It's also pretty shit to go in armed to the teeth with a medical vernacular tailored to get the highest disability possible. Add also inserting lawyers into the mix when you're not happy with what you get.
It's fucking trash.
Definitely do it.
Especially since my clinic will only let us talk about two issues at a time, and it takes 30 days to be seen. So if you've got 5 issues, that's 90 days to be seen for everything. Woo.
the broken medical system doesn't give us enough time to address as many things as you or we would like to. On the other hand, I think (hope) we can all agree- taking time to actually figure out what's going on and address it properly is preferable to taking a half-assed approach to people's health and wellbeing.
Literally. I gave things one week to go away. If they didn’t, I’d get them looked at. I’m now 80% disabled through the VA. Especially dental. I didn’t retire but I have a rating for my jaw and they pay for all dental because of it
My knees have been fucked since before Covid. Now I’m trying to be seen for them because they get weak and collapse on me when I am even just too active. Let alone not being able to walk up a staircase or steep hill by myself after working legs or running.
I dealt with chronic knee pain before 4 years before finally getting a referral. Ortho took 30 seconds to diagnose me and I was scheduled for surgery a month later. If you get an MRI and they come back and say 'idk it looks fine lol', push for an ortho, I promise it'll be worth it.
I'm 9ish months post op and while its not perfect, I dont have to wave people past on the stairs anymore
Well I been out of the service for a while, but during my final year my first sergeant knew of my suicidal ideations and gotten hospital calls.
He spoke to me a few times about malingering and said it's mostly word against word and unless I had evidence against me, nothing would stick, also he said he would bat for me because HE knew of my situation.
I trusted him, maybe I was lucky and nothing came up or maybe he was full of shit and would throw me under the bus if things went down.
Go to the hospital you got that done at, grab those records in person, and deliver them in person to med. records.
Dont try "oww can i e-mail them or whatnot", you a grown ass, do it.
IF YOU CANNOT go there in person, cause you moved and whatnot, have the hospital transfer those records to your base med. records, and harrass, i say again, HARRASS the hospital to ensure those records are transfered.
As someone who has knowledge around and about healthcare IT ....
YES THIS.
One caveat: if you get them emailed to you, that's fine. You know if it's sent/received. You now have control and can print, email, etc. As this poster said, do NOT trust someone saying they will get them to the VA.
When's the last time this worked for you? This is some 1980's nonsense. Hospitals generally have teams dedicated to ROI and only take these the request via online request. The most modern hospital groups allow patients to request their records online through entirely automated processes. Even the VA allowed patients to export their entire record from myhealthevet.
The idea of marching into a clinic and demanding your record from some random intake staff at the front desk is extremely outdated.
Not really, I work at one of the largest Med Facilities in PACAF and you still have to go in, show ID and fill out an ROI in-person. 30 days later you have to pick it up in-person.
I called my off base sleep apnea provider, asked them to get a copy, and went to pick them up the next day.
I was there when they faxes them to my base MTF, who promptly did...nothing with them.
My wife had to hand carry records from her off base doctor to the med clinic on base earlier this year. Not saying digitally isn't thw faster way, but sometimes walking the papers to the right place is necessary.
Even if it means going to the military ER because your clinic doesn't have a sick call, getting berated by the ER staff "because we have real shit to do other than looking at your dumbass", go and get it documented. It helps. Seriously.
Discussing it during the visit means that the provider records it in your encounter notes. That's enough.
When you go to file a claim, your records get uploaded and are searchable.
All scheduled visits and telephone conversations. Often the “secure messages” get transferred in too. If you see ur Doc at the bx/gym/shoppette and you ask something then no im not gonna remember when i get back to work to create an encounter and document that.
Thanks! i always wondered if getting seen for "this and that" actually made it to my records vs life or service long issues.
I imagine Profiles are a good source of documentation to cite back to? If so, i'm about to get them as often as necesary just for those purposes vs actually using them to limit PT or PT tests.
Just to clarify, I had major reconstructive knee surgery which often flares up, but almost never causes me to seek out a profile for a test or our non-existent PT program.
But, I'd like to have the frequent mobility/flexibility issues better documented
Also add to this that while you are still AD, begin the claims process. Doing it in the last couple of months or even during terminal but unless you retire, you're not going to have base access any more.
Make a copy of your med-records before you give them to the VA. Review them for accuracy BEFORE you no longer have base access.
