HOMELESS?

During my research I came across a shocking figure that stated that veterans made up 1/4 of all homeless people in America. While many associate homeless veterans to Vietnam and todays modern wars, in an NPR story, Michael Norris illuminates that there have been homeless veterans throughout the span of US history. Post WWI, soldiers returned and thousands were homeless, causing a huge protest where soldiers camped outside the nation's capitol demanding a bonus. Unfortunately, president Herbert Hoover responded quite poorly, sending guards and tanks out on the soldiers to evacuate them from the site.

Interestingly, this problem was examined and in 1944 the GI bill was created in time for the returning WWII soldiers. The GI bill allowed for one year of paid compensation for veterans after coming back from the war as well as a free college education. This allowed WWII soldiers to readjust more easily into civilian culture to a point where they could afford to buy a home. Between 1944 and 1952 the government also backed 2.4 million home loans for WWII veterans.

After interviewing the VA doctor, I was left with a sense of a positive interaction with this cohort group of wwii veterans. It led me to wonder why they were much more well adjusted. I think that the creation of the GI bill and ability to have a house really contributed to the "re-entry" stage in the veterans' lives. In the attached video, wwii veterans discuss the issue of homelessness. One man describes that after the war, "work, i didn't have no problem finding...now it ain't that way." This video was quite touching to see how the wwii veterans are sympathetic towards the new generation of homeless and jobless veterans.

Veteran elders are still at much more risk than non veteran elders to be homeless. About 23% of all homeless people are reported to have mental disabilities that keep them from getting jobs and getting out of homelessness. With destructive effects of war such as post traumatic stress disorder, this could keep people homeless. 38% of homeless also reported alcohol abuse. Alcoholism is especially prevalent amongst veterans, putting them at even more risk.

SOURCES

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-11-07-homeless-veterans_N.htm

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16227380

http://www.gibill.va.gov/gi_bill_info/history.htm

http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/526/homeless-facts.html

INTERVIEWING VA DOCTORS

In my research I found that a lot of articles were slightly impersonal so I decided to speak with a doctor that has worked in the VA and with veterans in general

In an interview with Dr. Albert Lim

A general practitioner who spent three years of his residency as well as much of med school treating veterans.

In your time working as a doctor you have treated patients at a regular hospital as well as at a VA center
Correct

Did you come across any veterans from WWII? Can you describe them - any sort of general characteristics that particularly stood out in this group?

I found that the World War II veterans were very humble. They did not speak much about their experiences in war. The one patient that told me a story was one of the soldiers during D Day. He had an amazing story about parachuting to the other side of the beach. He was such a great soldier he was invited back to Normandie France to commemorate him.

How interesting, were the veterans from other wars similar to that of WWII?
No, the soldiers of WWII were much more humble. I found that they felt less entitled.

What do you mean by less entitled?

They didn't feel like the doctors or other people owed them anything. The Vietnam War veterans seemed more entitled to recieve help.

So did you treat any patients with post traumatic stress disorder? How many of them were WWII veterans?

Yes I did, none of them were from WWII. Most of them were Vietnam Veterans.

Do you think this is partially due to the fact that ptsd was more highly diagnosed in vietnam veterans, and it was just something people weren't aware of during WWII?

Yes, probably.

How were the veterans different from your patients of the same age group that were not?
In addition to the usual problems of aging, alcoholism was much more prevalent. However at the same time the veterans seemed much more grateful to be receiving help.

Were there any sensitivities the doctors were trained for specifically in working with WWII veterans?
No, not really. I treat all my patients equally.

do you think anything could be improved in the healthcare and treatment of WWII veterans?

I think that the VA system has become more efficient than it was before. The quality of VA healthcare parallels that of general healthcare.

It was helpful to hear the point of view of a doctor. My general impression from the discussion was that WWII elderly were rather well adjusted, polite, and grateful. The doctor was content with all the treatment towards the WWII elderly. However, he did mention that this specific group of elderly were much less vocal about their experience. This was congruent with my research and how WWII soldiers were trained not to complain about their troubles. Perhaps the lack of entitlement and bitterness was also due to the fact that they returned from the war victorious and during a economically golden time. The interview left me feeling positive in the aging process of wwii elderly.

DURING TIMES OF DISASTER

In light of the Japanese earthquakes and Pacific Tsunami and consequently the nuclear plant meltdowns, I came across many articles that related the horrors and destruction to that of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Bombing. Though the range of people who experienced trauma during these horrible acts extends beyond veterans, it is still a WWII stressor inducing memory that haunts a group of elderly today. Japan's population holds one of the highest percentages of elderly in a country, at 23%, double that of the US. I am sure that much of these elderly are reminded of the chaos they lived through during WWII. In a New York Times article, a reporter interviews elderly Japanese to see their reaction to the natural disaster. 75 year old Hirosato Wako states that he had lived through Sendai Air Raids and Bombings during WWII, however to him the scale of wreckage from the Tsunami seems even greater. Many elderly were too feeble to survive the disaster. With missing family and friends, and countless injuries and deaths, the tsunami has surely brought back horrors and feelings of battle and war.

I found it interesting that the US National center for PTSD has provided a page with resources for the survivors of the the Japan earthquake and tsunami. This reminds us of the possible new trauma that could be created from all the destruction.

Sources

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/world/asia/15elderly.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=wwii%20&st=cse

http://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/pages/survivors_japan_2011.asp

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42150705/ns/world_news-asia-pacific/

http://www.scpr.org/news/2011/04/06/in-tsunamis-wake-tough-choices-for-japans-elderly/

http://youtu.be/WICvdMWin9M