As I was at the gym this evening I was watching the CBS Evening News and a chilling story came on about Sgt. Carmelo Rodriguez and the pain and suffering he went through after being misdiagnosed by U.S. military doctors. The story entitled "A Question of Care: Military Malpractice" outlined the man he was and the man he became once cancer had ravaged his body.....unnecessarily.
The story....with the accompanying video.....was quite disturbing and left me feeling angry that our service men and women receive such sub-par diagnosis and treatment when they are putting their lives on the line for us. I had already known about the poor conditions at our military hospitals thanks to the media awareness last year but this story gave me a new sense of awareness.
In my opinion, if you enlist in the military and serve this country, you should be paid well and receive the best medical attention our society has to offer. I would gladly step aside and let someone cut in line if they had served in time of war and put their life on the line. I will never have to fear for my life fighting a war that I may or may not fully support. No one will ever say......"Rita!...On your feet....here's your gun......get out there. The enemy is over the next hill."
I will never be obligated to take that command from anyone.
The very least (and I do mean very because we should be doing more!) we can do for these solidiers is to provide the best medical care in the best hospitals available. Don't they at least deserve that much??
I can wait my turn. If it were possible, it would be the very least that I could do for them.
1 comment:
Amen. Having experienced the military medical system first-hand for a million years, I ran into a wide range of quality of care. Just like in civilian life - thing is - in the military system, you can't sue for malpractice, so doctors who are not good just keep on practicing.
One area that is always terribly understaffed and underbudgeted is mental health. These guys and gals have nowhere to go for help. If they seek treatment and have a security clearance, they risk losing their jobs. There is huge stigma.
When they force the member out due to injury or incapacity, the VA doesn't have the budget to effectively treat all those pouring into the system. They then languish, without help, often becoming another statistic.
Post a Comment