Upcoming survey to assess post-op deployment health care Published April 24, 2007 WASHINGTON (AFNEWS) -- A telephone survey of ill or injured servicemembers who have returned from operational deployment will begin May 1 to examine post-deployment health care experiences. This health care survey is being conducted in response to the Secretary of Defense's request to comprehensively assess the quality of health care servicemembers receive since returning from operational deployments overseas. The TRICARE Management Activity (Health Programs Analysis and Evaluation) is sponsoring the survey effort. "This will be a timely and effective way to get the feedback the Military Health System needs to better respond to the post-deployment needs of our servicemembers," said Ms. Ellen P. Embrey, deputy assistant secretary of defense for force health protection and readiness. Data collected will be used to assess the satisfaction of servicemembers' health care services to include access to care, administrative and personnel support, assistance for family members, and the servicemember's current health status. The survey will also examine Service members' experience while on medical hold or while waiting for medical boards. Respondent answers will identify key issues relating to servicemember access to health care and related benefits and services. Findings will assist in the formulation of policies and programs to improve meeting the needs of ill and injured servicemembers, including support to family members, as the sponsor goes through the recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration process. Ms. Embrey urges all servicemembers who have returned from deployment to use the survey tool to share their experiences about the accessibility, timeliness and quality of healthcare services they received since returning from deployment. All responses will be kept confidential. To verify the validity of this survey, servicemembers may call the Deployment Health Hotline at (800) 497-6261 between 7:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., EDT, Mondays - Fridays. The survey can be found on the Web at http://fhp.osd.mil/healthSurvey.jsp. Comment on this story (comments may be published on Air Force Link) Click here to view the comments/letters page