European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - June 16, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Prescription for better medical care a my medical care is on the mend according to the 7th medical Comet s chief doctor i think the word is getting out around the world that we have improved military Medicine said a. Gen Frank f. Ledford jr., Usa eur surgeon and the commander of the 7th medical come. Military Medicine in All forces was bruised in the past Lew years by Pentagon audits and news reports of deficiencies in medical services and trouble ensuring that military and civilian doctors had proper credentials in Europe medical facilities were criticized As being old decrepit and inadequate. The medical situation for All services is still not satisfactory although it appears that the army has made he most Progress said an aide to son. John Glenn a Ohio chairman of the Senate armed services Subco Miille on manpower and personnel. Problems Are most acute in the Navy but there Are also shortfalls in the air Force and to a lesser extent in he army a said. While there have been improvements the state of military Medicine still in t anywhere near where it needs to be he said a staff member irom a House armed services committee said. I think it would be fair to say that there has been a Good amount of Progress made in shoring up the military medical system bul there Are still mine glaring problems notably in the wartime medical area for example there continue to be critical shortages of manpower in some specialities. That does t take away from the tact that the services and particularly the army have been taking action to Correct  working to heal to Milf the army has been More careful about its selection of physicians and has been improving facilities Letord told the stars and stripes in an interview we re working on the Quality of people in our command he said. We re checking credentials to make sure we have Good people and that they have he qualifications they say they have. I can speak with Assurance about of doctors. We pick the Cream of the . Medical  led lord said More physicians will be attracted to army Medicine because he civilian Market for doctor is becoming saturated and some scholarships Are drying up. The army he said offers wonderful scholarships. When you Are talking about a Young person who is nol Rich army scholarships can provide a More optimistic future he said. To Are getting very Good Young people and i think they Are people who will stay with us and i m not giving you promotional  the army also is evaluating and trying to improve the care it provides he said. We Monitor everything we do and we re investigating every mistake we make he said. An aide to sen. Pete Wilson r-calif., who is on the Senate armed services subcommittee on manpower and personnel said the services have improved methods of accountability and have instituted a peer review system to ensure Quality care. Led lord who assumed command in March 1985 when it. Gen. Quinn h. Becker became army surgeon general said military Medicine has the dual and sometimes difficult role of providing daily medical care for Active duty members and their families while maintaining readiness for War and terrorism. But it is he daily care that affects the Quality of Lite Tor the Soldier and his family the most. Led lord Hopes that As More family practice physicians Are assigned to Europe there will be better continuity of medical care for military families because they will see he same doctor More often. Family practice is now a recognized medical specially in which doctors receive extra training in areas such As paediatrics and obstetrics and can better care for illnesses that Are commonly seen in family members he said. Ii turns out a much Beer physician who can take care of a child with meningitis As Well As someone having a heart  he said. Ledford said 60 additional family practice physicians Are scheduled for the european theater in he next Izreo years. It s not just a wish he said. We have the  there Are also shortages in the european theater in general surgery radiology family practice Opl homology obstetrics and cardiology he said. There Are shortages because it is difficult o attract High paying specialists such As cardiologists. Specialities Are also limited to a specific number of positions making coverage Shin in some areas such As paediatrics. The army he said does not want to have an excess of paediatricians because it is nol a go to  led lord said army medical facilities in Europe Are also being improved. Everywhere you go there is dust dirt and hardhats led lord stud. We Are fixing facilities Lor the firs time in 40  millions of dollars Are being spent to rebuild remodel or Spruce up every army Hospital in the european. Theater in the next five years to said Glenn s aide said Hal there has been substantial Progress in medical facilities particularly in Europe. . Or Spuur Chuck Ulreh  to thl report maj. Gart. Frank f. Lotto Ruhr. Nurses no longer servants if nurses want to shed their image As doctors handmaidens they must continue to better their educations the chief of the army nurse corp said. Belief educated nurses can stand Loo to too with the doctors and administrators who have traditionally wielded the Power in hospitals said Brig. Gen Connie l. Slewitzke. When nurses were educated in hospitals Only me were is servants Slewitzke told the stars and stripes. We said. Yes sir no sir " As nurses became educated in colleges and universities they started assuming More responsibility in their fobs gained leadership positions and carved out nursing specialities. Army nurses she said Are on even better fooling with military doctors and Hospital administrators than Thair civilian counterparts. We Are the most educated centralized nursing Community in the sales she said. We be been Able to get nurses into positions where they have never been  for example nurse consultants consider along with doctors what medical equipment will be used and nurses also have been asked to do research on chemical casualties a might be seen on the Battlefield. The corps has almost reached its goal of All Active duty nurses holding Bachelor of science degrees in nursing Slewitzke said. In addition 25 percent of nursing officers hold a master s degree and 5 percent have doctorates she said. Army nursing remains appealing o nurses even though salaries for nurses entering the service Are not competitive with civilian hospitals until they become captains she said. The number one reason nurses join the army surprisingly enough is not Money it is professionalism the Opportunity for leadership Slewitzke said. The army also offers educational benefits career advancement and travel some of the reasons Slewitzke joined he army she said. Army nursing also is distinguished from civilian nursing by its responsibility to care for soldiers during War. Even As horrible As War is i Don t think you Ever get tuesday june 16, 1987 Brig. Pm. Connie l. Slow aka More satisfaction As a nurse As when you Are caring or casualties said slew Uke who was a nurse in Vietnam. Nursing care does make a difference in patient outcome. Surgeons can do All the fancy surgery in the world bul it there in t a nurse available to provide support and care that patient in t going to make  the shortage of nurses predicted among the civilian population could affect he recruitment of army nurses she said. Enrolment in nursing schools has decreased 13 percent As women choose careers that pay Moro or offer More control in the workplace Slewitzke said. She noted there is a shortage of registered nurses for wartime readiness particularly for he specialities of operating room nurses and nurse anaesthetists. The army has Only 35 percent of he nurse anaesthetists and about 50 percent of the operating room nurses it would need in War and these Fields Are targeted for increased recruitment efforts she said. . The stars and stripes Page 17