1.      VA, Others Focused On Connection Between Head Injuries, PTSD.  Newsweek (11/12, Bast) said veteran David Brown, who came home from Iraq displaying symptoms of both a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is at the "vanguard of military medicine, where doctors," including some with Veterans Affairs, "officials, and politicians are puzzling out the connection between head injuries and PTSD, and the role each plays in both physical and psychological post-combat illness." After noting that a "civilian task force of doctors and scientists commissioned by the military to assess how PTSD and TBI affect troops" will "meet in December to discuss whether troops suffering from both should receive special medical treatment," Newsweek said the "National Intrepid Center of Excellence, a military medical facility in Bethesda, Md.," is "devoted to the care of returning vets who suffer from PTSD and/or head trauma."
     Shinseki: VA's  PTSD Center Offers "Reliable, Expert Information." In a Tacoma (WA) News Tribune (11/11) op-ed, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki encouraged veterans, "their family members, clinicians and members of the public to visit the website for VA's National Center for PTSD (www. ptsd.va.gov), which provides reliable, expert information." The Burlington (VT) Free Press (11/11), the Concord (NH) Monitor (11/11), the Lawrence (KS) Journal-World (11/11), and the Nashville-based Tennessean (11/11) ran similar versions of this op-ed.
     Troubled Vets Find Dogs Bring Them Peace. The "Video" page for Time (11/12) profiled veteran Bradley Fasnacht, whose struggles with mental health issues were lessened when a nonprofit called P2V (Pets 2 Vets) matched him with a shelter dog. The piece focused mainly on the nonprofit's founder, David Sharpe, who explained how his own life was vastly improved when he first decided to adopt a shelter dog.

2.      Group Tries To Block Moving Of Roanoke VA Office. The Roanoke (VA) Times (11/13) reports, "The cost of renovating one of downtown Roanoke's tallest buildings has reached a new height -- $61.6 million. The latest figure includes the expense of temporarily relocating the regional Veterans Affairs office while energy-saving improvements are made to its current home, the Poff Federal Building. Most of the project will be paid for by $50.9 million in federal stimulus funds. But it will cost $10.7 million more to move the Veterans Affairs office and pay the rent at the three locations it will occupy during the construction, a government official said Friday." Boots at the Booth, a veterans group, on Friday "filed court papers asking a federal judge to block the office's temporary relocation. The request for a temporary injunction is based on concerns that the move will only worsen a claim-processing backlog and other problems at the VA office. But those behind the legal action also question the renovation's cost."

3.      Ceremony In West Virginia Recognizes Veterans For Service. The Martinsburg (WV) Journal (11/12, McVey, 17K) reports, "'Ordinary people accomplishing extraordinary things' was the theme of Danny O'Brian Barrett's keynote address during Thursday's annual Veterans Day ceremonies at the Doughboy Memorial. ... Barrett lauded the service of all veterans. Whether they saw combat or not, they all sacrificed, he said. 'We choose to honor veterans from the latest generation to the earliest generation,' Barrett said. Barrett also recognized the sacrifices of veterans' families and how important their support is, describing the families as extraordinary."

4.      Vets In Massachusetts Honored For Sacrifice. The Boston Herald (11/12, Sherman, 123K) reports, "Around the state yesterday, Veterans Day events paid public tribute to those whose lives have been marked by war. Meanwhile, in Iraq, Worcester resident Jesus Moreta, the son of Dominican immigrants, was one of 40 service members sworn in as new citizens. 'Veterans Day offers our nation a chance to stand united as we honor the men and women who have given so much to protect the values and way of life we hold dear,' Sen. Brown (R-Mass.), a 30-year member of the National Guard, said in a statement."

5.      Morristown Vets Mark Day Of Remembrance On The Green. The Morris County (NJ) Daily Record (11/12, 33K) reports, "Vietnam veteran Edward Ramirez was astounded when he saw a TV program featuring a debate at a Texas school district about reducing the numbers of pages devoted to wars in history textbooks. The keynote speaker at a Veterans Day ceremony on The Morristown Green, Ramirez told the audience: 'I say to you all that the day America can no longer make room in our history textbooks to chronicle the actions and deeds, sacrifices and dedication of our veterans is the day we take the first backward step to oblivion.' Some 200 veterans, family members and observers gathered on The Green to pay homage to all who have served in the armed forces and to salute the 2010 'Veteran of the Year' -- Morristown resident Eugene A. York, 89."

