. Now, there is even an application to help veterans suffering from PTSD.

WASHINGTON—In June 2010, legislation was passed making it considerably easier for veterans diagnosed with PTSD to receive service-connected benefits and care from VA.

Use short, simple sentences. Summarize key points throughout the appointment.
These are among the tips that a recently released toolkit recommends to providers treating military personnel with mTBI who are also suffering from co-occurring health conditions.

WASHINGTON, DC—Returning servicemembers are among the some 40 million Americans who suffer from chronic long term sleep disorders, and, for reasons ranging from disrupted sleep during deployment, battlefield stress or even hyper vigilance, their sleep problems can be especially challenging to treat. That is even more the case when post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, pain and traumatic brain injury (TBI) are involved.

WASHINGTON, DC—Since an Institute of Medicine report in 2008, there has been significant consensus that penetrating and severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) increases the risk for dementia later in life. The evidence was not as strong linking mild TBI (mTBI) to dementia. More research was needed.

WASHINGTON, DC—As more data is emerging on the short and long-term effects of traumatic brain injury (TBI), researchers are discovering that the injury affects women differently than it does men. Most notably, there seems to be a differential pattern of post-concussive symptoms among female compared to male OEF/OIF veterans with deployment–related TBI.

WASHINGTON, DC—Last summer, DoD issued a policy designed to speed detection of mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI) on the battlefield. Now, using new technologies to make the process as efficient as possible, the policy is being implemented in theater, according to DoD officials.

WASHINGTON, DC—VHA and DoD have already recognized that they serve the same patients, just at different times during their lives. But it is only during the last few years that the two departments have thought of themselves as a true continuum of care, at least as far as mental health care is concerned, and have endeavored to ease the transition for patients from one system to the other.