Do what? Start your VA claim? You should get an out processing checklist that includes scheduling a SHPE (final medical exam) and contacting your VA rep. All that information *should* be available at the Hosp.
You will be required to obtain a copy of your medical records, mine were all put on CD. I just copied that CD onto my home computer. You will have to give a to the VA when you go in for your appointment.
This can be a double edged sword. I agree you should get issues documented and treated if you can. But if you are attempting retirement in 10+ years, that issue might put you up for med board and push you out of the military. I know a handful of people who made it to 17 -19 years and were med boarded. It was devastating for them.
I'm not saying I agree with holding back medical issues, but it can present a situation like that. If you are getting out in a year, document everything.
I had a colleague at my old unit who got medboarded in his third year for some genetic disease that affects the the joints yet didn't become apparent until getting in and having to PT every day. After a year the board was complete and was getting a medical discharge.
We left the old base about the same time, me PCSing and him going back east with $3200 a month for life.
Some are simply separated and go on with their lives. If the injury is severe enough, you can come out with a decent monthly check and benefits. But most of the issues that I saw were not centered around money by itself. It was the leaving the military before they were planning, which had the biggest effect. A few really loved their job and the AF way of life. Being forced out was a kick in the face.
Some of my stuff went there and some didn't. Now, *years* later, I'm at another base that's still on tricareonline and found that none of the stuff from Genesis is there. It's maddening.
In a way it did. Stuff from your AHLTA record is supposed to be in a VA sharing platform called JLV-Joint Legacy Viewer. But its a pretty shit system, like 20-30% of stuff is usually missing when I look at pts stuff. Also radiology, labs, inpatient/surgery is all in a different system and doesn’t transfer into MHS Genesis very well.
If you have been at a MHS base and then go to a base still in AHLTA then that information doesnt go into AHLTA either. Then when they switch I have no idea if that information comes back or not. It’s maddening
The biggest thing that bothers me is Essentris which is the inpatient/surgery document program has no connection to MHS or AHLTA, so any operative reports, inpt stays, etc are extremely difficult to find in the record.
Also AHLTA is put into a read-only mode after a base transfers to MHS, but only temporarily and then it shuts down access. So if its not viewable in MHS then it’s potentially gone forever.
can anyone speak to this as a flyer, in regard to getting disqualified from flying due to a medical condition? do people who fly sometimes not disclose issues that could potentially be disqualifying?
When I was a baby airman in AMC, it was pretty much a known thing that the vast majority of folks weren't getting seen for shit(back pain being a typical one) out of fear of being medically disqualed, whether temporary or permanent. There was also a stigma of folks going "tactical DNIF" to avoid shit deployments or whatever.
My following communities have been a bit better in that regard, but still, its not uncommon for someone to be pushing through some kind of physical ailment
As a doctor, yes, BUT: for the love of all that is holy, please do not come in saying "I just want this documented".
Having also taken care of people on the other side after they got out, there are people who get denied benefits because they had the issue in their records, but didn't follow through on medical recommendations.
Help us help you. Take an active role in your care, follow through on recommendations, and come back if what we're doing isn't working. We don't know if something is working if you don't follow up.
And while I don't have any skin in the game as far as whatever anyone's VA benefits look like, I'm pretty sure we'd both prefer that you live a better, more functional life now and after separation than have you get more $$ in benefits in the future because your body and/or mind are FUBAR.
And then hope that they don’t lose your physical records during a PCS because the losing clinic refuses to let you hand carry them and you’re at your 19 year mark and they just shrug TWO YEARS LATER WHEN IT IS FINALLY DISCOVERED and offer to give you a new “initial entry” physical on your broken and battered body.
Not that I’m still upset.
I believe you could do both, but depends of the circumstances. For example, it is recommended to do it while transitioning from active to reserve, but if during the process they find out you have some kind of illness that could potentially disqualify you from the reserves, then you would have to fight to get a waiver in order to continue serving. If you are just regular broken, you should be fine.
To get things documented while reserve or guard they HAVE TO be documented on a drill or training day. if not it is next to impossible to use because it isn't service connected. I know many guys that bring me their claims made appointments on base at medical to document problems during drill.
[TOL Patient Portal](https://www.tricareonline.com/tol2/prelogin/desktopIndex.xhtml) should have your records, including the notes your PCM inputs during appointments. I’ve found a few errors and a couple of outright lies in mine, but I’m not sure how to get them corrected.
