The medical and psychological issues facing our veterans are simply not being met by the Veteran’s Administration (VA).

A heartbreaking story broke this week about a Virginia woman who has filed an $8.2 million claim against the agency.

Here’s the story:

In April 2019, Gary Pressley shot himself in the chest, ending his life because he was in so much pain and as it was described in the lawsuit.

“”It was just a battle with the medication”

For Dan Laird, an MD and attorney in Las Vegas this is another example of how vets are not being treated appropriately by the VA. He tweeted:

“The VA has harmed many Veterans w/ chronic pain. Ignorant self-serving politicians continue to falsely claim that opioids alone are used to treat Veterans w/ pain. The VA has force tapered many Veterans “for their own good.’”

Psychology for Pain Patients Discussed

At the recent American Academy of Pain Medicine annual meeting in Washington D.C there was a brisk discussion on the importance of pain psychology. The session was entitled “Integrating Behavioral Pain Medicine into Patient Care: Science, Practice, and Innovations”.

There was an interesting tidbit by Dr. Geralyn Datz, a highly respected psychologist from Mississippi that said research indicates only 50% of patients follow up when they are referred to a psychologist.

It begs the question, have you visited a psychologist and was the experience valuable?

Coronavirus

We urge those of you who are already suffering from chronic pain to be careful as this coronavirus (Covid-19) situation develops in the U.S and the whole world for that matter.

The coronavirus is most dangerous to folks who are already sick.

You can go here for the latest updates.

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