Madigan chief placed on leave amid investigations into PTSD diagnoses

Madigan chief placed on leave amid investigations into PTSD diagnoses
ADAM ASHTON - Olymption Staff writer
February 21, 2012

The head of Madigan Army Medical Center has been removed from his post while the Army concludes an investigation into a Madigan psychiatry team that changed the diagnoses of some soldiers without meeting them in person.

Col. Dallas Homas’ leave was announced Monday evening by Maj. Gen. Philip Volpe, who leads the Western Region Medical Command. Madigan and the Western command are both based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Meanwhile, the Army Surgeon General this week is contacting the families of 14 soldiers whose diagnoses for post-traumatic stress disorder were adjusted by the Madigan forensic psychiatry team in such a way that the former soldiers did not receive full disability pensions.

More soldiers whose PTSD diagnoses were changed have also requested reviews of their cases, the Army said Monday.

The original 14 cases were reviewed at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Maryland over the past few weeks. Several soldiers learned the results of the reviews Tuesday. The rest expect to be informed by Thursday, Western Region Medical Command spokeswoman Sharon Ayala said.

The forensic psychiatry team was created at Madigan in October 2008 to review behavioral health diagnoses and ensure that patients leave the Army with the correct treatment plans. Madigan is the only Army hospital with that kind of program.

Lawmakers are questioning its purpose in light of internal memos that showed members of the team urging behavioral health professionals to consider the long-term costs to taxpayers of a PTSD diagnosis. One memo said a PTSD diagnosis for a veteran could cost up to $1.5 million over a soldier’s lifetime.

“This is an investigation that has only just begun,” Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Monday night in a written statement. “The most important thing is that these service members and their families are provided with answers on why cost was a factor in the treatment they sought for the invisible wounds of war, and that the Army takes the right steps to fix it.”

The Army has not said how many diagnoses the forensic psychiatry team adjusted. Its leader, Dr. William Keppler, has been assigned to nonclinical duties.

“As this process continues, we will undoubtedly be faced with areas not yet addressed,” Volpe said. “That said, everyone, at all levels, is committed to facing those challenges head-on to ensure the best care for our soldiers.”

The Army Medical Command and Volpe’s Western Region Medical Command are carrying out separate inquiries into the Madigan team.

Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Patricia Horoho also is investigating why Madigan closed an intensive outpatient clinic in 2010. Sources told Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Belfair, the unit was shuttered because it was diagnosing post-traumatic stress too frequently.

In a news release, Volpe said Homas’ administrative removal reflected a “common practice” during ongoing investigations.

Volpe named Col. Mike Heimall as interim Madigan commander. Heimall had been commander at Irwin Army Community Hospital, Fort Riley, Kan.

Homas, a West Point graduate, deployed to Iraq as the top surgeon for Lewis-McChord’s I Corps in 2009-10, and he also served in Afghanistan. He became the head of Madigan last March. His military decorations include the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star.

At Lewis-McChord, Homas helped create a forum for military leaders and social services representatives to share information on how to connect troubled soldiers with programs that can assist them. He’s also pushed to get Madigan’s expert doctors out in the field with soldiers more often.

“It is our honor and privilege to provide health care to our patients which include the finest soldiers and airmen in the nation,” Homas said last week in written remarks about the medical command investigations. “Their well-being and health is our priority. They absolutely deserve the best care possible. We welcome the opportunity to show investigators our procedures and practices and are committed to doing so with the utmost transparency and cooperation.”

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