VA Health Care: VA Should Expedite the Implementation of Recommendations Needed to Improve Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Services
Abstract
In summary, we determined that VA has not fully met any of 24 Special Committee recommendations in our review related to clinical care and education. Specifically, we determined that VA has not met 10 recommendations and has partially met 14 of these 24 recommendations. For example, the Special Committee recommended that VA develop, disseminate, and implement a best practice treatment guideline for PTSD. The Special Committee designated the recommendation as met because VA had developed and disseminated the guideline. However, because we found that VA does not have documentation to show that the treatment part of the guideline is being implemented at its medical facilities and community-based clinics, we designated the recommendation as partially met. We also determined that VA does not plan to fully implement 23 of 24 recommendations until fiscal year 2007 or later. Ten of these are longstanding recommendations that were first made in the Special Committee report issued in 1985. VAs delay in fully implementing the recommendations raises questions about VAs capacity to identify and treat veterans returning from military combat who may be at risk for developing PTSD, while maintaining PTSD services for veterans currently receiving them. This is particularly important because we reported in September 2004 that officials at six of seven VA medical facilities stated that they may not be able to meet an increase in demand for PTSD services. In addition, the Special Committee reported in its 2004 report that VA does not have sufficient capacity to meet the needs of new combat veterans while still providing for veterans of past wars. If servicemembers returning from military combat do not have access to PTSD services, many mental health experts believe that the chance may be missed, through early identification and treatment of PTSD, to lessen the severity of the symptoms and improve the overall quality of life for these combat veterans with PTSD.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 14, 2005
- Accession Number
- AD1106037
Entities
People
- Alice L. London
- Janet Overton
- Linda Diggs
- Lori Fritz
- Marcia A. Mann
- Marion Slachta
- Martha Fisher
- Mary Ann Curran
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office