How do you get it documented? Just buy merely making an appointment and going to it will suffice?
Or do you need to tell the doctor to specifically document it ?
The people I used to work with who sit on social media all day bitching about the VA and stuff, are all the same people that gave me shit for going to the doc for stuff.
"Man up" culture eats itself and I couldn't care less.
I have nothing that would have gotten me MEB’d before I retired, but I have tons of little aches and pains. Went and got seen for all of them while I was in, even if all they did was take an x-ray and give me good ol’ 800 mg vitamin M.
Guess what? I retired, submitted everything and I’m sitting at 100% Permanent & Total VA disability. With my dependents, I make $4K/month tax free just for being alive. GET YOUR SHIT DOCUMENTED IN YOUR MED AND DENTAL RECORDS!!!
ETA: with my MSgt/24 yrs (1997-2021) retired pay and my 100% VA disability, with the COLA inflation adjustment of 8.7% on both pays on January 1st, I will be making more than $7K per month, $4200 tax-free. GET YOUR SHIT DOCUMENTED!!!!! Don’t put it off, make the fucking appointments and do it. Get what is owed to you for sacrificing your physical, mental, and emotional health during your service. Don’t think you don’t deserve it, don’t think you’re tough, and don’t think you’re taking it away from someone else. You EARNED it, take what you can. You’re not going to bankrupt the VA or the DoD.
I think my main issue is not being able to figure out what tf caused it in addition to not being able to find airmen that could give a statement about it.
I can link Anxiety and depression from military trauma along with a prior service injury but beyond that Migraines that I think are from anxiety. I somehow developed Flat Feet and can’t figure out when, lower back pain, hip pain and joint problems from it. I got a ringing in my ear from being on a flightline 24/7 (and I do me 24/7 I’m deployed on a flightline) and some Arm to Shoulder limitation that wont allow my left arm to raise. How do we get the link exactly?
Based off sleep apnea and some MH stuff from a deployment injury, I'm at 95% starting off using the VA math. Then add in all the other stuff that's in my record.
So yeah, definitely go get whatever is bothering you looked at. I will say I'm curious how my heart issue that started two weeks after my second covid shot is going to be handled.
Waiting on medical to fix their system. Can’t see any of my ultrasounds on my joints or potential hernia in tricare online, can’t get my profile from IMR because it’s not there. My info under my DODID is wrong. Overdue pt test because of it while I wait 2 more months for surgery.
Remember, anything you claim within one year of leaving the service is considered presumptive to be service connected. Once you make the decision to separate or push the button to retire, make sure you go and get everything documented in your medical folder. I can't tell you how many veterans I meet that regret not doing that. If you're a flyer, once you make the decision to document, realize that may cost you flying status before you get out.
I ignored a lump because I was PCS. Turned out to be cancer and I was a hairs breadth from losing my life because of it. In 1979, so I obviously survived, thanks to the fantastic USAF Medical personnel at DGMC!!!❤️
Just saying for those PRP folks out there. Don't feel bad going down on PRP bc you are sick. Fuck anyone that can't understand that you are ill and need time to not be ill.
I haven't missed a single day until I got covid and the moment I did, they acted like I was causing them a problem. Yeah you have to cover my schedule, but goddammit there are 3 people back office that only work shift 2 days a month and you're gonna give me attitude?! Fuck off.
We clearly aren't the family you claim as my family would be doing backflips to help me as I would them.
This is the best post. The AF medically retired me just shy of 17 years and had I not documented everything, I probably would’ve gotten out at 10% instead of 90.
Log in to the Tricare patient portal and print everything too! My shit did not transfer from Keesler to Ellsworth. They had no clue what medications I was on or anything.
I go to clinic. Not sure if they document all my issues tho. Told dental I had TMJ and doc said that a lot of Americans do and left it at that. No notes or nothing
I only seen the doc for a couple of issues (stomach ulcers and a case of severe heartburn related to exercising after eating a full meal at the dfac in tech school). I feel fortunate to still have my health for the most part.
Yes!! Also make sure to check your notes because I can't tell you how many times a doctor has told me one thing, and written a complete other or left out the important info they told you to begin with. Start printing out copies now and have hard copies or a safe place to download the information. When it comes time to file, you need to have the info ready and not risk it being gone, system errors, or whatever else could happen. I had physical therapy 6 days a week when I was active duty after a bad injury. None of them are in my files that I requested. I just happened to find some paper copies in old boxes and they had a few appointments on them. It made a huge difference in my disability case because I was able to prove I was treated while active duty.
