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July 2008
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Often, viewers will ask questions like: "How do you get stories on the air so fast?" Well, it takes a lot of coordination between many different people, and it's even tougher when you're talking about one of the most controversial subjects in the land right now: The medical care of our soldiers, and wounded warriors. The Walter Reed Hospital scandal hit home this week, with allegations made by 'Operation Homefront'. The non-profit soldier support group claimed there was asbestos and lead in the Medical Hold facilities at Madigan Hospital, on Fort Lewis. They also claimed many soldiers, back from the war, were seeing delays in processing time at the base. On Wednesday, in response, Madigan Army Medical Center held a press conference for the media to explain their position and side of the story. They also promised to give us a tour of the living conditions in the 'Med Hold' area. We knew going in the conference and tour, we would be up against a tough deadline. The conference was very detailed, and contained some very complicated explanations of the process. But in short, Madigan says the asbestos claims were inaccurate, and that, while there are things they would like to improve, in general treatment is good. The press conference started at 9:30 a.m. It ended close to 11 a.m. We only had half the story, and a live shot an hour later. I called Producer Brenda Tinney. The conversation went something like this, "Brenda, I don't know what to tell you, but we just got out of the press conference, and we haven't seen the full story. We're jumping on a bus right now to go to another part of the base, to meet with the soldiers and staff. It's not close to the live truck, and we're the only KING crew here." Brenda replied, "I'll take anything, do your best, we'll try to coordinate here to get video prepared ready for your liveshot. I need you at the top of the Noon." We start the tour at Med Hold. A captain takes us around to show us the dining area, and rooms. We meet with a soldier who tells us, after suffering a stroke, he's now getting medical attention and he's relatively happy with it. Tick, tock, tick, tock... Now, it's roughly 11:35 a.m., the newscast is 25 minutes away. We got into another room. Two soldiers are there to greet the assembled media. One of them, Sgt. Lafi Afoa, goes 'off-script', and bares his soul. As Mike Barber wrote in the Seattle PI, "Afoa's comments and fragility jarred reporters and the Army brass." Afoa talked about his service in Iraq, and the thoughts that have consumed him ever since. Afoa's eyes welled with tears, and he told our group of reporters about his thoughts of suicide, and his problems with sleep apnea, depression, and panic attacks. Sgt. Afoa has lost his motivation to be in the Army. He wants to be medically retired. This was not what the Madigan, nor Army leaders, had expected to hear. It was gripping. Tick, tock, tick, tock... It's now 11:45 a.m., 15 minutes away from the top of our live Noon broadcast, and we are nowhere near a place to transmit his story. I'm watching a clock over his head, as he continues to talk. 11:47, 11:48, 11:49... There is no easy way for any journalist to leave in a situation like that. We all wanted to hear more. Sgt. Afoa is a compelling figure, who was holding back more than he was giving. I wanted to tell his story. 11:50 a.m., I call Tinney again as we board a bus. "We're on a bus, trying to get to the liveshot as fast as we can." 11:52, 11:53, 11:54... At 11:56, we get to the live truck in front of Madigan. Photographer Ron Sanford, who was sweating, lugging the camera in the cold rain, and through the Old Barracks, hands me a tape. I ask Sharon Quashie, our live truck coordinator, if we can 'hot roll' the tape. That's extremely unorthodox, because you're rolling live unedited tape on the air. Sharon says yes, and asks me to cue it up to a spot in our interview with Sgt. Afoa that sounds right. I do. "30 seconds!" says Brenda in my earpiece. It's raining, and hard. I take a deep breath. I know it's a highly controversial issue. Nothing is scripted out. I tell myself to be fair. Tell both sides. The anchors toss to me. I adlib about the statements made by Madigan and Army leaders, and based on my faith in my co-worker, toss to the cued up tape of Sgt. Afoa. Sharon rolls it. I can't hear a thing. I don't know if I'm on camera, or if there is a problem. Sharon can't talk to me. I don't know if my microphone is 'hot'. I can't hear Sgt. Afoa in my ear. I signal a cut sign to Sharon. She punches my camera back up, and I finish my report. We breathe. And do it all over again a half hour later. It is stressful, but I know it doesn't even compare to what our brave men and women in uniform are going through right now. A colonel, and one of Madigan's top physicians, said there has been a distinct rise in the amount of soldiers coming home with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in the last year-and-a-half. It's a huge challenge at the hospital, and the VA. I'm not a doctor, but I wouldn't be surprised, based on what he told us, if that's what the eventual diagnosis will be for Sgt. Lafi Afoa. Madigan's leaders, and Fort Lewis' Public Affairs officers immediately said they will get him whatever help he needs. I'm sure many people hope that's the case. 10 Comments |
Help!
