Guelph Man Says Military "Ill-prepared" To Battle Substance Abuse- Article

[Bruce Monkhouse]

I won't post the whole article as it is quite long but I'm having a hard time believing lots of it. Either that or I want my 'hush' money too. :-X

http://www.guelphmercury.com/news/local/article/588951--an-enemy-called-addiction






About a year after he was discharged, someone or some agency injected more than $31,554 into his bank account. He believes it was government “hush money” intended to silence him about his experiences. “I asked other guys, and they didn’t get that kind of money when they left the military,” he said.

Ford, the government spokesperson, said there is likely a reasonable explanation for the deposit, “so we caution against speculation.” She was not able to immediately add further clarification.

 

[ModlrMike]

WRT the deposit... severance and return of contributions immediately come to mind.

 

[Retired AF Guy]

WRT the deposit... severance and return of contributions immediately come to mind.

$31,554  seems kind of excessive for someone who only spent a few years in the military. Heck, I spent 31 years in, retired as a Warrant and only collected $36,000 in severance.

 

[Franko]

32 weeks straight in the field and claiming PTSD  from it and also having never served on a tour.

Whatever.          :

 

[ModlrMike]

$31,554  seems kind of excessive for someone who only spent a few years in the military. Heck, I spent 31 years in, retired as a Warrant and only collected $36,000 in severance.

In retrospect, yes. I admit I didn't read that part clearly, so add one more point that doesn't jive.

 

[Teeps74]

Might I suggest an "over pay" on his severance and return of contributions? Which, if that is the case, he needs to watch for the "opps" letter, and be ready to pay back, or pay back through taxes later. Lord knows that mistakes do happen, but one of them is not "hush money"...

On the other hand, the article fails miserably to do any fact checking at all (lazy reporter looking for a sensational story?). Would it have been too difficult to ask to see the bank statement to show where the money comes from? My account statement reads "Pre authorized Credit CANADA-FED" for all of my military pay. I am pretty sure that the bank can come up with a source of the money pretty quick, at least for the banking client.


We have here, a self admitted drug addict who got pinched, and is now seeking to blame everyone but the one person he should be blaming. I am finding it hard to feel sorry for him.

 

[9nr Domestic]

I believe he got the money but it probably was a combination of return of contributions, severance, and possibly back pay. Six years of return of contributions adds up quick. (Unfortunately when you retire with a pension you don't  receive this) I could be wrong but this might have been around the time Land duty pay came in effect therefore giving him a nice amount for back pay also.

Just because I am not staying in my lane tonight, in my opinion the military should be releasing or dealing with these drug addicts better than they currently are. 

 

[Infanteer]

Just because I am not staying in my lane tonight, in my opinion the military should be releasing or dealing with these drug addicts better than they currently are.

I'd be curious to see what you think "better" could be, or are you just making some baseless sensationalist remarks like the reporter?

Do you know the disciplinary/administrative system that exists for soldiers who have issues with substance abuse?

 

[9nr Domestic]

I'd be curious to see what you think "better" could be, or are you just making some baseless sensationalist remarks like the reporter?

Do you know the disciplinary/administrative system that exists for soldiers who have issues with substance abuse?

I do understand that I am out of my lane but based on your curiosity I am basing my opinion on a small number of individuals on a small base. I watch certain individuals go through the disciplinary/administrative system and yet 3 years later they still have a job. Maybe I am impatient, Maybe I don't see the big picture, but I would like to see these individuals released much earlier. If these individuals truly have a medical condition then yes they should be treated. If they joined the forces as a drug user and are now progressed to being a drug addict then I don't agree with them being paid a fair wage with good benefits.

 

[Teeps74]

I believe he got the money but it probably was a combination of return of contributions, severance, and possibly back pay. Six years of return of contributions adds up quick. (Unfortunately when you retire with a pension you don't  receive this) I could be wrong but this might have been around the time Land duty pay came in effect therefore giving him a nice amount for back pay also.

Good point on the LDA... Suddenly this no longer looks like an "over payment", but rather just what is owed upon release.

Just because I am not staying in my lane tonight, in my opinion the military should be releasing or dealing with these drug addicts better than they currently are.

In fairness, EVERYONE could do everything just a little bit better... BUT, our system does demand a level of responsibility for one's own actions, which frankly, I am not seeing here. He got caught in a urine test. He did not come forward with his problem. I do not want a drug addled, paranoid creature in my platoon with access to belt fed machine guns. We have several systems in place for those that want help, and he did not want help until he got caught.

We all know the consequences, and we are all expected to be adults about it. Doing drugs is absolutely 100% NOT acceptable in our culture. Period.

ETA: Seeing your above post, I acknowledge and share your sentiments 9r domestic.  I am leaving the above up to stress my own personal opinion about drug use in the CF, and how unacceptable I view that little nastiness.

 

[Infanteer]

I do understand that I am out of my lane but based on your curiosity I am basing my opinion on a small number of individuals on a small base. I watch certain individuals go through the disciplinary/administrative system and yet 3 years later they still have a job. Maybe I am impatient, Maybe I don't see the big picture, but I would like to see these individuals released much earlier. If these individuals truly have a medical condition then yes they should be treated. If they joined the forces as a drug user and are now progressed to being a drug addict then I don't agree with them being paid a fair wage with good benefits.