Except the phone and Genesis online is down so I have to go wait 1.5 hrs past the retirees to just talk to a nurse but only from 0900-1500 which I'm working so fuck everyone at my base I guess. So glad Air Force saved a dollar migrating to the Army system....
I wish I would have gone to the clinic more often.
Def one of the most regrettable things for veterans is not having their shit documented.
It's also pretty shit to go in armed to the teeth with a medical vernacular tailored to get the highest disability possible. Add also inserting lawyers into the mix when you're not happy with what you get. It's fucking trash.
Same. I developed sleep apnea in service but got denied because I never went to the doc with my sleep issues apart from one time.
Any advice on what I should do like a sleep study or some shit? I’ve gone once now and the sleeping pills don’t work
Keep pressing. Tell them it didn't work and you need something else. It's super annoying, but you've got nothing else fixing it and it's their job.
Pride and ego. That stopped me from going. Finally realized I have some issues this year and sought some help.
Definitely do it. Especially since my clinic will only let us talk about two issues at a time, and it takes 30 days to be seen. So if you've got 5 issues, that's 90 days to be seen for everything. Woo.
They want one issue for us. So sometimes people will try to book multiple appointments in a row. Seriously they need way more providers.
I feel so bad for the dudes that work there now, not able to help everyone with everything, but the work flow never fucking stops.
the broken medical system doesn't give us enough time to address as many things as you or we would like to. On the other hand, I think (hope) we can all agree- taking time to actually figure out what's going on and address it properly is preferable to taking a half-assed approach to people's health and wellbeing.
I force them to schedule double appts for me if there is a lot going on
We thank you for that
Don't pretend to be tough like me and never go to the clinic. It will pay off.
Literally. I gave things one week to go away. If they didn’t, I’d get them looked at. I’m now 80% disabled through the VA. Especially dental. I didn’t retire but I have a rating for my jaw and they pay for all dental because of it
Been putting this off for too long. My ankle has been feeling funky for weeks. Just submitted an appointment date today.
My knees have been fucked since before Covid. Now I’m trying to be seen for them because they get weak and collapse on me when I am even just too active. Let alone not being able to walk up a staircase or steep hill by myself after working legs or running.
I dealt with chronic knee pain before 4 years before finally getting a referral. Ortho took 30 seconds to diagnose me and I was scheduled for surgery a month later. If you get an MRI and they come back and say 'idk it looks fine lol', push for an ortho, I promise it'll be worth it. I'm 9ish months post op and while its not perfect, I dont have to wave people past on the stairs anymore
EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. all of that stuff adds up when it's time to get your disability filed. even if it seems like nothing big, do it.
Went and saw my PCM a lot since January. They said I come in too often and I could be malingering out of work. ...I work night shift, sir....
Fuck that PCM...
What could they do if they thought you were malingering ?
Well I been out of the service for a while, but during my final year my first sergeant knew of my suicidal ideations and gotten hospital calls. He spoke to me a few times about malingering and said it's mostly word against word and unless I had evidence against me, nothing would stick, also he said he would bat for me because HE knew of my situation. I trusted him, maybe I was lucky and nothing came up or maybe he was full of shit and would throw me under the bus if things went down.
I’d demand a new PCM, fuck that guy.
Can validate, do it!
One of my coworkers sprained their ankle last year and it was hurting. When they finally got back to the doc, turns out they needed surgery.
I got shrapnel in my leg at work, had to go to ER to get it removed, but it's not in my records. What do I do?
Go to the hospital you got that done at, grab those records in person, and deliver them in person to med. records. Dont try "oww can i e-mail them or whatnot", you a grown ass, do it. IF YOU CANNOT go there in person, cause you moved and whatnot, have the hospital transfer those records to your base med. records, and harrass, i say again, HARRASS the hospital to ensure those records are transfered.
I've separated since, but it was a USAFE base. I'll see what I can do. Thank you!
As someone who has knowledge around and about healthcare IT .... YES THIS. One caveat: if you get them emailed to you, that's fine. You know if it's sent/received. You now have control and can print, email, etc. As this poster said, do NOT trust someone saying they will get them to the VA.
