I am hoping to inform many people about a grave misjustice in the Veterans administration dealing with the financially incompitant.
One does not need to be found incompitant by a judge to be found incompitant by the Veterans administration's Fiducary department - this is not only in Oregon, but is throughout the united states.
There are many reasons why one can be found incompitant. I was personally found incompitant because of a compulsive gambling problem attached to bipolar disorder.
Usually a finding of incompitancy is innitiated by the VA medical facility. However, once the VA medical facility has reported it's findings to the VA regional office, they are unlikey to get involved in bringing about treatment that can lead to even gaining partial compitancy back. Once incompitant, always incompitant.
For me, this is when the nightmare began - I have fought for treatment that includes gambling treatment, victomization classes, time management, orginization skills, recognition of triggers, recognition of racing thoughs, recognition of mania (both depression and verbal adgitation), anger management, and replacing of negitive externals with positive internals.
After experiencing everything from gillum barr-like syptoms in 1999 to cluster headaches as side effects of one of my medications, and extreeme sleep and inability to think or funtion on another medication, and complaining about said symptoms, to no avail, I checked the symptomology of medications used in the treatment of bipolar disorder at the FDA's website - and decided, after studying not only the medications they prescribed me, but the alternate choices, that medications were not for me. This was marked as "non-medication management compliance"- there is no such thing as "informed desision" in the VA mental health facility.
I have attempted to recieve a written treatment plan from VA mental health that included my input and my long-term goals - to no avail.in return I have been marked negitively labled as "acts against medical advice".
I can give many more examples of "negitive labling" in my VA mental records, but will not. Cerfice it to say that it is in the VA's best interest to put as many negitive lables on a disabled veteran as posible - the worse the veteran appears in paperwork, the less the veteran will be listened to. Social stigmitation goes a long way in the removal of one's voice.
What about treatment outside of the veteran's administration for a incompitant veteran with a fiduciary in place? Forget it - neither the VA fiduciary department nor the federally assigned fiduciary will reliece veteran's funds for medical treatment outside of the veterans administration in dealing with a service connected disablity.
I bet I can guess what the average reader would be thinking right now - the VA can't do this - OH YES THEY CAN - check the Code Of Federal regulations, chapter 38, section 13.
I can't fire my fiduciary, I can't assign a family member as my fiduciary, I can plan a budget, but my fiduciary does not have to impliment it. I can only invest in US savings bonds or specific interest bering accounts. I can suggest how I want my finances to be spent, but my fiduciary does not have to obey my suggestion.
I try to impliment a closed-ended, written treatment plan through VA mental health - NO GO. I try to impliment a treatment plan through VA Vocational Rehabilitation, Life skills - NO GO.
So what hapens when I get tired of it? Well, I go to state vocational rehabilitation, and find alternate treatment through Independant living resources - and find a witness advocate, willing to go with me to VA mental health - and what is VA mental health's responce when the find out? The head of the Portland VA mental health department - one Dr Drummand (spelling may be wrong) calls me and tells me bringing in a witness advocate so that I can make informed desisions without fear of negitive labling, and be involved in my treatment plan, put in place a written treatment plan - or have a non-biased witness is not acceptable. It does not generate a system of trust between me and my mental health provider.
He then tells me that I misunderstand the purpose of VA mental health. They are not there to be involved in the findings of other branches of the VA (like the VA regional office - either Vocational rehabilitation, life skills or the VA fiduciary department.)
This is really interesting - since one Deb Wilson, nurse practitioner was the original person that diagnosed both me and my wife as "incompitant to handle their finances" and sent the findings to the VA fiduciary department in the first place many years ago, and she was (and still is) working for VA mental health at the time of the diagnosis. They were there to be involved in the findings of other branches of the VA back then.
What about more recently? Well, remember me saying earlyer that VA vocational rehabilitation, life skills has denied me treatment? Again to the Code of federal regulations - this time title 38, section 21.53 (f)- "Independent living services. The counseling psychologist shall determine the current reasonable feasiblity of a program of independant living services"- interesting - isn't my counselling psychologist my mental health provider at the VA medical center? So, my counseling psychologist can say I am not fit for VA Vocational rehabilitation, life skills - but the VA mental health facility is not there to be involved in the findings of other branches of the VA? Things that make you go "HMMMMM"
Right now I simply wish a treatment plan that does not negitively lable me, that allows me to make informed desisions about my treatment, and includes a closed-ended written plan.
If there are areas of that plan that the is beond the scope of the VA hospital, I want to be able to reliece my disablity funds to pay for these portions of my treatment plan myself - relieced without argument by my federally assigned fiduciary - or I want VA Vocational rehabilitation to stop denyining me life skills treatment, and have them pay for the areas of my treatment plan that go beond the scope of the VA medical treatment facility.
I want that treatment plan to include time management, orginization skills, victimization classes, replacing of negitive externals (and negitive labling) with positive internals, positive thinking, epowerment, recognizing triggers, anger management, recognition of mania (both depression and verbal adjitation) and coping skills, and treatment for compulsive gambling (even though I have not gambled in a long time) incorporated with financial management that will lead to the eventual finding of compitancy - in the following three stages (as spelled out in COFR chapter 38, section 13): 1) partial financial management 2) full financial management with supervision by the VA fiduciary department 3) full compitancy back, with total removal of the VA fiduciary department from my life.
One might suggest the DAV - forget it - the DAV is a excellent orginization - and are great for hearings and the likes, but witness avocacy and involvment in how the VA medical ceter treats one is beond the DAV's scope of influence. Thank god for Independant Living Resources - but then again the VA mental health department is trying to deny me the ability to bring in a witness advocate.
The sad thing is that although the spicifics of my delima may be unique to me - the delima is not a unique delima. If one is found incompitant - one is liekly never going to get that compitancy back. If one looks for treatment within the VA mental health division that includes making informed desision - one will always be negitively labled (one can't fight back if the VA can show paperwork that dictates one is a lost cause).
The VA's answer to treatment - medicate the individual to complacency. I will not accept this, as this is not treatment. I have a right to witness advocacy, I have a right to make informed desisions, and I have a right to be involved in my treatment plan. I am not going to roll over and give up my basic human rights. Truth is, my basic human rights have already been removed from me - but I am not going to let it stay that way.
Am I willing to risk my permanent VA disablity income? Am I willing to risk my dependents benifits (Like my wife's CHAMPVA)? The consept is scary - but the answer is YES. No amount of money is worth the removal of one's basic human rights. You would have to experience it to understand.
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