By Dorothy Meindok
The Post Newspaper Veterans Consultant
“Thanks to the Veterans who signed up for this program, VA can better understand — and eventually treat — the health conditions that affect Veterans of all eras and backgrounds,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough. “This will help us improve health care and ultimately save lives, for Veterans and non-Veterans alike.”
SecVA is talking about the Million Veteran Program: It reflects the diversity of the Veteran population: “More than 250,000 minority Veterans and 100,000 women Veterans have joined the program. This allows researchers to learn more about — and ultimately treat — populations that have historically been underrepresented in research.”
“It’s been used in the largest-ever genetic studies on anxiety, depression, blood pressure, heart disease, non-alcoholic liver disease, and more: These studies have helped increase the understanding of genetic risk factors for these conditions, paving the way for future treatment and research. It helped lead to a breakthrough in understanding post-traumatic stress: A study of more than 165,000 MVP participants identified several genes related to re-experiencing traumatic memories, the most distinctive symptom of PTSD. The study shed new light on the biology of PTSD.”
ANY Veteran can enroll in MVP. Veterans can join MVP online at www.mvp.va.gov, or by calling 866-441-6075 for more information.
“Veterans join MVP by voluntarily providing a blood sample, filling out surveys about their health and wellness, and granting researchers secure access to their health records. That data is secured, protected, and anonymized for patient privacy, then used to study the interactions between genes, lifestyle, military experiences, and exposures to learn more about how those factors impact health.”
“Our research is stronger when it includes all Veterans — and we’re not stopping now that we’ve enrolled one million participants,” said VA’s Under Secretary for Health Dr. Shereef Elnahal, M.D. “Because these Veterans chose to join our mission, VA now has the largest global database of genomic information that is connected to health information — a critical tool that will improve the health of Veterans for generations.”
It will certainly improve the health of the world at large Dr. Elnahal. After all, this proves my contention that veterans are, in fact, the “microcosm of the macrocosm” from the first day of service to the date of death.
Thank you brothers and sisters for your service to all!
Way back in the 90’s a VA doctor of mine asked me the same thing, can they study me? Would I open myself to interviews and appointments and conversations about mental health and military sexual trauma. I was hospitalized in California’s National Center for PTSD at the time, and I took some time to think about it. I have always been one to question everything, weigh the pros and the cons and look for all the motives. I had to be sure I wanted to be a part of anything like this because I had just left a scenario in the military where I had unknowingly allowed myself to be open to social experimentation, at the very least. What happened there was the reason I was hospitalized in the first place and from where I sat, I knew I wasn’t alone because there were so many of us trying to get into these VA healing centers, and the wait list was long.
I said yes, I did so for a lot of reasons mostly because I trusted my doctor. I didn’t trust anyone back then quite honestly, but he had a way of communicating with me and he didn’t lie about what was going on, what I was facing, didn’t have the typical MD “god complex” and was open to my research, investigation, and plethora of questions about my care. He did not condescend to me or minimize my viewpoints, nor did he kiss my behind. All in all, it was a God given relationship that ultimately saved my life. He proved himself beyond his first perceived flaw with me, the fact that he showed up wearing socks and Birkenstocks with long shorts, collared shirt, and his lab coat upon our first meeting; it became something about him that I cherished as it exemplified his commitment to who he was over what he was expected to be. I learned a great deal from this very brilliant doctor who happened to also be a lawyer!
I was so relieved in finally receiving help and compassionate care that I wanted the whole world (and especially my suffering brothers and sisters) to know HELP WAS AVAILABLE. I wanted taxpayers to know that our government, despite political flaws, was doing some good things with the money – at least at VA they were trying to save lives. I went about sharing the news with everyone I met. I was accused of being a VA cheerleader, such nonsense that still finds itself in my way to this day. How that is possible is beyond me; In the defense of those that accuse me, I simply give credit where it is due and likewise, deliver deserved criticism, so depending on what day and what things are happening I can see where one might get confused.
It’s been a long road for me over the past few decades in the way of law, research, and advocacy for veterans. I have worked a lot and given a lot, a few times my work has almost cost me my life. I wouldn’t change it for the world though because I know my contribution, as small as it may be in the big scheme of the world at large, has helped other veterans. So, I am so glad to see that there are at the very least over 1 million others who are like minded in wanting to truly put an end to human suffering. I think if most people would look past the gun and the uniform and listen to veterans and active-duty military personnel, they would find that warrior silver lining shared within all of our hearts, disgruntled or not, the lining that shows what we really are – some of the most caring, dedicated and loving human beings on the planet.
Nope, I wouldn’t change it even though it has been far from easy, but I am changing how I plan to advocate in the future. My family life has mandated I make some changes and I’ll be sharing that with you guys in the upcoming weeks. Here’s a hint – while I will be winding down active law practice, I’ll be passing whatever I know on to others just like was done for me.
Until then, like I always say, stay tuned.
Dorothy Meindok is The Post Newspaper’s Veterans Consultant. Ms. Meindok served her nation in the United States Navy and is currently a practicing lawyer advocating for our nation’s veterans. Her column appears on Sundays.
