US military struggles to recruit medical professionals

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US military struggles to recruit medical professionals

Goal missed for scholarship applications

By Bender, Globe Staff | October 20, 2005

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon, already straining to fill the ranks, is

facing a new headache: Army medical officials said yesterday they are

struggling to recruit enough doctors, dentists, nurses, and other

healthcare professionals to treat soldiers on the front lines and to

care for the growing physical and mental health needs of troops

returning from combat.

For the first time in five years, the Army has missed its goal for

student applicants seeking medical or dental scholarships in exchange

for military service, officials told a House armed services

subcommittee. The Army is also falling short of personnel in some key

medical specialties, including cardiology, officials said. Meanwhile,

unable to compete with the private sector in pay and compensation, the

Air Force is also struggling to retain physicians and recruit new

specialists.

Major General ph G. Webb, the deputy surgeon general of the Army,

told lawmakers that ''for the first time since 2000, we did not meet

our goal for health professionals scholarship applicants in the

Medical and Dental Corps. "

He said the scholarships, in which the government pays for medical

training in return for a commitment to serve on active duty, are the

''bedrock " of Army medicine. ''We rely on these scholarship programs

because direct recruitment of fully qualified physicians, dentists,

and nurses is difficult due to the extremely competitive civilian

market for these skills, " he said.

Webb added that officials have undertaken a new assessment to

determine the causes for the drop-off, but it's too early to tell if

''it is just a blip or the beginning of a new trend. "

Still, officials told lawmakers the slide in recruiting and retention

is occurring when the need to provide battlefield medicine and treat

soldiers for a wide variety of physical and mental ailments is at its

highest in recent years.

It is ''a mission that, perhaps, has never before been so complex,

challenging, or far-reaching as we find today, " Dr.

Winkenwerder, the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs,

said of the military's medical responsibilities.

The Army, which is shouldering most of the combat burden in Iraq, is

particularly concerned. ''One area of concern is a shortage of

cardiologists and some surgical specialties, " said Army spokesman

Boyce. But the concerns extend beyond the Army.

The Air Force Medical Service ''continues to face significant

challenges in the recruitment and retention of physicians, dentists,

and nurses; the people whom we depend on to provide care for our

beneficiaries, " Lieutenant General Peach , the Air Force

surgeon general, told the House Armed Service's Committee's personnel

panel.

He cited several contributing factors: The military pays significantly

less than the private sector, the quality of life in uniform is more

stressful, and in some cases the working conditions in military

hospitals and clinics need significant improvements. ''The atmosphere

in which our medics work is as important as any other retention

factor, " according to .

The military's medical personnel are a critical component of the

global war on terrorism.

Since 2001, more than 40 percent of the active-duty personnel in the

Army's Medical Command has been deployed to the Middle East at least

once, according to Pentagon statistics. Some healthcare providers are

returning for their second or third tour of duty in four years. The

Army alone has cared for some 24,000 injured or ill soldiers during

the same period, including more than 320 combat-related amputees.

Relying on innovative new training and cutting-edge emergency medical

technology, the military's medical community is credited with saving

the lives of hundreds of soldiers who would have died on the

battlefield in previous conflicts; less than 2 percent of wounded

soldiers who receive immediate medical care die of their wounds, the

lowest figure in the history of warfare, according to Pentagon analysis.

The need to retain and recruit doctors, nurses, and other healthcare

providers and specialists is only expected to grow as the wars in Iraq

and Afghanistan grind on and as the military becomes more involved in

the global war on terror. The military medical research community also

helps the nation prepare for broader health threats such as biological

terrorism and the possible pandemics by researching and developing new

vaccines for deadly toxins and conducting cutting-edge epidemiological

studies.

The record number of reservists and National Guard soldiers called

from their civilian jobs to active duty in a combat zone requires a

greater level of medical monitoring; unlike full-time GIs who train

constantly, those soldiers are less prepared and may not be physically

or mentally ready for deployment overseas.

Meanwhile, military leaders are trying to cope with a growing number

of troops suffering from mental problems after serving in war zones.

Recent surveys have found that between 20 percent and 30 percent of

soldiers returning from combat zones experience post-traumatic stress

disorder, depression, and anxiety. In addition, soldiers are

experiencing alcohol- and drug-related problems, increased aggression,

and marital problems. Studies of soldiers returning from Iraq found

that 4 percent received a mental health referral immediately upon

their return, while 13 percent received treatment for mental health

problems at a military facility during the year following their

overseas deployment.

As a result, the Pentagon recently ordered additional mental heath

assessments for soldiers returning from duty.

The Pentagon ''continues to face significant challenges as it carries

out its multiple healthcare missions, " said the panel's chairman,

Representative McHugh, a Republican of New York. ''What makes the

challenge more complex is that is it rightly expected that the

Department of Defense provide the highest quality care in an

environment where healthcare costs are rising dramatically. "

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