Warrior in Transition
Frequently Asked Questions
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| What is the definition of a “Warrior in Transition”? |
| Any wounded, injured, or ill Soldier with
complex medical needs requiring greater than six months
medical treatment and/or requires a Medical Evaluation
Board. This includes Soldiers previously assigned to medical
hold and medical hold over units or on Active Duty Medical
Extension (ADME). All Warriors in Transition will be
assigned to a Warrior Transition Unit at an Army Medical
Treatment Facility or Medical Center.
There are four types of patients to consider for
re-assignment to the WTU.
1. Active Duty Soldiers in Medical hold status. These are
Soldiers who are temporarily unable to perform their normal
duties due to a medical condition or injury.
2. Reserve Component Soldiers in Medical holdover status.
These are Soldiers called to Active duty (AD) who need
medical evaluation, treatment and disposition including
definitive health care for medical conditions identified,
incurred, or aggravated while in an AD status.
3. Soldier on Active Duty Medical Extension (ADME):
Public Laws 105-85 and 106-65, and the National Defense
Authorization Acts of 1998 and 2000, authorizes Reserve
members who incur an injury or aggravate a previous illness
or injury in the line of duty, to submit a written request
for extension on active duty.
4. Soldiers with P3/P4 profiles that do not meet AR
40-501 retention standards and have a referral for a MEB.
Soldiers that require complex care for greater than 6 months
and cannot contribute to the mission of their unit.
|
| Why do WTUs exist? |
| The Army stood up WTUs to provide high
quality living conditions, prevent unnecessary procedural
delays, and establish conditions that facilitate their
healing processes physically, mentally, and spiritually.
WTUs provide command, control, and medical management while
treating all Warriors in Transition with dignity and
respect. WTUs, ensure the comprehensive treatment of line of
duty medical conditions to the point it can be determined
that Warriors in Transition meet or will meet Army retention
standards for medical fitness in accordance with AR 40-501.
WTUs also assist Warriors with the transition to civilian
life with dignity and compassion.
|
| Who is eligible for assignment to a WTU? |
| A Commander, in coordination with the
Military Treatment Facility Commander, can assign/attach a
Soldier to the WTU when they meet the following criteria:
Active Duty Soldiers:
|
| Who is not eligible for assignment to a WTU? |
| Under usual circumstances, the personnel in
paragraphs a thru g below are not eligible for attachment /
assignment to the WTU. Military Treatment Facility
Commanders may make exceptions for valid clinical reasons
after consultation with the Soldier’s treating provider and
unit commander.
a. Military personnel who are under investigation,
courts-martial charges or sentence, non-judicial punishment,
or administrative separation proceedings except delineated
in AR 635-40. Such personnel will not be reassigned from a
local unit without concurrence of the WTU commander.
b. Soldiers with normal, uncomplicated pregnancy
c. Soldiers whose permanent profiles require an MMRB. If
the MMRB refers the Soldier to the MEB, the Soldier would
then be eligible for the WTU.
d. A mobilized Soldier whose condition existed prior to
mobilization, was not aggravated by the current
mobilization, and was discovered prior to Day 25 of the
current mobilization. When identified, such Soldiers are
immediately released from Active Duty (REFRAD) and sent back
to their parent RC in accordance with current PPG.
e. Soldiers who are in Initial Entry Training, Advanced
Individual Training, or One Station Unit Training.
f. Soldiers in TDRL status who are anticipated to stay at
the Military Treatment Facility for less than 30 days.
g. General officers will not be relieved from duty
assignment and assigned to a WTU without approval of the
Army G-1.
|
| What kind of support can a Soldier and his or her Family member expect when in the medical hold or medical holdover status? |
| Each Warrior
in Transition has an assigned a case manager
(inpatient/outpatient) to assist with appointments. The
medical hold and medical holdover company commander or 1SG
arranges for transport to lodging and to medical
appointments and pharmacy pick up. Soldiers who are
authorized non-medical attends receive lodging,
transportation and per diem for those family members. The
Soldier Family Assistance Program provides recreation and
social activities for Soldiers and Family members.
|
| What is MEB or PEB and why does it take so long? How long should it take? |
| The Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) evaluates
the Soldier’s medical condition to determine if they do or
do not meet the medical retention standards IAW AR 40-501,
Chapter 3. The Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) is the only
board in the military that can determine whether a Soldier is considered fit or unfit
for continued military service. The PEB determines the
disability rating and compensation a Soldier receives. The
entire MEB and PEB process should take 4 to 5 months;
however, depending on the nature or complexity of the injuries or illnesses there are
clinical and administrative issues which can extend the process.
|
| How long does it take for a medical hold or medical holdover patient to go through the MEB process? The PEB process? |
| After one year of treatment or
rehabilitation, any Soldier (regardless whether they are
medical hold/medical holdover or not) must be evaluated for
the medical evaluation board (MEB). This does not
automatically mean an MEB will begin, only that an
evaluation will take place. There is a significant
misperception among the medical holdover Soldiers that they
will automatically REFRAD (released from active duty) after
one year regardless of where they are in their treatment or
rehabilitation. Once referred to the MEB by a physician, the
MEDCOM goal is to complete the MEB phase within 90-days. The
Physical Disability Agency’s goal is to complete the
Physical Evaluation Board process in 40 days.
|
| What is a PEBLO? |
| The Physical Evaluation Board Liaison
Officer (PEBLO) is an individual responsible for counseling
Soldiers referred into the Physical Disability Evaluation
System (PDES). There is one PEBLO for up to 24 cases. PEBLOs
explain the Medical Evaluation Board process to Soldiers. They will assist Soldiers with the paperwork, explain what to expect, discuss potential MEB outcomes and answer questions the Soldier may have about the MEB process. PEBLOs receive initial on the job training for 45 to 90 days from their senior PEBLO. It includes mentoring and shadowing senior PEBLOs for six months. They also attend PEBLO training conferences and participate in web-based training. There are plans to develop a more comprehensive orientation and training program.
|
| What is Soldier and Family Assistance Centers (SFACs)? |
| Soldier and Family Assistance Centers
(SFACs) are user-friendly centers offering critical support
services to Warriors in Transition (WTs), following injuries
or combat wounds, while defending our nation. This holistic
approach to attending to the needs of Warriors in Transition
(WTs) and their Families brings their most frequently needed
services, to one location, near their medical treatment
facility.
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| Why should the Army have SFACs? |
|
| What has the Army done? |
| Army Leadership mandated improvement in
services for WTs and Families; SFACs are one of many
essential responses to that mandate. Many facilities have
been set up and new directors have been assigned, throughout
the United States and in Europe. Those directors and their
Army Community Services (ACS) Directors met early in
December to map their plans for the future.
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