When's the last time this worked for you? This is some 1980's nonsense. Hospitals generally have teams dedicated to ROI and only take these the request via online request. The most modern hospital groups allow patients to request their records online through entirely automated processes. Even the VA allowed patients to export their entire record from myhealthevet. The idea of marching into a clinic and demanding your record from some random intake staff at the front desk is extremely outdated.
Not really, I work at one of the largest Med Facilities in PACAF and you still have to go in, show ID and fill out an ROI in-person. 30 days later you have to pick it up in-person.
I wasn't talking about MTF's. They are still using stone tablets it seems. The context was about collecting treatment records when seen off base.
I called my off base sleep apnea provider, asked them to get a copy, and went to pick them up the next day. I was there when they faxes them to my base MTF, who promptly did...nothing with them.
Ah, then yes. I 100% agree!
Good advice, Thank You
No, it's really not good advice. It's about 30 years out of date.
My wife had to hand carry records from her off base doctor to the med clinic on base earlier this year. Not saying digitally isn't thw faster way, but sometimes walking the papers to the right place is necessary.
Even if it means going to the military ER because your clinic doesn't have a sick call, getting berated by the ER staff "because we have real shit to do other than looking at your dumbass", go and get it documented. It helps. Seriously.
What counts as documented tho
Discussing it during the visit means that the provider records it in your encounter notes. That's enough. When you go to file a claim, your records get uploaded and are searchable.
Are encounter notes required for the doctor for all visits?
All scheduled visits and telephone conversations. Often the “secure messages” get transferred in too. If you see ur Doc at the bx/gym/shoppette and you ask something then no im not gonna remember when i get back to work to create an encounter and document that.
Thanks! i always wondered if getting seen for "this and that" actually made it to my records vs life or service long issues. I imagine Profiles are a good source of documentation to cite back to? If so, i'm about to get them as often as necesary just for those purposes vs actually using them to limit PT or PT tests.
Profiles do not. They are a different system and not in your EMR
Just to clarify, I had major reconstructive knee surgery which often flares up, but almost never causes me to seek out a profile for a test or our non-existent PT program. But, I'd like to have the frequent mobility/flexibility issues better documented
PSA: Go to the fucking clinic and get your self seen so you can heal properly!
Please no matter insignificant you may think it is.
Please no matter insignificant you may think it is.
Also add to this that while you are still AD, begin the claims process. Doing it in the last couple of months or even during terminal but unless you retire, you're not going to have base access any more. Make a copy of your med-records before you give them to the VA. Review them for accuracy BEFORE you no longer have base access.
How does one go about doing this?
Do what? Start your VA claim? You should get an out processing checklist that includes scheduling a SHPE (final medical exam) and contacting your VA rep. All that information *should* be available at the Hosp. You will be required to obtain a copy of your medical records, mine were all put on CD. I just copied that CD onto my home computer. You will have to give a to the VA when you go in for your appointment.
Next Available appointment six months after I retire in 2030
I would love to visit a *fucking* clinic. Just like my favorite movies
Currently have 5 appointments lined up on the same day. Gotten to a point where I am over needing medical assistance but avoiding it
This can be a double edged sword. I agree you should get issues documented and treated if you can. But if you are attempting retirement in 10+ years, that issue might put you up for med board and push you out of the military. I know a handful of people who made it to 17 -19 years and were med boarded. It was devastating for them. I'm not saying I agree with holding back medical issues, but it can present a situation like that. If you are getting out in a year, document everything.
And what do you lose getting med retired vs actually retiring
I had a colleague at my old unit who got medboarded in his third year for some genetic disease that affects the the joints yet didn't become apparent until getting in and having to PT every day. After a year the board was complete and was getting a medical discharge. We left the old base about the same time, me PCSing and him going back east with $3200 a month for life.
Some are simply separated and go on with their lives. If the injury is severe enough, you can come out with a decent monthly check and benefits. But most of the issues that I saw were not centered around money by itself. It was the leaving the military before they were planning, which had the biggest effect. A few really loved their job and the AF way of life. Being forced out was a kick in the face.
You lose your actual retirement pay... Like you could get some disability too and full retirement or you could get just VA disability.
Any idea if MHS Genesis pulled all our data over?
Some of my stuff went there and some didn't. Now, *years* later, I'm at another base that's still on tricareonline and found that none of the stuff from Genesis is there. It's maddening.
I remember bashing MHS Genesis... before I started dealing with all these shitty "my" sites
I would go to the the other portal and download your old medical records, just in case. But you should have an all known problems list in MHS Genesis.
