Washington DC, August 4, 2003 War Casualties
Overflow Walter Reed Hospital By Jon Ward
THE WASHINGTON
TIMES OFFICIALS at Walter Reed Army
Medical Center are referring some outpatients to
nearby hotels because casualties from operations in
Afghanistan and Iraq have overloaded the hospital's
convalescence facility. "We have an informal agreement with any number
of hotels in the area. If we come to this point,
they will take [patients] for us," said
Walter Reed spokesman Jim Stueve. "They're
very supportive and cooperative when we need that
assistance." Mr. Stueve could not specify how many soldiers
are in hotels, but said Walter Reed is referring
about 20 patients or their relatives to hotels each
day. Hotels in Silver Spring, just across the D.C.
line, offer discounted rates for outpatients and
their families, and the military pays the bill. However, the hotel arrangement has not
compromised the quality of care for incoming
wounded, Mr. Stueve said. "The staff is highly motivated to get these
troops mended and on their way," he said. A hospital spokeswoman said: "We haven't turned
away any injured soldiers. We are treating all of
them." The Army hospital and its convalescence
facility, Mologne House, are at maximum occupancy
capacity, with 96 percent of their outpatient beds
filled with war wounded. Walter Reed has been at maximum capacity since
Operation Enduring Freedom began in Afghanistan in
2001, Mr. Stueve said, adding that the hospital's
3,900 staffers have "put in a substantial amount of
overtime." Before Enduring Freedom, the hospital's
occupancy rate had held steady at 83 percent for
five years. "We haven't been average here for well over a
year. We've been really busy. They've been rolling
in here real regular," Mr. Stueve said. The Mologne House is a 280-bed facility for
outpatients who need continued care or
rehabilitation, as well as their families. "Anybody who comes here and wants to stay there
can't," said a hospital spokeswoman. The hospital has 40 of
250 beds available for inpatients, but must
continually open beds for new arrivals from
Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany or
the U.S. Naval Hospital in Rota, Spain. "We have flights coming in almost every night
from Landstuhl, so you don't book that sucker up
solid so when you have your No. 1 priority come in,
you say, 'You can't stay here,' " Mr. Stueve
said. Walter Reed has treated about 750 patients from
Operation Iraqi Freedom since the war began, 185 of
whom have been battle casualties. Of the 185 battle
casualties, 135 have been treated as inpatients and
50 as outpatients. The total number of battle
casualty patients discharged is 111, including one
death, leaving 24 currently at the medical center
as inpatients. One of the hospital's best known patients - Army
Pfc. Jessica Lynch - left Walter Reed last
month to return to her family's home in West
Virginia. A current inpatient is still in critical
condition. Two others remain in critical but stable
condition. Walter Reed physicians describe the
conditions of other inpatients as ranging from fair
to good. The patients have broken bones, orthopedic
injuries, gunshot wounds and other minor
injuries. The hospital received seven battle casualties
this week. Four are in serious but stable
condition, one is in fair condition, and one is in
satisfactory condition. The seventh received
treatment as an outpatient. President Bush declared an end to major
combat in Iraq on May 1. But U.S. troops there
continue to come under attack almost daily by
resistance fighters,
especially in cities north and west of Baghdad,
where Sunni Muslims were the strongest supporters
of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein. 
Walter
Reed army hospital in Washington is
full -
Radical's
Diary on US military casualties in Iraq:
"None of the newspapers
mentioned any 'coalition' deaths in that dorm
raid. "
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