6.      Pittsburgh Council President Seeks Inventory Of War Memorials. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (11/13, Smydo, 205K) reports, "After a minivan knocked down a Troy Hill monument last winter, City Council President Darlene Harris pushed through a bill setting a Sept. 1 deadline for officials to develop a citywide inventory of war memorials and a long-term plan for maintaining them. On Thursday, Mrs. Harris marked Veterans Day with a ceremony at the rebuilt Troy Hill monument. But the city has made little progress on the inventory and maintenance plan. ... City Planning Director Noor Ismail said the inventory is an ambitious project that will involve contacting various community groups to find out 'what's out there.' She said work would begin in earnest arly next year."

7.      Veterans Honored For Examples They Set. The Sioux Falls (SD) Argus Leader (11/12, Reinecke) reports, "This Veterans Day, 12-year-old Devin Carpenter made sure his boots were shined and his Sioux Empire Young Marines uniform was pressed. He sat proudly among dozens of veterans in the Lincoln High School auditorium for the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Veterans Day Program, one of several area programs honoring veterans Thursday. ... Inspiring young people such as Carpenter was the message during the program. Lt. Col. Mark Johnston of the US Army Reserve spoke of the importance of thanking veterans for the freedoms enjoyed today."

8.      Twin Cities Honor Area Veterans. The York County (ME) Journal-Tribune (11/12, Mendros, 9K) reports, "Leading the way through the streets of Saco and Biddeford was the color guard, with members from different generations and various branches of the military; there were veterans, some walking and many riding in cars; school bands from both Biddeford and Saco performed and, local Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops also took park in Thursday's Veterans Day parade. ... Both the Biddeford High School and Thornton Academy bands played the National Anthem and a member of the USS San Juan submarine crew raised the American flag. The flag was flown at half-staff on Thursday, at the order of Gov. John Baldacci, in memory of First Lt. James Zimmerman, a Marine from Aroostook, who was killed in Afghanistan last week."

9.      Ceremonies In South Jersey Honor Veterans. The Press of Atlantic City (11/12, Spahr, Dineen, 67K) reports Bart Russell, a Vietnam Veteran and recipient of the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, spoke during the Cape May County Veterans Ceremony, where he "told more than 200 people they need to remember long-forgotten veterans as they sat breathing in the cool air of November in a 'garden of stone.' 'It's easy to forget them for all, except for their families and friends.' That 'garden,' as Russell referred to it, acts as a daily reminder to passers-by of the county's loss of servicemen and women and is the site of the annual ceremony. ... His story of his wartime service was just one heard throughout the US Thursday, but it also was a reminder to those in Cape May Court House to thank a veteran and honor his or her service."

10.    Veterans Support Organization Defends Solicitations. The Cape Cod (MA) Times (11/13) reports, "Two fundraisers who were dressed in camouflage and soliciting money for veterans in South Dennis this week violated their charity's policy by dressing like soldiers, the president of Veterans Support Organization said Friday." Group founder Richard Van Houten "said the man and woman outside the South Dennis Super Stop & Shop on Veterans Day should have been wearing khaki-colored uniforms that identified them as non-veterans. ... While the group is registered with Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley's public charities division, it is based in Warwick, R.I. It has been questioned about its collection practices before." Van Houten, "who described himself as a disabled veteran, said 30 percent of money collected is used to pay the R.I. group's solicitors. Most of the group's fundraisers are either veterans who are homeless or near homeless, and only 10 percent of the fundraisers are non-veterans, he said."

11.    VA Hopes To Improve Services By Tracking Veteran Demographics. EFE (11/10) covered a White House/Veterans Affairs round table with Hispanic media. EFE focused its coverage on how VA will track veteran demographics, including for those who are Hispanic, in order to improve services offered. EFE also noted White House/VA efforts to combat veteran homelessness. Notimex (11/10), meanwhile, pointed out that a hotline in Spanish is available for active military members or their families to prevent suicide.