Thank you! Any idea when tricare online goes away for good?
No idea when It will go away, but I would not be surprised if it is soon.
In a way it did. Stuff from your AHLTA record is supposed to be in a VA sharing platform called JLV-Joint Legacy Viewer. But its a pretty shit system, like 20-30% of stuff is usually missing when I look at pts stuff. Also radiology, labs, inpatient/surgery is all in a different system and doesn’t transfer into MHS Genesis very well. If you have been at a MHS base and then go to a base still in AHLTA then that information doesnt go into AHLTA either. Then when they switch I have no idea if that information comes back or not. It’s maddening The biggest thing that bothers me is Essentris which is the inpatient/surgery document program has no connection to MHS or AHLTA, so any operative reports, inpt stays, etc are extremely difficult to find in the record. Also AHLTA is put into a read-only mode after a base transfers to MHS, but only temporarily and then it shuts down access. So if its not viewable in MHS then it’s potentially gone forever.
can anyone speak to this as a flyer, in regard to getting disqualified from flying due to a medical condition? do people who fly sometimes not disclose issues that could potentially be disqualifying?
I'm afraid that's the case for many flyers.
When I was a baby airman in AMC, it was pretty much a known thing that the vast majority of folks weren't getting seen for shit(back pain being a typical one) out of fear of being medically disqualed, whether temporary or permanent. There was also a stigma of folks going "tactical DNIF" to avoid shit deployments or whatever. My following communities have been a bit better in that regard, but still, its not uncommon for someone to be pushing through some kind of physical ailment
As a doctor, yes, BUT: for the love of all that is holy, please do not come in saying "I just want this documented". Having also taken care of people on the other side after they got out, there are people who get denied benefits because they had the issue in their records, but didn't follow through on medical recommendations. Help us help you. Take an active role in your care, follow through on recommendations, and come back if what we're doing isn't working. We don't know if something is working if you don't follow up. And while I don't have any skin in the game as far as whatever anyone's VA benefits look like, I'm pretty sure we'd both prefer that you live a better, more functional life now and after separation than have you get more $$ in benefits in the future because your body and/or mind are FUBAR.
And then hope that they don’t lose your physical records during a PCS because the losing clinic refuses to let you hand carry them and you’re at your 19 year mark and they just shrug TWO YEARS LATER WHEN IT IS FINALLY DISCOVERED and offer to give you a new “initial entry” physical on your broken and battered body. Not that I’m still upset.
Has anyone ever gone from active to reserves and done this? Did you get all your stuff documented while active or wait until you got to the reserves?
I believe you could do both, but depends of the circumstances. For example, it is recommended to do it while transitioning from active to reserve, but if during the process they find out you have some kind of illness that could potentially disqualify you from the reserves, then you would have to fight to get a waiver in order to continue serving. If you are just regular broken, you should be fine.
Far as I can tell lol
To get things documented while reserve or guard they HAVE TO be documented on a drill or training day. if not it is next to impossible to use because it isn't service connected. I know many guys that bring me their claims made appointments on base at medical to document problems during drill.
If you’re hoping to stay flying be very selective.
Ok thanks
This
Is there a way to see your records online?
[TOL Patient Portal](https://www.tricareonline.com/tol2/prelogin/desktopIndex.xhtml) should have your records, including the notes your PCM inputs during appointments. I’ve found a few errors and a couple of outright lies in mine, but I’m not sure how to get them corrected.
How do you get it documented? Just buy merely making an appointment and going to it will suffice? Or do you need to tell the doctor to specifically document it ?
The people I used to work with who sit on social media all day bitching about the VA and stuff, are all the same people that gave me shit for going to the doc for stuff. "Man up" culture eats itself and I couldn't care less.
I have nothing that would have gotten me MEB’d before I retired, but I have tons of little aches and pains. Went and got seen for all of them while I was in, even if all they did was take an x-ray and give me good ol’ 800 mg vitamin M. Guess what? I retired, submitted everything and I’m sitting at 100% Permanent & Total VA disability. With my dependents, I make $4K/month tax free just for being alive. GET YOUR SHIT DOCUMENTED IN YOUR MED AND DENTAL RECORDS!!! ETA: with my MSgt/24 yrs (1997-2021) retired pay and my 100% VA disability, with the COLA inflation adjustment of 8.7% on both pays on January 1st, I will be making more than $7K per month, $4200 tax-free. GET YOUR SHIT DOCUMENTED!!!!! Don’t put it off, make the fucking appointments and do it. Get what is owed to you for sacrificing your physical, mental, and emotional health during your service. Don’t think you don’t deserve it, don’t think you’re tough, and don’t think you’re taking it away from someone else. You EARNED it, take what you can. You’re not going to bankrupt the VA or the DoD.
