Upstate AHEC joins national effort to improve care for returning veterans

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Greenville, South Carolina, November 5, 2008 – Upstate Area Health Education Center (AHEC) has joined with the American Hospital Association and more than a dozen other organizations in a nationwide effort to educate key individuals and community groups about the unique medical, social, and emotional challenges facing returning veterans and their families. The Joining Forces project was originally developed by the Minnesota-based HealthPartners Institute for Medical Education after researchers learned that, although vitally important, reaching the non-military medical community about the special healthcare needs of veterans was proving to be a challenge.

“What began as an effort to educate health caregivers in one community in Minnesota about the special needs of returning veterans and their families has grown into a collaboration among national organizations involving hospitals, doctors, nurses, social workers, clergy, and many others all across the nation,” said Rich Umbedenstock, President and Chief Executive Officer, the American Hospital Association.

The special needs of our returning veterans are significant. According to a recent RAND Corporation study, upward of 26 percent of veterans returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan may have mental health conditions sufficient to warrant treatment, but the majority will not receive that treatment. For while the military healthcare system is well prepared to diagnose and treat combat related problems, many veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, especially members of the National Guard and Reserves, will seek care from their regular primary care physician who may not even be aware their patient is a returning military member. Returning veterans also look for support from clergy, counselors, family members, and others in the wider community who often have little familiarity with common but the virtually invisible wounds of war such as depression and post traumatic stress disorder.

“Joining Forces creates a platform upon which we are building a comprehensive program to inform and engage our upstate community,” said Candace Luciano, Director of Upstate AHEC. “Together we can ensure our troops find the support and resources they need when they return home from deployment, no matter where they live.”

Specifically, Upstate AHEC will be promoting and providing educational outreach, web-based training, and regional provider workshops designed for those who are responding to the health care needs of our returning military. Resource materials will be developed and distributed to health professionals and the lay community.

For more information about Joining Forces, visit www.upstateahec.org or www.joiningforcesonline.org, or contact Candace Luciano, Upstate AHEC Center Director at 864-349-1160.
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About Upstate AHEC
Upstate Area Health Education Center (AHEC) is a not-for-profit, community-based organization that provides programs and services designed to promote quality health care through education within the eleven counties of upstate South Carolina: Abbeville, Anderson, Edgefield, Greenville, Greenwood, Laurens, McCormick, Oconee, Pickens, Spartanburg, and Saluda. Upstate AHEC services include continuing education for health care professionals, minority student development, and rural and community-based rotations for health professions students. Created in 2001 through the merger of Upper Savannah AHEC, Greenville AHEC, and Spartanburg AHEC, Upstate AHEC is one of four regional centers in the statewide AHEC system which has been serving South Carolina since 1972.

About AHA
The American Hospital Association (AHA) is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the health improvement of their communities. The AHA is the national advocate for its members, which includes more than 4,800 hospitals, health care systems, networks, and other providers of care, and 37,000 individuals. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit the AHA website at www.aha.org