12.    Veteran Care Study Finds Health Outcomes Equal To Non-VA Providers.  McClatchy (11/13, Adams) reports, "The Department of Veterans Affairs, which for years has touted the achievements of its healthcare system, is now highlighting a new study that shows its health outcomes are -- about like everybody else's. ... What the latest study shows is that the VA performs well on what are known as 'process' measures -- whether a certain test was ordered, for example. But studies that compare health outcomes -- do patients in the VA system do better or live longer? -- are equivocal" to care from non-VA providers. "Of 12 studies that compared mortality, for example, three showed a better outcome for VA patients, two showed a better outcome for non-VA patients, and seven showed no difference. That's very different from the process measures, which showed an overwhelming VA advantage. Researchers aren't sure what causes that disconnect."

13.    Assistive Technology Helps Troops Regain Independence, Normalcy. Bolling Aviator (11/12) reports, "Assistive technology helps service members, like Walter Reed Army Medical Center wounded warrior Staff Sgt. Drew McComber, return to 'normal' daily living: Reading a menu in a restaurant or checking e-mail everyday." Amanda Reinsfelder, an assistive technology specialist at Walter Reed, explained that assistive technology "has two key pieces, the device and the service.' ... Assistive technology services also include re-evaluating and adjusting the accommodations as the individual's needs change, she added." McComber said the technology "helped [him] get back and feel less like a patient, and more like a regular person."

14.    Soldier With PTSD Went AWOL Rather Than Deploy To Afghanistan. The CBS Evening News (11/12, story 3, 2:40, Couric) reported on "a serious and growing problem for the US military: combat stress. Nearly 70,000 Americans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan have been diagnosed with PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder. Many more may suffer from it but are just too reluctant to come forward." CBS (Keteyian) added, "Jeff Hanks is a 30-year-old Army specialist on a mission." Jeff Hanks: "People need to understand that this is a problem, that this is a widespread problem." Keteyian: "In 2008, Hanks served a six-month tour in Iraq. His first taste of war taking a haunting toll. One graphic image: a marketplace bomb that hit too close to home." Hanks: "There was a little girl, it was hard to tell she was a little girl, but we knew. ... She was badly hurt. She was about the same age as my oldest daughter and I saw her in pain and I just... You know, it's always stuck with me. I just tried to... I just tried to deal with it, you know?" Keteyian: "Earlier this year, he was deployed again, this time to Afghanistan. He returned home in September a stranger to his wife and two young girls." Hanks: "She didn't want to be around me. That hurt." Keteyian: "Last month, Hanks says he asked for help. Instead, he claims, a superior officer at Fort Campbell ordered him back to Afghanistan. Just days before he was set to get a mental health exam. So he walked away . I mean, going AWOL is... It's about as bad as you can..." Hanks: "Yes, sir. ... But I felt like I had no other choice." Keteyian: "At home in North Carolina, Hanks got evaluations from three civilian therapists who all recommended he get tested for PTSD, one doctor stating, 'His current functioning is clearly severely impaired.' Yesterday, on Veterans Day, Hanks headed back to Fort Campbell to turn himself in. How are you feeling?" Hanks: "Nervous. Anxious to get this going." Keteyian: "Hanks then walked across the street and into a waiting car, and an uncertain fate. A spokesperson at Fort Campbell said Hanks would be treated the same as any other soldier who chooses to go AWOL, and Hanks told us last night he will now get the healthcare he so desperately wanted."

15.    VA Will Deploy Mental Health EHR Module.  Government Health IT (11/12, Mosquera) reports, "The Veterans Affairs Department awarded a contract to DSS Inc., a healthcare software developer and integrator, to deploy a mental health module for the department's VistA electronic medical record system. About 50 VA hospitals have tested the mental health set of tools, which guides clinicians in treatment planning and intake documentation specific to mental health settings, making records more accessible and narrative notes more legible. ... The software is designed to integrate mental and behavioral health treatment processes into the VistA workflow, including an interdisciplinary approach to monitoring medication and therapy benefits and adverse effects of care."