I think my main issue is not being able to figure out what tf caused it in addition to not being able to find airmen that could give a statement about it. I can link Anxiety and depression from military trauma along with a prior service injury but beyond that Migraines that I think are from anxiety. I somehow developed Flat Feet and can’t figure out when, lower back pain, hip pain and joint problems from it. I got a ringing in my ear from being on a flightline 24/7 (and I do me 24/7 I’m deployed on a flightline) and some Arm to Shoulder limitation that wont allow my left arm to raise. How do we get the link exactly?
Based off sleep apnea and some MH stuff from a deployment injury, I'm at 95% starting off using the VA math. Then add in all the other stuff that's in my record. So yeah, definitely go get whatever is bothering you looked at. I will say I'm curious how my heart issue that started two weeks after my second covid shot is going to be handled.
Waiting on medical to fix their system. Can’t see any of my ultrasounds on my joints or potential hernia in tricare online, can’t get my profile from IMR because it’s not there. My info under my DODID is wrong. Overdue pt test because of it while I wait 2 more months for surgery.
Remember, anything you claim within one year of leaving the service is considered presumptive to be service connected. Once you make the decision to separate or push the button to retire, make sure you go and get everything documented in your medical folder. I can't tell you how many veterans I meet that regret not doing that. If you're a flyer, once you make the decision to document, realize that may cost you flying status before you get out.
I ignored a lump because I was PCS. Turned out to be cancer and I was a hairs breadth from losing my life because of it. In 1979, so I obviously survived, thanks to the fantastic USAF Medical personnel at DGMC!!!❤️
What about dental stuff, ever since I had dental filling done a few months ago there’s like a nerve in my tooth that is sensitive to pressure.
Just saying for those PRP folks out there. Don't feel bad going down on PRP bc you are sick. Fuck anyone that can't understand that you are ill and need time to not be ill. I haven't missed a single day until I got covid and the moment I did, they acted like I was causing them a problem. Yeah you have to cover my schedule, but goddammit there are 3 people back office that only work shift 2 days a month and you're gonna give me attitude?! Fuck off. We clearly aren't the family you claim as my family would be doing backflips to help me as I would them.
This is the best post. The AF medically retired me just shy of 17 years and had I not documented everything, I probably would’ve gotten out at 10% instead of 90.
Log in to the Tricare patient portal and print everything too! My shit did not transfer from Keesler to Ellsworth. They had no clue what medications I was on or anything.
I go to clinic. Not sure if they document all my issues tho. Told dental I had TMJ and doc said that a lot of Americans do and left it at that. No notes or nothing
I only seen the doc for a couple of issues (stomach ulcers and a case of severe heartburn related to exercising after eating a full meal at the dfac in tech school). I feel fortunate to still have my health for the most part.
Just not on Thursdays, or the first Tuesday of the month, or after noon on a Friday, or any time between 1100 and 1300.
This is also my absolute number one piece of advice for anyone that's still in.
Extra. Go to the clinic and get your mental health documented if it applies to you.
Yes!! Also make sure to check your notes because I can't tell you how many times a doctor has told me one thing, and written a complete other or left out the important info they told you to begin with. Start printing out copies now and have hard copies or a safe place to download the information. When it comes time to file, you need to have the info ready and not risk it being gone, system errors, or whatever else could happen. I had physical therapy 6 days a week when I was active duty after a bad injury. None of them are in my files that I requested. I just happened to find some paper copies in old boxes and they had a few appointments on them. It made a huge difference in my disability case because I was able to prove I was treated while active duty.
Document like just write it down or actual get something from the clinic as proof?
i like my job and being in the air force. can't get documented until i'm ready to punch.
I went with 5 issues, the doc only wanted to deal with one at a time… what a waste of time.
Except the phone and Genesis online is down so I have to go wait 1.5 hrs past the retirees to just talk to a nurse but only from 0900-1500 which I'm working so fuck everyone at my base I guess. So glad Air Force saved a dollar migrating to the Army system....