Family Of Veteran Who Killed Himself Settles Lawsuit Against VA.   The Seattle Times (7/8, Carter) reports, "The family of a veteran whose suicide at the Veterans Affairs hospital on Beacon Hill in 2006 helped expose unsafe conditions in the facility's psychiatric ward has settled a lawsuit against the government for $700,000, according to court documents and the family's attorney." The 49-year-old veteran Gordon Whitcomb, a resident of Federal Way, Washington, "had a history of psychiatric disorders when he admitted himself to the VA hospital in November 2006 because he was hearing voices and was paranoid and delusional, according to the lawsuit," which also said hospital "nurses put notes in his file saying that Whitcomb was suicidal and delusional. Yet, the staff never took away his belt," which Whitcomb used to hang himself, according to John Greaney, the Whitcomb family's attorney, who said, "This was a clear case of the VA failing to protect this man." The Times adds, "Whitcomb's suicide prompted a critical internal audit of the VA Puget Sound's psychiatric facilities, which recommended that the hospital replace fixtures like the shower bar Whitcomb used to hang himself. However, those recommendations were not implemented until after the...Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health Care Organizations preliminarily failed the Beacon Hill hospital and VA facilities at American Lake near Tacoma and in Bremerton, finding their psychiatric wards posed "a serious threat to public or patient health or safety."
Impact: VA Puget Sound, Joint Commission, Veteran suicide

Response from Stan Johnson, Director of VA Puget Sound HCS (7/8/2009)

You may have read this morning’s Seattle Times article on the settlement case involving the suicide of a patient in 2006 at the Seattle Division of VA Puget Sound.  While this was a very unfortunate incident, our organization took appropriate steps including a Root Cause Analysis to understand what occurred and take action to prevent a similar occurrence in the future.  The case was settled by the US Attorney’s office.
Contrary to what was presented in the article, the May 2007 survey by The Joint Commission was a routine triennial survey.  It was not a special survey or a survey in response to a patient incident.  At no time did VA Puget Sound lose or regain accreditation.  VA Puget Sound received a Preliminary Denial of Accreditation decision at the conclusion of the routine survey, which was subsequently lifted by the President of The Joint Commission following an unannounced survey that confirmed our compliance with standards. We worked collaboratively with The Joint Commission to resolve all concerns, and the preliminary accreditation decision was advanced to Accredited as of July 31, 2007.
Since the time of the 2007 survey, Inpatient Mental Health Units have been remodeled, numerous environmental and safety upgrades have been made, and new procedures have been put into place to meet The Joint Commission’s requirements and most importantly assure the high quality, safe patient care that we at VA Puget Sound pride ourselves on delivering to our Veterans.

VA Collaborates On Program Designed To Keep Vets Out Of Jail. The New York Times (7/8, A21, Akam) reports, "There are about 70,000 veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan in New York State, many struggling with the transition back to civilian life as Vietnam veterans did, and some at risk of ending up in the criminal justice system." But the Veterans Project, a "new pilot program...announced on Tuesday and set to begin in Queens, Brooklyn and Nassau County, aims to help keep them out of prison." The "project - a collaboration between county prosecutors, the Department of Veterans Affairs and health care providers - will try to divert veterans who commit nonviolent crimes away from prison while helping them with underlying issues like homelessness or substance abuse." The Brooklyn (NY) Eagle (7/7, Newhouse) also covered this story.
Impact: Incarcerated Vets

Mental Health Treatment Up For Children Of US Military Troops. The AP (7/8, Hefling) says that according to internal Pentagon documents, the children of US military troops "sought outpatient mental health care 2 million times last year, double the number at the start of the Iraq war." The same documents also reveal "an alarming spike in the number of military kids actually hospitalized for mental health reasons." The treatment increases "come as the services struggle with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and a shortage of therapists," but there "are efforts under way to encourage the military, the Department of Veterans Affairs and state and local agencies to share mental health resources."
Impact: Military Kids, Mental health