Neglect of our troops.

The scandalous neglect of injured troops returning to NHS

Injured troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are
suffering scandalous neglect on NHS wards.

They are going without pain relief for up to 14 hours
and are enduring appalling conditions in hospital.

Thousands more have serious mental problems - but find
themselves placed on lengthy waiting lists.

Ministers were accused of breaking the historic
"military covenant" which guarantees fair treatment
for soldiers in return for their willingness to
lay down their lives for their country.

The persistent healthcare failings can be added to
the long-running complaints over poor pay, housing
and malfunctioning kit which have left many soldiers
bitter and disillusioned.

Liberal Democrat leader Menzies Campbell said:
"The covenant has been broken. It is contradictory to
hail the professionalism and commitment of our armed
forces while failing to look after them properly."

Liam Fox, Tory defence spokesman, said: "Our armed
forces have been let down and taken for granted."

The poor treatment of soldiers in civilian hospitals
has increased calls for a dedicated military facility.
Next month the last of the forces' post-war military
hospitals will close, leaving troops without a single
specialist hospital. At one stage there were 20 such
establishments but they have fallen victim to a
remorseless cost-cutting programme.

One of the most shocking of the allegations came from
the family of Royal Green Jackets rifleman Jamie Cooper
- who nearly died when shrapnel sliced through his stomach
after a double mortar attack in Basra.

The 18-year-old, from Kingswood, Bristol, was admitted to
Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, last year, where
staff allowed his colostomy bag to overflow. Days later,
he was transferred to neighbouring Selly Oak where his
nightmare continued.

His medical air mattress was allowed to deflate, causing
him considerable pain. He has twice contracted MRSA and
also developed pressure sores, one so deep that a skin
graft was required.

Yesterday his parents Philip and Caroline revealed that,
in all, Jamie's colostomy bag had been allowed to
overflow three times - once leaving him lying in his own
faeces.

Two members of hospital staff allegedly refused to empty it
- one claiming not to know how to do it. Mr and Mrs Cooper
did it themselves and remained at their son's bedside.

They hope that he will be moved to the specialist Defence
Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Headley Court in Surrey,
within the next month.

In a scathing letter to hospital managers, Mr and Mrs
Cooper describe a "catalogue of errors", adding: "All
servicemen and women should receive first- class care if
injured whilst carrying out their duty at the behest of
the country's leaders. All that we want, as any parent
would, is for our son to be given the treatment he
deserves."

Around 800 injured soldiers have passed through Selly
Oak. Other letters from furious families claim that
patients are waiting hours for vital painkillers to be
administered and have even received the wrong tablets.

Among the complaints are that a geriatric patient tried
to climb into an injured soldier's bed by mistake.
Another former Selly Oak patient, Alex Weldon, of 45
Commando Royal Marines, said that his pain relief arrived
two and a half hours late and even then was incomplete.

Injured soldiers returning from the front line are being
treated in NHS hospitals - many, but not all, on wards
with civilians. One man from the Parachute Regiment was
confronted by a Muslim man at Selly Oak and told:
"You have been killing my Muslim brothers in Afghanistan."
The incident led to Tony Blair promising five months ago
to look at creating military-only wards for all soldiers.

Colonel Tim Collins, who led his troops into battle in 2003
in Iraq by delivering a famously rousing speech, said
there should be resignations over the health care scandal.
"I would start with a clearout of the incompetent generals
at the top of the armed forces who are more worried about
polishing their CBEs than they are about the welfare of
their men and women."

In a separate development, it emerged yesterday that 2,123
servicemen have been treated for mental problems-since
returning from the front line but many thousands more
are waiting up to 18 months for formal diagnosis. Of
those, 320 have been treated for post-traumatic stress
disorder while others have suffered anxiety or depression.

Veterans' charities say the rate of admissions is far
greater than for previous conflicts, such as the Falklands,
and estimate that as many as one in four soldiers could be
affected in some way.

Defence Secretary Des Browne said that troops injured in
conflict should receive the best possible treatment.
"Where there are individual cases that fall short of the
very high standards that I and others demand, then we need
to address these and I will address them - they are
unacceptable," he said.

But the medical director of Selly Oak Hospital criticised
military top brass for stirring up criticism. David Ross,
an intensive care consultant, said: "There are some senior
people in the MoD, perhaps three or four senior generals
in the Army, who very strongly want a military hospital.

"One of the complaints we have had is that we tell these
squaddies to stop swearing. That is because it's not
acceptable to use foul and abusive language in a public
place.

"It seems to me some of these generals believe that side
of the camaraderie among soldiers is more important than
our core business, which is to make sure patients don't
lose their life or limbs."

Mr Ross, medical director of University Hospital Birmingham
Trust, which includes Selly Oak, added: "Some of these
generals want to be in control of how we do things in this
hospital but the fact is, they do not understand what it
is they are trying to control."

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eglect+of+injured+troops+returning+to+NHS/article.do

Tags:: Afghanistan
Iraq
Jamie Cooper
Tim Collins
NHS

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