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| Our Fort Hood Colleagues: They were the best we have. |
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by David Mittman, PA-C - November 13, 2009
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 Provided by Clincian 1
When I have talked to my PA and NP friends the murders at Fort Hood have really hit home. We feel like we know the people who died. This tragedy has been different in some way. This has become much more real to me.
Even yesterday, when President Obama reviewed the lives of the thirteen people who were killed, he started with a PA and ended with an NP. It hit me again. Coincidence? It was not something you could plan. We were the anchors. We led the way, and held up the rear. Just where I would expect us to be. The two most important positions were held by an NP and a PA. Doing more than our share.
Although their professional stories are still fuzzy (some articles call Mr. Seager a psychiatrist while others say he was a psych nurse, and some have said Ms.Warman was an NP and others said she was a PA) we can be quite sure of this much. They were the best of who our professions have to offer.
Mr. Cahill was a retired Army PA who went into rural practice, practiced with the VA and then wound up where I presume he felt the most comfortable, at an Army Base. He seemed like a great person. He got “his troops” the help they needed and knew the system. He talked to them about Army life and made sure they were healthy. He was a PA. Mr. Cahill looks familiar to me, very much so. I have been to 32 AAPA national conferences. I bet we bumped into each other at a pharmaceutical booth or stood close at a Veteran’s Caucus Memorial Day ceremony. He was a guy who paid his dues. I will miss him.
Ms. Warman was an NP who specialized in pych. She cared about our country and it’s soldiers. She was from a military family. She overcame some tough odds as a single Mom who brought up her kids alone and now was able to bask in the hugs of her many grand-kids. She also paid her dues. She could have left it up to the younger folks to tend to those that needed her clinical expertise, but she did not. She took the fork in the road that was again sending her away to take care of others. This time overseas. I feel like I know her also. Maybe I met her at one of the almost 20 national NP conferences I have been to, having a conversation about Army NPs while she was signing up for Clinician Reviews journal years ago? I remember many NPs from the military. They were very open to PAs and NPs working together. If we did, I hope we shared a joke and a smile. I will miss her.
And Mr. Seager. He was a mental health NP. He joined the military at an older age. His family said he wanted to make a difference. He did to me and to millions of others. He also was ready to leave his family and travel overseas and put himself in harms way to help our soldiers. He too was one of our own. I will miss him.
What can we say about people like these? Only that they are what continues to make both our professions great. They were real care givers, the real secret to our success. No middle ground for them. No half days at work when they earned them.
It’s funny, two other things stick out for me. Reading about them, I know we all would have had a great time together if we had met at a conference. Sitting around and telling stories of how both professions have changed so much over our varied and long careers. Sitting around and swapping stories about our patients. They would have enjoyed all of my friends. They were all also “up in age"-which again for me and so many of my friends (but not all) hits home. They were making a huge difference after years in the profession.
Mostly, they were a microcosm of us all. They were us. Go to any conference and you can meet many more of them. They are our colleagues. I will miss them.
Dave
 Dave has been a PA, and later NP, leader for thirty years. He strongly believes that NPs and PAs must work together to insure a better future for both professions. Most recently Dave has been busy launching another dream; Clinician 1, the first internet community for PAs and NPs. In October 2008, Dave was honored by the New Jersey State society of PAs with its “Lifetime Achievement Award”.
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| Mary Jane Harlan NP (Knoxville,Tn) |
on 27 Nov 2009 at 10:38 am |
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I agree that hearing it was members of our profession ,who came to help and heal that were targeted in this event made it even more real for me. When any religion is taken to extremes it is a truly frightening and upsetting thing. May we all continue to focus on the true good in the world and the reward for the service we do. They truly spoke through their very lives of the honor of serving others means.
May we honor their lives with our service. |
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| Dian (Charlestown IN) |
on 25 Nov 2009 at 2:56 pm |
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What happened at Fort Hood broke my heart. I was a soldier at Fort Hood a nurse at Darnell Army Hospital and local TMC's, I know that fort so well, it was a good many year ago when war was not present, I left for Germany before Desesrt Shield, I was in Frankfort when that wave took place. I could not believe in fact in was one of us that took so many lives, a man, a soldier, one of us, one we trusted. I spent so many years at Fort Hood, it feels like my home, just as the military is my home, the military soldiers became my family and to think one of my family took the lives of his family members. All my trust was shaken that day, trust in everything I knew as to be real. I spent my entire life in the military, these soldiers even though I did not know them they were my family. When I was active, we all bonded and we became one. My question is why was he even a soldier, one of us, he didn't want to be? We were looking at those, everyone outside of our uniform we could not even see, the signs were there. When you join the military and I say join, you do so because you want to, to serve your country, this man did not know who his country was or even who he was. Please by all means, when someone is crying out, listen, when someone is dare I say showing the signs he was showing, do something. He does not have any rights, he gave up those rights to be a soldier, we all did. He deserves not a mental hospital but a firing squad, let him go, send him back to the troups, we will take care of our own. I am a nurse and I am a nurse practitioner, but I will always be a soldier, it is my blood. We have values and codes he broke them, no matter his rank he deserves to be put among his fellow soldiers, he would best be served in solidary if you want him to live, we take care of our own, we are not without honor, but he betrayed our country and our fellow man, he is a terriost and deserves no rights, he deserves the rights of a terrrorist, death. No less nothing more, we will heal, we will be more cautious and I am sorry for all those that suffered, families soldiers that observed, those that helped, sorry that they had to see that on our base from one of our own. Sounds cruel, I know, but I reflect the army, new army, old army one thing does not change. Betray your fellow soldier, betray the uniform and you die.
My blessings to those who were there, I can only wish I was there to help. I love my country, I love my fellow soldiers, talk to any vetern, a vetern of war and pain for what has happened and you will know, if you were never military you will never understand. We do not hurt civilians and we do not hurt children, unless and I say unless war inflicts children and civilians as war participants, then we fight. The trouble right now we don't know who we are fighting.
My family goes back to the Rev. war and each conflict since, I am the first woman in the military and I do understand. God bless all of those who helped and God bless there was not more, I assure you this is not an isolated incident, our enemys will place and put enemys in our uniforms. We must be wary of all, and that is sad the day of the military family is gone, again who do we fight? Set an example and let us take care of our own, we will set the record straight as to who is to tread on our flag and our resolve to fight to be free and safe, we will win, God help us we will win as we did against England and others so many years ago, we are fighting on our soil and we will win. Forgive me my anger, but the resolve remains the same. |
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| Bob Blumm (LI, NY) |
on 17 Nov 2009 at 4:50 pm |
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| Great Article. |
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