the Bob Woodruff/Doug Vogt situation

[Homunculus]

other than learning to not ride in Iraqi Army vehicles, do you think this will have a positive impact on the military medical system? the number of stories on the medical support in Iraq has already increased-- last night i saw a story that said if you reached the air force's (even though technically everyone is working at those places) CSH in baghdad you have a 97% (or something like that) chance of leaving alive.

one one hand i think it stinks that it takes a celebrity casualty to throw light on what happens over there every day. on the other i think it may be a good thing for the scrutiny to fall on the system-- who knows, maybe in their search for stories they'll come across some neonatologist or pediatric endocrinologist in a battalion aid station and wonder "what the hell?!?"

--your friendly neighborhood future combat pediatrician caveman

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[deegs]

other than learning to not ride in Iraqi Army vehicles, do you think this will have a positive impact on the military medical system?

who knows, maybe in their search for stories they'll come across some neonatologist or pediatric endocrinologist in a battalion aid station and wonder "what the hell?!?"

I think the media blitz will only focus on what the military does well: practice some pretty amazing medicine in some pretty lousy places. (case in point, the 97% stat that you quoted) I think most of the problems in military medicine are concerned with practicing mediocore medicine some very nice places. can we get a story there?

and I pose this question to you: what is the solution? If we send only FP/ER/Psych/GenSurg/Gas specialties, we would leave our already stuggling MTFs with entire departments missing. but upping the ratios of those specialties translates into quite a bit of bloat during peacetime (not that that is in store any time soon. anyone speak korean? how's the wx in iran?), not to mention continuous deployment for those sorry specialties (pick your rate, pick your fate.....). I don't pretent to have an answer to this one, only that the military seems to have decided to spread the pain around to other specialties, possibly resulting in diminished standard of care? (not to knock any combat pediatricians out there.... )

then again, the attention span of the american public is extremely short. we'll all be back to watching celebs bonkin' other celebs next week......

 

[Capt_Mac]

other than learning to not ride in Iraqi Army vehicles, do you think this will have a positive impact on the military medical system? the number of stories on the medical support in Iraq has already increased-- last night i saw a story that said if you reached the air force's (even though technically everyone is working at those places) CSH in baghdad you have a 97% (or something like that) chance of leaving alive.

one one hand i think it stinks that it takes a celebrity casualty to throw light on what happens over there every day. on the other i think it may be a good thing for the scrutiny to fall on the system-- who knows, maybe in their search for stories they'll come across some neonatologist or pediatric endocrinologist in a battalion aid station and wonder "what the hell?!?"

--your friendly neighborhood future combat pediatrician caveman

Actually, the statistic that they quote 97% has been the same ever since WWII. The airforce does not have a CSH in Baghdad, 10th CSH is there right now, the air force EMEDS is in Balad.

One of our staff surgeons recently back from Baghdad told us about the pediatric neonatologist who was doing primary care at the embassy in Baghdad. He knew this guy was out of his element when he asked them what the usual dose of Motrin was.

 

[Homunculus]

Actually, the statistic that they quote 97% has been the same ever since WWII. The airforce does not have a CSH in Baghdad, 10th CSH is there right now, the air force EMEDS is in Balad.

lol. well, at least the national news got the number part right

--your friendly neighborhood can't believe everything on TV caveman