16.    Official Says VBA Expanded Agent Orange Benefits At Appropriate Time. On its website, WAMU-FM Washington, DC (11/12) published the transcript of an interview the "Diane Rehm Show" recently conducted with Veterans Benefit Administration Under Secretary Tom Pamperin, who discussed a number of issues, including Agent Orange benefits. Pamperin said it is "very significant" that his agency has begun issuing disability payments to Agent Orange-exposed vets with "ischemic heart disease, Parkinson's and B-cell leukemias." Also being interviewed was "journalist and author Martin Schram," who praised Pamperin and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki for making the benefits available, then said that for "decades, veterans were being turned down when they would apply for...the same aid." Pamperin, however, defended VA, saying the benefits were offered when supporting research indicated that they should be offered.
     Schram, a nationally syndicated columnist for the Scripps Howard News Service, made negative comments about VA in a recent column, appearing in the Milford Daily News (11/11). In that column, Schram wrote that for many years, VA "operated as if too many of its bureaucrats saw their role as workers in a Department of Veterans Adversaries."

17.    Duckworth: Staying At Fisher House A "Godsend." On its website, WTOP-FM Washington, DC (11/12, Marchese) said that "thanks to the Fisher House Foundation, family members of injured" US soldiers "have a home away from home to deal with life-altering wounds. There are now more than 50 Fisher Houses at major military and Veterans Affairs medical centers, offering families a place to stay while their returning soldiers are hospitalized." One soldier who stayed in the "Fisher House at Walter Reed Army Medical Center" while recovering from injuries suffered in Iraq is Veterans Affairs Assistant Secretary Tammy Duckworth, who told WTOP that services offered by a Fisher House are a "godsend" for "people who are going through an unimaginable situation together."

18.    Veterans Exposed To Agent Orange Remembered In Waynesboro. The Waynesboro (PA) Herald Record (11/13, Bonura, 8K) reports, "Master Sgt. David White of Waynesboro never spoke of his experiences serving with the US Army in Vietnam," so his family "didn't know he could have been exposed to Agent Orange. ... White succumbed to his illnesses on Jan. 21, 1995, at the age of 47." Elvira White, David's widow, and her family "released a number of orange balloons into the clear blue sky over Memorial Park Thursday to recognize White and other veterans who have died from or are suffering from the herbicide's effects. 'All veterans deserve to have the honor,' Elvira White said before she released her husband's balloon."

19.    Monument In Florida Will Honor Female Veterans. The Pensacola (FL) News Journal (11/12, Paige, 47K) reports, "The first national monument for female veterans could be in Pensacola at the Veterans Memorial Park. ... 'What better place for the first-ever monument than Pensacola, the center of Naval aviation?' said Michelle Caldwell, owner of KM Caldwell & Associates. Once constructed, the monument will join memorials to World Wars I and II and the Vietnam and Korean wars."

20.    Iraq Veteran Shares How He Died, Recovered. The Clay Center (KS) Dispatch (11/13, Wilson) reports, "A First Infantry Division soldier living in Milford is using his personal experience on the battlefield to bring awareness to post-traumatic stress syndrome. Capt. Joshua Mantz told those gathered at Thursday's veteran service that he's not special - 'there are hundreds of similar stories to mine from Iraq and the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan' as well as previous conflicts. ... Mantz told veterans 'to know they are not forgotten' and today the US has the best military in the world 'not because of technology or money, but because of leadership, discipline, and adherence to strict ethical standards."

21.    Pilot Recovering From Battle Wounds. The Lebanon (PA) Daily News (11/13, Rhen, 19K) reports, "The Air Force pilot who suffered serious injuries when his helicopter was shot down five months ago in Afghanistan," Capt. Tony Simone "is exceeding expectations as he recovers from his injuries, his mother, Jeanne Simone, said this week." He is now at the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa, Fla. Jeanne Simone "said she and her husband, Dave, travel to Florida to see Tony at least once a month. Every time they go down to see him, she said, they see improvement. 'His speech is improving,' she said. 'He's getting better with dates and the days of the week. His short-term memory is improving. He is now starting to stand on his own. He needs very little help, but he can stand.' Jeanne Simone said Tony can also walk about 40 or 50 feet using a special cane."

22.    Monuments At National Cemetery Honor Veterans Of Different Wars. The Fort Smith (AR) Times Record (11/12) reports, "Nestled between the headstone marking the grave of two unknown Confederate soldiers and a marker denoting the grave of 15 unknown Confederate soldiers, the memorial to the Unknown Confederate Dead has the names of Brig. Gen. James McIntosh and Brig. Gen. A. Steen etched in the marble. The generals were killed at the Battle of Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove, respectively. No one is buried at the memorial site," according to cemetery director William Haggerty. "A short walk to the newest area of the cemetery finds three other memorials -- the Pearl Harbor Survivors memorial, the Bivouac of the Dead monument and the Vietnam Veterans memorial, all of which are erected along the outer wall of the cemetery."