King5 has disappeared from my COMCAST lineup - I can scan all I want, King5-DT (5.1) is gone. It used to be on 83, now - nothing.
In you grand reporting did you mention that Madigan not only serves the Army, their families, the reservists, the retirees, their spouses, Navy and Oh Yeah, The Air Forc and their famililies because whether it is ER services, specialites or surgery, we are referred to Madigan? Did you mention that the same anti war/anti government people who are complaining that enough is not being done for the soldiers are the same ones who WHINE about the military budget? Apparently no civilian has done the math yet. As an Air force spouse who may not be particularly thrilled with the military, but has but up with it for 23 years, I have to say, how many civilian hospitals could handle the same load that Madigan does? The guy complaining about his sleep apeana and psych issues, he makes it sound like he is the only one with problems and the system should drop everyone else and take care of him. FYI--sleep apeana, he'll probably get one of those oxygen masks to use. Instead of jumping all over the same people who protect your rights to spout off, try looking a liitle harder into both sides
Right On Trish! I had the Opportunity of serving
in the U.S. military for 5 & 1/2 years &
unfortunately like many others got injured. I was
transferred from an east coast duty station to the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS)El Toro, CA. for
my surgery with a specialist. In comparison
with civilian health care I must say the military
& VA hospitals are top of the line not only for
myself but my family as well, and that was back
in 1985! Now lets get to the meat of this issue.
The problems at the hospital are not with the
doctors or medical care. The problems are with
basic maintenance, but -- because of civil
service rules put into place by Democrats --
the maintenance crew can't be fired. And now
once again these same people who are pretending
to give a damn about the troops are wailing of
conditions? No wonder a story can be put out
so quickly. No time is taken to address the
problem! KING 5, Do some research first. Then
tell the problem.
P.S. While at MCAS El Toro, My doctors & surgery
were at the Long Beach Naval Hospital.
Trish,
WHY are you shooting the messenger for telling the TRUTH?!?
The guy has a right to complain. When our husbands joined they were promised many things, not the least of which was "good", "quality" medical care. With people dying from not one, but TWO sponges being left in their only remaining lungs during surgery, I would complain too.
My husband was diagnosed with a "back sprain"...I finally got so fed up with Navy Hospital and Madigan and demanded that my retired husband get a referral to Swedish...in TWO visits (after 15 emergency room visits where doctors didn't even examine my husband and loaded him up with 12+ different kinds of narcotics, anti inflammatories and the like,) they diagnosed my husband as having a nerve growing into his vertabrae. My husband suffered horrifically for two years while doctors at Madigan and Navy hospital told him it was all in his head, and there was nothing they could do. My husband is now walking around with a spinal cord implant which has helped his quality of life tremendously, only after having wasted TWO YEARS of his life in excrutitating pain! He still has bad days, but now he only takes one narcotic lollipop a month...if he needs to...as opposed to 12+ pills a day.
I know a guy who is going to retire really soon with back problems and all they do is pump him up with narcotics AND steroid injections...I suggested he see if he was a candidate for the implant...Madigan told him that it was a very invasive surgery with a long recovery period, that they only refer it in drastic cases and they refuse to recommend him for a a referral. So, the guy sits every day in possibly needless pain taking addictive narcotics...How invasive was this surgery? My husband went into Swedish at 7:00 am and went home at 1:30 PM the same day. He had a three day recovery and six weeks of limited motion...that's it! It did not stop him from being able to work. It is all about saving money with the government and the ones who suffer are the ones doing the fighting.
Sleep Apnea can be deadly Trish! People stop breathing in their sleep Trish! Yes, the military hospitals are over run...but if the government couldn't handle it in the first place, they should not have made the promises that they did to our fighting men and women when they signed up! It is a travesty and we should be taking care of every single veteran no matter how small you may think their problems are.
By the way, Trish, psych issues are also serious...they can lead to other physical ailments...and worse, suicide! It's not just "all in the head"...people with mental health issues need medical attention just like people need insulin for diabetes...mental health issues are as physiological as any other ailment. If this guy is on the brink, then he should be taken care of, not ignored. It's not that easy to "just buck up". Sounds like YOU do not know all the facts and that you are ill educated when it comes to medical issues. When a person is hurting, they FEEL like they are the only ones suffering. People like you chap my butt minimalizing someone's pain that you have no idea about.
