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2012 Report of the Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses Task Force (GWVI-TF)

The Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses Task Force (GWVI-TF) was set up to address the specific and unique concerns of Veterans of the 1990-1991 Gulf War Era. The focus of the GWVI-TF is to develop and integrate new knowledge into services that will directly benefit Veterans of the 1990-1991 Gulf War.

The 2012 Report of the Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses Task Force (GWVI-TF) is located at: http://www.va.gov/opa/publications/Draft_2012_GWVI-TF_Report.pdf

Over the past year, the GWVI-TF has continued to work to improve care and services to Gulf War Veterans. The work has proceeded around a premise that the efforts must become a part of the culture and ongoing operations of VA and not simply the purview of a special Task Force. To accomplish this goal, the GWVI-TF solidified the framework for organizing and synchronizing its efforts. That framework serves as the overarching template for this report. The framework is composed of the seven lines of effort listed below. These seven lines provide the framework of the 2011 and 2012 reports. VA welcomes your comments and suggestions regarding the report in each these areas. Please select the link(s) below and provide us your feedback on this important report.

- Clinical Care: Leveraging Veteran-Centric Specialty Services in Primary Care

- Clinical Education and Training: Putting Clinical Knowledge Into Practice

- Veteran Benefits: Delivering Compensation and Pension and Fiduciary Services

- Veteran Outreach: Improving Communications to Gulf War Veterans

- Partnerships: Improved Data Sharing with the Department of Defense

- Ongoing Scientific Review and Surveillance: Taking Advantage of Untapped

- Sources of Data Related to Veterans’ Health

- Research and Development: Encouraging Targeted Efforts

Thank you for your continued service and for helping VA to improve the services to this important Veteran group.

36 results found

  1. Every Year That Passes I see LESS and LESS about PB Pills and Khamisiyah, Iraq

    As time passes on and each new GW report comes out I am sad, but not shocked, to see less and less about our exposure to Pyridostigmine Bromide Pills and Sarin Nerve Agent exposure at Khamisiyah Ammunition Depot. If we use the same timeline for the VA to recognize our GW illnesses as they did with Vietnam and Agent Orange, I figure about the year 2026 everyone of us will be able to finally get some closure. We must not let our anger about what is happening to all of us get in the way of how things work in…

    11 votes
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  2. One thing everyone should say is "why has the VA not done a follow-up study on all of the diagnosed illnesses in the veterans of Desert Sto

    One thing everyone should say is "why has the VA not done a follow-up study on all of the diagnosed illnesses in the veterans of Desert Storm? They was to have done one a few years ago that was to look a all of the illness we are diagnosed with not the mental health issues. I know many with Migraines, GERD, sleep apnea, nerve problems, and thyroid disorders. When will you do this study to look at the deployed and non deployed veterans? We are smart and know that most that cannot get into the service is because they may…

    8 votes
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  3. Compensation

    If certain conditions are presumptive from Gulf War Illness, then the VA should compensate veterans immediately - similar to that of Agent Orange of the Vietnam era. If the veteran was there, received the Southwest Asia Medal and/or Combat Action ribbon, they should receive a minimum of 30% compensation. If the veteran shows signs of additional conditions at a later time, they file a claim for compensation and should get additional compensation. I am currently at 70% disabled due to PTSD and sinusitis. From these 2 conditions, I have high blood pressure, sleep apnea (using a CPAP), erectile dysfunction, sleep…

    7 votes
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  4. Clinical Education and Training: Putting Clinical Knowledge into Practice

    The GWVI-TF Clinical Education and Training effort focused on improving the VA’s ability to put critical clinical knowledge and expertise at the point of care. Where the Clinical Care work was aimed at synchronizing specialty and primary health care, this effort was in direct support, providing necessary clinical education, training, and subject matter expertise. The Veterans health Administration (VHA) Office of Public Health creates training modules now universally available online for patients and clinicians. Additionally, VA hosts exposure seminars to enhance clinician knowledge about the health impacts of various environmental exposures and publishes other resources to help primary care and…

    7 votes
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  5. The complete text and data of any research, study, or report should be freely available on line to us.

    There has been many taxpayer funded studies, research, ect, that are only published in one of the many scientific/ medical journals. As part of accepting taxpayer payments, all text and data should also be posted where the public can see it. Or, at a minimum, set up a site accessible through my-healthy vet, that has everything posted.
    That should apply to any study, whether funded through the VA, CDMRP, or any other taxpayer fund.

    6 votes
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  6. The VBA's and the VAMH's just don't communicate with each other or verify the medical condition properly and timely.

    As someone who had a great involvement with the VBA's and VHA's, I have witnessed too many times the misunderstanding or lack of communicating, coordinating and cooperation from both sides to the Veterans and Their Families. The VA uses their M-21R to base their decisions not Title 38 the regulatory law or follow the statutory law of 38 USC, they don't update their e-benefits for their current status, they don't communicate with the VSO's, CVSO's, and National or State VSO's on a continued basis. And I would highly suggest that every veteran who had served during the PGW, (1990-1991) be…

    6 votes
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  7. Y'all are the smartest dumb people I have ever seen !

