Department of Defense Launches Wounded Warrior Diaries

Defense Department officials yesterday launched the “Wounded Warrior Diaries,” a multimedia Web tribute in which American servicemembers wounded in combat share stories of their service, including their hard-won battles on the road to recovery and the ups and downs of life in the wake of injury.

The Wounded Warrior Diaries feature videos of servicemembers relaying their stories in their own words. The videos are accompanied by a written account of their experiences. The site launched with four diaries, and a new diary will be added each month.

“The diaries are intended to be sources of strength, encouragement and reassurance for other wounded troops and their families,” Navy Lt. Cmdr. Brook DeWalt, DoD’s director of new media, said. “They illustrate the ultimate triumph over injury – returning to full and active lives through hard work and the support of loved ones, the community and the military family.”

In addition, the process of creating the diaries is meant to be therapeutic for the servicemembers, DeWalt said, noting that in some cases, their spouses and children take part in the interviews. “Finally,” he added, “the diaries are created to honor the service, sacrifice, courage and determination of all who voluntarily serve in harm’s way."

Featured this month, are four servicemembers from the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The Wounded Warrior Diaries launch in November is part of DoD’s Warrior Care Month.

Miltiary Health System Web Town Hall

The Military Health System will host a Web town hall on Nov. 19 from 2 to 4 p.m. EST on Health.mil as part of the ongoing dialogue between senior military leaders and service members and their families about the Defense Department’s medical care programs and services for its wounded, ill and injured troops.
Subject matter experts and service members and families who have been touched by warrior care will be on-hand to answer questions. Specifically, representatives from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Army’s Warrior Care and Transition Office, TRICARE and other organizations dedicated to military family health care are scheduled to participate in the event.


Service members and families are invited to submit questions in advance.
Webhall URL: http://www.health.mil/WarriorCareWebhall

Afghan Security Forces Making Positive Strides

“All in all we are making positive strides in fielding professional security forces that are confident, diverse, and capable of providing security to Afghanistan,” U.S. Army Col. John Agoglia, director of the Counterinsurgency Training Center – Afghanistan, of the Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan, said during a DoDLive Bloggers Roundtable. The Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan is responsible for training, developing, fielding, and mentoring the Afghan Security Forces. As for the COIN Center - Afghanistan, “Our focus is to enhance Coalition Forces, Afghan Security Forces, and other Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan agencies capability to reduce the insurgent influence,” Agoglia said.

On the call with us were Greg Grant of NextGov and Jason Sigger of the Armchair Generalist.

Coast Guard Acquisition Directorate Achieves Operational Capability Under Reforms

"In the last week or so, we’ve reached what we really feel is our full operating capability, as far as new processes and people," Coast Guard Rear Adm. Gary Blore, assistant commandant for acquisition and chief acquisition officer, said in a bloggers roundtable to discuss the status of the Coast Guard’s acquisition transformation. In 2006, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Thad W. Allen called for acquisition reforms that have led to organizational consolidation, new policies and processes, and efforts to strengthen the service’s acquisition workforce.

Army Transforming Soldier Rehabilitative Care Programs, General Says

The Army has put a lot of effort into improving rehabilitative care for soldiers since coming under criticism in February 2007 for conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Army Brig. Gen. Gary H. Creek said in a bloggers roundtable to discuss the Defense Department’s Warrior Care Month. "We have really, in many ways, transformed (outpatient care) in terms of the facilities that we use, the services that we provide, and the leadership that we have dedicated to that effort – which includes the medical management folks who help soldiers through that," Creek said. "We want to make the soldier very much a part of and responsible for their rehabilitative program, and we want to work hard to measure…how well we’re doing satisfying soldier’s needs, families’ needs…and then listening to them to continue to refine the program."

ATTENTION!

As part of Warrior Care month, the Military Health System launched a short, anonymous questionnaire for wounded, ill or injured service members to provide input about the care they received and what can be improved.

There is a separate questionnaire for families, both available directly here or through the MHS homepage, http://www.health.mil/.

So far, we've received a great deal of response from Soldiers and are now pushing the other services and family members to weigh in.

The deadline is Nov. 28.

Also, MHS will host a Warrior Care Month WebHall on Wed. Nov. 19, where senior military leaders will answer questions from service members and their families about the Defense Department's medical care programs and services for its wounded, ill and injured troops. More details will be available in a few days.

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U.S. Army Researching Futuristic Technologies, Official Says

“We’ve decided to showcase a number of very important areas that we believe will give rise to disruptive technology in the future,” Dr. John A. Parmentola, director of research and laboratory management, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Research and Technology said to bloggers. Parmentola addressed such topics as regenerative medicine, nanotechnology, immersive technology, and molecular electronics when speaking about topics that will be on display at the 26th Army Science Conference. “We’re making Science Fiction into a reality,” Parmentola said.