Flashdawg,
YOU were lucky...it is not that way everywhere. My husband was being seen by general practitioners and Physician's Assistants... when what he needed was a specialist. I had to threaten them with a letter to my congressman before I finally got action. It is not the maintenance people...it is leadership or the lack thereof...if they were doing their jobs, these problems wouldn't happen. And, if you haven't noticed, the civil service community is dwindeling daily because of contractors. Also, the civil service is going to a new thing called NSPS...this program will make it much easier to hire and fire people...no more red tape to deal with. My husband served for 20 years...and I have yet to see the great care that the government claims it gives to its soldiers and their families. I recently went to Navy hospital with the influenza virus. There was one doctor to at least 30 patients. It was 6 hours in the waiting room while my heart was racing...I was given Motrin and sudafed (after I told them I could not tolerate those two drugs) and sent home. 8 hours later, I was back in the emergency room and diagnosed with brochitis. I was then given a nebulizer and antibitics and sent home. I had an allergic reaction to the antibiotic and went back to Harrison hospital where I was informed that you don't give antibitics to someone who has a VIRAL INFECTION. It only works on bacterial infections. Needless to say, I was glad I went to Harrison instead. God knows what would have happened if I went back to Navy hospital. I know that they are understaffed...but, there is no excuse when they build a brand new wing on a hospital...the hospital is beautiful but the health care is less than acceptible. A couple of years ago, I thought I was having a heart attack...I was not triaged immediately...they put me in the waiting room for 25 minutes before they even took my blood pressure or pulse...Let's just say, I will not be visiting Navy Hospital again. I just don't trust them anymore.
Jeeze, when I lived in Bremerton 11+ years ago, the care I got at the naval hospital was a whole heck of a lot better than the civilian hospitals. But than again, we weren't paying for an excursion in the sand box.
Now where I live, we have the Catholic hospitals that are run by a branch of nuns who buy into the "suffering brings you closer to God" mantra - at least the Navy Hospital gives you pain medication. The nuns tell you to go home and pray for relief.
Mr. Daniels,
Thank you. Your reporting pulled no punches and getting to talk to this sergeant who did his time with boots on the ground in Iraq was a great opportunity to get off the 'guided tour' and have someone tell the 'whole truth' and not the Army's version of the truth.
All I know about Madigan is this. I once went there for a medical problem. I walk in and had some Army nurse chew my six because I didn't go to sick call (while I was doubled over in pain and ready to vomit on the nice clean Madigan waiting room floor). For five minutes she went on about protocol and proper procedures and paperwork while I was literally doubled over in pain waiting for treatment.
It was obvious I was in pain, my first line leader tried to impress upon her I needed help but she droned on about paperwork and proper procedures instead.
As a counterpoint ... I went to this other hospital one time ... I'll call it the Baghdad CASH and it's located in this place I'll call the Green Zone. I went there to check up a buddy who nearly had his arm taken off by an IED. I went another time to check on a buddy who'd had a skull fracture in a vehicle crash.
The personnel at the Green Zone CASH were methodical, professional, their compassion was heartfelt, they treated everyone regardless of rank or status as the most important person in the room.
If I were still in the military and had to get medical treatment ... I would choose the CASH over Madigan any day of the week. And that includes that pleasant Sunday drive from Baghdad International Airport to the Green Zone down RPG Alley just to get there.
Keep fighting the good fight and getting the word our Mr. Daniels. There are few in the military who are willing to go off the public affairs talking points they give out to everyone, but those few that do bring to public view problems that need to be exposed and on-the-spot corrections made even at the risk of the private wrath of their chains-of-command.
Have you ever walked point? You know, the lead guy with toes 20 feet long feeling every rock, wire, oder, sweat, wishing you had eyes like one of those lizads that can see every direction? Ever?
Krissypoo, go to a civilian hospital ER with a headcold/brochitis/headache - expect to get triaged and sit for 6-12 hours.
Maricopa County 1981, Fx Tib/Fib in a splint, i got there at 1100 am, they say me at 2300 pm. They were great, they were free.
Walk point, feel it. Do it for months.
Trish,
My Husband returned from Irag to Madigan with sleep apnea, depression and anxiety. He was "treated" and you know what he did. He came home one day and tried to KILL himself. Then after returning from the hospital he tried to KILL ME! Madigan also missed my son's Autism diagnoses and I sat and watched my friend's son die in the ER because they kept sending him home saying he had a cold when he was bleeding out. Sgt Afoa was just telling his story. I cannot believe that you would sit and accuse him of anything else.
I do appreciate the staff at Madigan. I believe they are under staffed, even before Iraq. I do not buy into the fact that the miltary takes care of its own. We were not prepared to take care of ANYONE. I pray for our troops and HOPE they get the treatment they need.