With most 1990-1991 Gulf War veterans now either retired or separated
from military service, some individuals have expressed concern that the
Specialized Care Center and the CCEP will be discontinued. This is not
true. Today, the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs are institutionalizing
the lessons of the 1990-1991 Gulf War and are jointly taking steps to expand the
clinical services available to deployed forces. The experiences after
the Vietnam and 1990-1991 Gulf Wars have shown that the post-deployment period is
crucial for carrying out medical screening and evaluation and providing
appropriate care for returning Service members.
Building on the lessons of the 1990-1991 Gulf War, the DoD and VA
are expanding existing clinical programs for post-deployment screening
and evaluation. The Departments are developing clinical practice guidelines
to assist health care providers in screening and evaluating service members
with health concerns following deployment. Specific treatment guidelines
are also being developed. Described as instruction books for physicians
and patients, "clinical practice guidelines" provide clinically-driven
assessments based on best medical practices and best available medical
evidence.
These deployment health guidelines are currently in development,
with pilot testing scheduled for summer of 2001. During this development
phase, program managers are asking for veterans' input. To ensure your
comments are considered, please write to charles.engel@amedd.army.mil
by December 31, 2000. Your input is an important component of the planning
process.
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