23.    Injured Gulf War Veteran Finds Solace In Seclusion. The Bangor (ME) Daily News (11/13, Cousins, 50K) profiles Travis Lyssy, a veteran diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and Gulf War Syndrome who finds the best remedy "is to just keep to himself. ... Any crowded place and, increasingly, any encounters he has in public, have the potential to set him off." To cope with his migraines, which are aggravated by light and traffic, Lyssy sits in his house with the windows tinted and the blinds drawn. "Among the symptoms [of Gulf War Syndrome] are a deteriorating joint condition -- yet another factor that in its own terrible way is closing in on Lyssy. He started to notice pain in his joints not long after leaving Kuwait. Eventually the pain progressed to the point that he needed a cane, then crutches. Less than a year ago, he started using a wheelchair. Today he can support himself enough to transfer in and out of the wheelchair, but he fears even that level of mobility won't last."

24.    Veteran Continues To Serve His Country Long After The War. SCNow.com (11/12) profiles Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient Hazel 'Nick' Arthur, who asked to remain in the Army after being discharged, "but they wouldn't let him. ... Now Nick and Viola help transport other veterans, who can't get there on their own, to the VA hospital for treatments. Arthur said one veteran they have assisted told them he didn't go to the VA hospital because when he got off the airplane returning home from service someone threw eggs at him. They convinced this veteran to change his mind and seek help from the VA. Although Nick and Viola were not married during the time he was in service, she has been supportive of him and goes with him to the VA hospital. In fact, Arthur said she has been asked to speak to other veterans' wives about the importance of supporting their husbands when they go to the hospital."

25.    Disabled Vets Golf Course To Get "Facelift From Golfing Legend." On its website, ESPN (11/12) posted video of a story about the "American Lake Veterans golf course," which is located outside Tacoma, Washington. The "9-hole...course" is the "first in the country specifically designed for disabled war veterans. Now the course is about to a get a facelift from golfing legend Jack Nicklaus."
     Golf Pro Helps Injured Vets To Learn Game. The Finger Lakes (NY) Times (11/13, Cutillo, 15K) reports, "The blurb next to Windsor's photo in Golf Magazine says it all." David Windsor "'has made it his life's mission to help injured veterans of Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam to learn golf, and has literally been a lifesaver for many of them.' He works with them at his Adaptive Golf Academy in Sarasota, Fla. He also travels to the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa once a week, where there is no fee for the in-patients and wounded warriors to participate in his program. And when we say wounded, many of Windsor's golfers have suffered devastating injuries -- they have lost limbs, arms and legs blown off by IEDs; they have lost fingers; some have traumatic head, neck and spinal cord injuries; there are brain injuries; some can't stand on their own."

26.    Names Added To WWI Memorial. The St. George (UT) Spectrum (11/13, Kausar, 22K) reports, "Service men and women, young and old, stood in a solemn semi-circle early Veterans Day morning in the Rotary Centennial Veterans Park for a prayer and to start the rest of the day's festivities. During the afternoon, people gathered once more at the park to dedicate 94 forgotten veterans' names to the World War I memorial, the names coming from Parowan, Paragonah and Summit. ... Parowan resident, veteran and former mayor, Glen Halterman, had noticed the original World War I memorial did not include veterans of the northern three towns, and diligently collected those names to be placed on a new plaque purchased by the councils of those towns."

27.    POW/MIA Monument Progressing In Iowa. The Waterloo and Cedar Falls (IA) Courier (11/13, 40K) reports, "In the near future, a large black granite stone will join the other reminders of the sacrifices Cedar Valley soldiers and sailors have made for the country. The stone will be engraved with the familiar insignia of prisoners of war and those missing in action: a downward facing silhouette, the letters 'POW-MIA' and the phrase 'You are not forgotten.' It could be Memorial Day next year before the actual dedication. ... A rough drawing of the monument was unveiled Thursday during a Veterans Day ceremony at Veterans Memorial Hall. The final details are still being worked out to ensure it's an appropriate honor for POW-MIAs."