Soldier Blog Post

MHS Conference

February 12, 2012

Tags:  

MHS-conference   triservice   army-dentist  

The MHS conference is an annual event that allows health care providers from across the different services and different disciplines to come together and learn new ideas in the pursuit of delivering world-class health care.

The conference consisted of plenary sessions for the entire group as well as smaller break out sessions done by individual service or specific topics (patient safety, IT, research, etc...).  In the plenary sessions we were able to hear from the Surgeon General's from each of the military services as well as from Asst. Sec. of Def (Health Affiars) and Dir. of Tricare Dr. Jonathan Woodson.

There were many speakers both from the civilian world of health care as well as military speakers outside of health care like Vice Admiral Gortney director of the Joint Staff.

I even had a chance to speak in one of the smaller break out sessions with Brig. Gen. Wyman who was a very passionate speaker and a great person to tag-team with.

like most conferences there was an exhibition hall.  

The conference was held at National Harbor, Md at the Gaylord hotel.  It was a great venue.  I was even able to catch up with my brother-in-law while I was here.  Since I lived close by I was able to commute each day.

It is opportunities like this that allow for greater cooperation among the services, and helps to promote new ideas for the future.

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  • Maj AS Banari

    Feb 13, 2012 7:59 AM

    Dear Maj Kendell,

    I have a query. I would like to know,in your army, can an active duty soldier be made medically unfit owing to his poor dental status (Say Class III or IV) and if so will there be a review medical board to ascertain his new Dental status?

    Are there sweeping powers bestowed upon Dental Offrs when it comes to making an individual soldier Dentally unfit, if so?

    Are Dental Offrs members of Medical Board proceedings?

    Pls clarify...

    Regards,

    Avina.


    Reply

  • MAJ Mower

    Feb 13, 2012 9:06 AM

    The military uses a dental readiness system that is the same among all services. This link summarizes the 4 categories as well as provides the regulations they are tied to. https://g1arng.army.pentagon.mil/Programs/DentalReadiness/Pages/default.aspx

    New recruits could be denied access to join if the dental needs are too complex, but more frequently there are very few turned away from joining based upon dental.

    Once on active duty those with dental needs are identified each year through mandatory dental evaluations. Once identified as having a need those individuals are flagged, and it reflects poorly on the individual and the unit. This "flagging" and visibility provides motivation on the part of both the Soldier and the Command to remedy the situation and get the individual back to a state of dental health.

    So I guess the short answer is no - it will not trigger a review board for that Soldier. Dental officers are not part of review boards, but they do provide input to those boards if someone is claiming some type of disability because of something involving the oral cavity.


    Reply

  • Dee Crump

    Feb 13, 2012 5:55 PM

    I would like to know why all the new SIT's are "all" of a sudden having to get their wisdom teeth out? When there has not been any problems with them prior to going into training. Thank you..


    Reply

    • MAJ Mower

      Feb 13, 2012 8:36 PM

      Dee,

      There is no Army policy that requires wisdom teeth to be pulled out. In fact at bases where there is basic or AIT training going on taking out wisdom teeth is discouraged because of the fact that too much time away from training can cause a recruit to have to repeat part of the cycle. Typically if a widom tooth should come out it is recommended that it happen at their first duty station. there are many reasons why a wisdom tooth may need to come out even if it is not cause a problem - an explanation can be found here - http://www.aaoms.org/wisdom_teeth.php

      Ultimately it is the decision by the dentist and the patient. Some other things not mentioned in the article that I look at are: 1) What is the overall oral health of the patient. If they don't brush well or floss the chance they will have a problem is very high. I would rather get the tooth out while they are young, then when they are older and will heal less well. 2) If the tooth is impacted (under the gum) is there a deep gum pocket around the tooth. this could create problems for the tooth in front of it, or for a gum infection around the wisdom tooth. 3) These factors and other are considered when making the decision. Ultimately if the tooth needs to come out it is best to do it while someone is young and they heal fast - even if they are not currently having an issue with it. As I mentioned before the teeth are not taken out on all Soldiers - case by case evaluation, and they are rarely taken out on SITs. Just like car maintenance, it is best to replace the belts on a car before they break rather then later when they will cause additional damage and aggravation.


      Reply

  • Dee Crump

    Feb 14, 2012 10:29 AM

    Thank you so much for the quick and informative reply. Dee


    Reply

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