Substance Use Disorders in the U.S. Armed Forces

Substance Use Disorders in the U.S. Armed Forces PDF

Author: Institute of Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2013-03-21

Total Pages: 350

ISBN-13: 0309260558

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Problems stemming from the misuse and abuse of alcohol and other drugs are by no means a new phenomenon, although the face of the issues has changed in recent years. National trends indicate substantial increases in the abuse of prescription medications. These increases are particularly prominent within the military, a population that also continues to experience long-standing issues with alcohol abuse. The problem of substance abuse within the military has come under new scrutiny in the context of the two concurrent wars in which the United States has been engaged during the past decade-in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) and Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn). Increasing rates of alcohol and other drug misuse adversely affect military readiness, family readiness, and safety, thereby posing a significant public health problem for the Department of Defense (DoD). To better understand this problem, DoD requested that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) assess the adequacy of current protocols in place across DoD and the different branches of the military pertaining to the prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs). Substance Use Disorders in the U.S. Armed Forces reviews the IOM's task of assessing access to SUD care for service members, members of the National Guard and Reserves, and military dependents, as well as the education and credentialing of SUD care providers, and offers specific recommendations to DoD on where and how improvements in these areas could be made.

A National Trauma Care System

A National Trauma Care System PDF

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2016-10-12

Total Pages: 531

ISBN-13: 0309442850

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Advances in trauma care have accelerated over the past decade, spurred by the significant burden of injury from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Between 2005 and 2013, the case fatality rate for United States service members injured in Afghanistan decreased by nearly 50 percent, despite an increase in the severity of injury among U.S. troops during the same period of time. But as the war in Afghanistan ends, knowledge and advances in trauma care developed by the Department of Defense (DoD) over the past decade from experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq may be lost. This would have implications for the quality of trauma care both within the DoD and in the civilian setting, where adoption of military advances in trauma care has become increasingly common and necessary to improve the response to multiple civilian casualty events. Intentional steps to codify and harvest the lessons learned within the military's trauma system are needed to ensure a ready military medical force for future combat and to prevent death from survivable injuries in both military and civilian systems. This will require partnership across military and civilian sectors and a sustained commitment from trauma system leaders at all levels to assure that the necessary knowledge and tools are not lost. A National Trauma Care System defines the components of a learning health system necessary to enable continued improvement in trauma care in both the civilian and the military sectors. This report provides recommendations to ensure that lessons learned over the past decade from the military's experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq are sustained and built upon for future combat operations and translated into the U.S. civilian system.

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services PDF

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2018-03-29

Total Pages: 467

ISBN-13: 0309466601

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Approximately 4 million U.S. service members took part in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Shortly after troops started returning from their deployments, some active-duty service members and veterans began experiencing mental health problems. Given the stressors associated with war, it is not surprising that some service members developed such mental health conditions as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use disorder. Subsequent epidemiologic studies conducted on military and veteran populations that served in the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq provided scientific evidence that those who fought were in fact being diagnosed with mental illnesses and experiencing mental healthâ€"related outcomesâ€"in particular, suicideâ€"at a higher rate than the general population. This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the quality, capacity, and access to mental health care services for veterans who served in the Armed Forces in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn. It includes an analysis of not only the quality and capacity of mental health care services within the Department of Veterans Affairs, but also barriers faced by patients in utilizing those services.

Military Medical Care: Questions and Answers

Military Medical Care: Questions and Answers PDF

Author: Dan J. Jansen

Publisher: DIANE Publishing

Published: 2010-02

Total Pages: 20

ISBN-13: 1437920047

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Contents: Recent Developments; Background; Subjects: Purpose of DoD¿s Military Health System (MHS); Structure of the MHS; Unified Medical Budget; Medicare Eligible Retiree Health Care Fund; Cost of Military Health Care to Beneficiaries; Changes in MHS in Recent Years; Eligibility to Receive Care; Assignment of Priorities for Care in Military Medical Facilities; Relationship of DoD Health Care to Medicare; Military Personnel and Free Medical Care for Life; Payment of Private Health Care Providers; Effect of Base Realignment and Closure on Military Medical Care; Pharmacy Benefit; Medical Benefits Available to Reservists; Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program; Tricare and Abortion; and Use of Animals in Medical Res. or Training.

Military Medical Care

Military Medical Care PDF

Author: Don J. Jansen

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub

Published: 2012-10-20

Total Pages: 30

ISBN-13: 9781480152694

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The primary objective of the military health system, which includes the Defense Department's hospitals, clinics, and medical personnel, is to maintain the health of military personnel so they can carry out their military missions and to be prepared to deliver health care during wartime. The military health system also covers dependents of active duty personnel, military retirees and their dependents, including some members of the reserve components. The military health system provides health care services through either Department of Defense (DOD) medical facilities, known as “military treatment facilities” or “MTFs” as space is available, or through private health care providers. The military health system currently includes some 56 hospitals and 365 clinics serving 9.7 million beneficiaries. It operates worldwide and employs some 58,369 civilians and 86,007 military personnel. Since 1966, civilian care to millions of dependents and retirees (and retirees' dependents) has been provided through a program still known in law as the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS), but more commonly known as TRICARE. TRICARE has four main benefit plans: a health maintenance organization option (TRICARE Prime), a preferred provider option (TRICARE Extra), a fee-for-service option (TRICARE Standard), and a Medicare wrap-around option (TRICARE for Life) for Medicare-eligible retirees. Other TRICARE plans include TRICARE Young Adult, TRICARE Reserve Select and TRICARE Retired Reserve. TRICARE also includes a pharmacy program and optional dental plans. Options available to beneficiaries vary by the beneficiary's duty status and location. This report answers several frequently asked questions about military health care, including: How is the military health system structured? What is TRICARE? What are the different TRICARE plans and who is eligible? What are the costs of military health care to beneficiaries? What is the relationship of TRICARE to Medicare? How does the Affordable Care Act affect TRICARE? What are the long-term trends in defense health care costs? What is the Medicare Eligible Retiree Health Care fund, which funds TRICARE for Life? The Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) have also published important studies on the organization, coordination and costs of the military health system, as well as its effectiveness addressing particular health challenges. The Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs Home Page, available at http://www.health.mil/, may also be of interest for additional information on the military health system.

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