Ahh, when you use the term "better" you mean "quicker".  Your explanation helps clarify your earlier statement.

Releasing a member for drug use is an administrative process; any disciplinary measures are simply additional points to support the administrative process.  A soldier caught with drugs is tested and his file is referred to DMCA where a specific sequence of actions are taken in accordance with the DAOD on drug use.  This includes an automatic C&P; if a soldier is caught a second time, the following step is generally release from the Forces.  So, it is feasible for a guy to be in, get caught and complete his C&P, only to be caught again a few years later with the next step of administrative action (recommendation for release) being actioned.

While it may appear to be a labourious process at times, in the end it ensures fairness so nobody is railroaded (which is why I have trouble with the tone of the article above) and it prevents the member from marching into a recruiting center after being booted to reapply and show up 6 months later.

 

[Retired AF Guy]

I believe he got the money but it probably was a combination of return of contributions, severance, and possibly back pay. Six years of return of contributions adds up quick. (Unfortunately when you retire with a pension you don't  receive this) I could be wrong but this might have been around the time Land duty pay came in effect therefore giving him a nice amount for back pay also.

Very possible, but it still smells to me. When I was released I sat down with the release clerk and she explained how much money I was receiving in severance pay and when I would receive it. I would expect the same thing would have happened with this gentleman. My second point is that a couple of years ago I had $2,000.00 dollars "mysteriously" deposited into my bank account. However, it was obvious where it came from (Revenue Canada), a fact confirmed by my bank and by CRA when I called them to make sure it wasn't some mistake.

When money is deposited/debited to/from your bank account there is code that tells you who the transaction pertains to. Sometimes it obvious e.g. "GWL" stand for "Great West Life Insurance Co.". Other times it might not, but the back would be able to tell you. So, for him to say that +31K appeared in his bank account and he doesn't know where it came from I would say is a bunch of BS.

 

[medicineman]

I'm sure it was explained to him...likely his brain cells weren't firing when this occured of course, especially if he was blasted at the time.

MM

 

[frank1515]

No worries. If the Queen realizes that she over payed a subject, she'll just kindly ask for that amount back...  ;D

 

[BadEnoughDudeRescueRonny]

This article is just further evidence of the epidemic of opioid drug abuse sweeping the nation. Be it from sketchy doctors or from street-level dope peddlers, the truth is, opioid addiction is skyrocketing in Canada and it's clearly hitting all parts of society, including the military.

Now, that aside, soldiers returning from deployment with PTSD and/or injuries should receive medication if it is deemed absolutely necessary and even then, should be carefully prescribed with follow-up monitoring.

I read in the article that the individual in question was taking Dilaudid. That's the exact same medication that I was given for pain during my battle with testicular cancer. It's seriously powerful stuff and there's no way you'd ever be able to function in any capacity. Sobriety would be out of the question. Throw in the additional medications that were listed, specifically the benzodiazepines, and this guy would be absolutely wrecked. This is a case of complete mismanagement of addiction, which is surprisingly common. Thankfully, the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons is starting to ramp up physician training in addiction management, but unfortunately, this only deals with the civvie side of things.

Bottom line: I think that addiction management training should be included in all physician training, whether it's civvie or military. Like I said, opioid and prescription drug addiction is skyrocketing in this country, and something needs to be done about it, because the damage that it's inflicting is tremendous.

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

Probably half the inmates on my floor right now are hooked on Oxys....

 

[medicineman]

Bottom line: I think that addiction management training should be included in all physician training, whether it's civvie or military. Like I said, opioid and prescription drug addiction is skyrocketing in this country, and something needs to be done about it, because the damage that it's inflicting is tremendous.

I'll think you'll find it is - largely during the various psychiatry, anaesthesia/pain medicine and family medicine rotations.  It also might interest you to find that military physicians in this country are actually trained in civilian medical schools with civilian programs...the Basic Medical Officer Course is designed to make them at least pretend to think like soldiers and tune them in to some of the occupational health issues they'll have to deal with, not train them to be doctors.

MM

 

[dapaterson]

+1 to MM.  The CF doesn't run a "medical school", per se, it runs a school to take doctors and make them military.  Every CF doctor is registered in a province or territory - it's a requirement for them to practice in the CF.

 

[GnyHwy]

That was a long article.  I will paraphrase it for everyone in one word.  Horseshit.  I would pick apart each part individually, but don't have the time.  Reading the article was already 10 min I'll never get back.

I had a much harder time searching for possible truths than finding the glaring inaccuracies and improbabilities.  I'm guessing a apology from the writer will follow at some point.

The only thing I can believe is true is the money deposit.  The police probably put it there to see where he would spend it.

 

[medicineman]

Any comments I'd have to make violate a form I signed when I released about violating certain confidences.  I've run into this clown before ( and many like him) and that's all I'm allowed to say.

MM