DOCTORS’ LOUNGE
get in immediately and two, three and four’s
usually in a short time. At the other end nine
or 10 may wait for years or may never get
in. This is clearly explained in detail and all
servicemen know this.
VA would provide maternity care to one of
their patients, it is inconceivable to me how
this would be possible. I would venture to
say that there has never been a birth in a
VA hospital.
Enlisted personnel are usually from the
lower economic class who cannot afford
college and enlist to learn a marketable skill.
Most of them do that in their first tour and
then leave because they can make more
money in the civilian world without the
disadvantage of remote deployments. This
is especially true of female recruits who are
usually married by this time and starting a
family. If they are married to a serviceman,
they are placed in Tricare and many people
mistake VA care with Tricare.
The care provided by VA is usually Primary care by an internist, family practice
or nurse practitioner which is the same as
Primary care in the civilian world. It would
be irrational for VA to provide special providers for women who would have nothing
to do because of the rarity of female patients.
Appropriate consultation is provided with
the nearest Medical School faculty (by law)
and this has proven to be an excellent arrangement.
Female service personnel who do remain
in the service until retirement may apply
for VA care but almost never do because
they are automatically placed in Tricare
and Tricare takes care of children and VA
does not and they want to go to the same
system. As a result, Tricare is predominantly women and children and VA is almost
all men. Pregnancy is not recognized as a
consequence of military service and while
You mention women who must drive
miles and miles to get Ob or Gyn care but
If a patient lives over 50 miles from a providing facility, they may go to a provider of
their choice and this only requires a simple
form that the VA will be happy to assist you
with but all it requires is mileage and most
people have no trouble with that. The other
problem that you mention is suicide, yet you
point out that the suicide rate in draftees
approximated the never-serving - popu-
lation, ergo suicides cannot be ascribed to
military service. Most of the volunteers do
so for economic reasons and this patient
population group must be evaluated with
a similar group in civilian life in order to
draw valid conclusions.
Finally, you mention if a female veteran
deliver a baby outside of the “window” of
labor and delivery, they may not be reimbursed. You are confused and are writing
about DEERS eligibility after separation
from active duty. If a pregnant servicewoman separates from active duty she is eligible
for DEERS, the military enrollment system
for dependents. However, if she delivers a
baby 18 months after separation, DEERS
will consider this out of the window. The
system is very generous and 12 months is
the upper limit for gestation.
In summary, I think that the VA does an
excellent job with excellent providers and a
dedicated staff. It is high time that all those
who wish to use the VA as a” whipping boy”
acquaint themselves with the facts.
Robert Arnold, MD, is a retired general surgeon who practiced in Louisville and the U.S.
Navy.
THE DOCTORS’ BALL HONORS
LELAN WOODMANSEE
Gordon R. Tobin, MD
A
t the annual Doctors’ Ball, October 17, 2015, Lelan Woodmansee,
CAE, Executive Director of the
Greater Louisville Medical Society (GLMS)
for the past 35 years, was awarded a most
special honor, the Doctors’ Ball Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award. In
the award ceremony, he was cited for his
stellar legacy of advocacy for medicine, his
service to the Louisville community, and
his leadership through compassion and
kindness, a quality he shares with his gracious wife, Dr. Marlena Woodmansee. The
occasion coincided with Mr. Woodmansee’s
retirement and transfer of the GLMS Executive Directorship to his able successor, Mr.
Bert Guinn, MBA, CAE.
The Doctors’ Ball Award noted that
during Mr. Woodmansee’s stewardship of
the Medical Society, his many contributions were highlighted by five major GLMS
achievements that he greatly facilitated:
(1) founding and nurturing of The Healing Place, Louisville’s acclaimed addiction
recovery program, which continues to save
souls lost to addiction with a documented
great success; (2) founding and nurturing
of Supplies Over Seas, Louisville’s support
program for international medical missions,
which recycles medical supplies and equipment to serve the mo