    Just pay everybody compensation who served there and call it a day.

    4 votes
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  8. Stop denying Gulf War Illness existed years before there was a Gulf War!

    Stop denying Gulf War Illness existed years before there was a Gulf War, and start including everyone so afflicted in your studies.

    So many members of my unit were sick that I reported the situation to the Environmental Health people at Ft Bragg in the mid 1980s, only to be told they'd been "Ordered to not look into it." Calling this "Gulf War Illness" is simply a way of limiting government liability and leaves many people undiagnosed and untreated, not to mention uncompensated, simply because they inconveniently became ill somewhere other than the Middle East.

    I've been told by those…

    4 votes
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  9. Nurological deficits from Pyrostigmine Bromide, Environmental Exposure, and Sarin Gas.

    After being evaluated by a Neuropsychologist and a baseline established each review thereafter suggested that the conditions were progressively getting worse. I am to the point that I have bad tremors, random crossing of the eyes, dominant hand deficit, cognition deficit, balance issues, etc. When I asked the psychologist what was happening she said that neurologic toxins work in two ways; systemically or dynamically. That is in the first case consistent and on-going neurologic damage and in the second, it would be a one time event with no further deterioration. In my case it was systemic, and the events that…

    4 votes
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  10. Ongoing Scientific Review and Surveillance: Taking Advantage of Untapped Sources of Data Related to Veterans’ Health

    Ongoing scientific review is critical to understanding the environment that impacts health. There are Veterans’ health-related data available from sources other than studies conducted by VA. Having access to and understanding these data sources is important in comprehending the complex array of adverse health effects associated with deployment.

    Please provide your comments, questions, and suggestion on how we may improve the Ongoing Scientific Review and Surveillance section of the report.

    4 votes
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  11. gulf war tracking system for exposed veterans should be cross referenced with Allied Forces Gulf War Veterans Data Bases for Treatments. En

    Neurologists in colleges around the world should be presented with the challenge to solve Gulf War Syndrome. Give them a "Dr. House" problem.

    If you open it to the upcoming doctors that have no prejudices, or drug company lobby backing them or military choke hold on them you may actually solve the problem. We have assumed that all the Task Forces have had the military members interest at the root, when in fact they are using tomb stone rational instead. What is tomb stone rational? It is used in many industries such as aviation, wait until a flaw causes enough…

    4 votes
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  12. Persian GUlf War Registry Washington DC VAMC, Desert Storm Doctor was incompetent.

    Went to do Registry exam in local VAMC.
    I did it before in 1993 in SF, in NC and now in DC. ALso I did one Registry exam in NC, registrar for Persian Gulf registry could not find me in their VA MC computers. She said that I was missing. Also I have documents proving that I existed and went to the Gulf War exams in NC in 1996. It really set my mind off, and I started to go thru all the daocuments related to me and VAMC. I found letter about Khamisiyah and other.I spoke with Doctor from…

    3 votes
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  13. Fiduciary program revision

    The fiduciary program was great at helping me to save and budget my money While suffering with a Traumatic Brain Injury. However it did nothing to help me resolve my past credit issues. Consequently, if my credit issues were resolved I would have to spend less money for Rent, Homes, and Insurance. It would also make me more employable for ceratin jobs who run your credit. The VA should develop a comprehensive program to help Veterans who are rated incompetent to budget smartly and restore their credit so that they can become more viable in the community.

    3 votes
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  14. Develop an actionable roadmap with funding tied to specific programs with MOEs and MOPs.

    This report is lacking in purpose, direction and clear linkage to funding intent. I would rewrite the report.

    Specifics: Your report lacks a detailed vision and simple road map that integrates funding by fiscal year across the FYDP, with milestones, associated projects and associated decision points.

    GAPs: I found no measures of performance or effectiveness tied to your programs (big red flag). What is the end state for each action and the expected outcome?

    After so many years of inaction I expected a clear path forward for research, evaluation and funding. Interestingly, I found that funding is still lacking. The…

    3 votes
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  15. My ideas are very simple,it explains what most Gulf War Vets were exposed to.As most combat arms veterans know mission first.

    My idea is simple to allow Gulf War veterans to have more resources to better understand their illness. There are many areas in and around the Country that don't have a VA medical center or many veterans don't have computers to read articles and updates on the Gulf War. Therefore the VA needs to allow the military and or local medical offices to evaluate these veterans. The information from unknown exposure will only help the VA to treat our Vets. There are 10 of hundreds that will never see or read updated information. Also health departments should play a roll.…

    2 votes
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  16. More studies need to be performed on GW Veterans

    As a Gulf War Veteran, I have suffered from digestive issues since returning in April of 1991. I have had numerous procedures and "FINALLY" I have a specialist actually going to look at my small bowel. This is the very first time EVER that a specialist has made mention of this examine. So my suggestion is if there are thousands of service members suffering from digestive issues and they are part of this Gulf War Illness Task Force, I would suggest that the gastroenterology do both procedures as the same time, colonoscopy and an endoscopy. If nothing comes of that,…

    2 votes
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2012 Report of the Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses Task Force (GWVI-TF)

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