Family Strong Hawaii

COL Michael Brumage, MD, MPH, FACP

COL Michael Brumage is the Commander of the Schofield Barracks Health Clinic since 30 May 2008.  In his prior assignment, he was Chief of Preventive Medicine at Tripler Army Medical Center and Public Health Emergency Officer (PHEO) for JTF-Homeland Defense (JTF-HD) whose Joint Operations Area (JOA) which includes Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Republic of Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, and Republic of the Marshall Islands, as well as PHEO for U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll.

COL Brumage received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry (cum Laude) from West Virginia University in 1982 and graduated from the West Virginia University School of Medicine in 1986.  He received his Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Washington in 2003.  He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Preventive Medicine and is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians.    

Past assignments included 10 years as a Staff Internist at the following stations: 98th General Hospital and the 502d MASH (Nuernberg , Germany), 67th CSH (Wuerzburg , Germany), and Tripler Army Medical Center (Hawaii).  He was a PROFIS Battalion Surgeon to 2-27^th IN Wolfhounds, 25^th ID from 1996-1999.  He completed a second residency in Preventive Medicine at Madigan Army Medical Center in 2003.  From there, he was the Division Surgeon for the 1st Infantry Division, the Big Red One, from 2003-2005.  Prior deployments: Operation Provide Promise (UNPROFOR-Croatia) 1993, Operation Joint Endeavor (Taszar, Hungary) 1995-1996, and Operation Iraqi Freedom II (Tikrit, Iraq) 2004-2005.

His military awards include the Bronze Star, the Meritorious Service Medal (3 OLC), the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Army Commendation Medal (2 OLC), the Army Achievement Medal (3 OLC), National Defense Service Medal (2d award), Iraqi Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, United Nations Medal (Yugoslavia), and the NATO Medal, among others.  He holds the Expert Field Medical Badge and the Parachutist Badge.  He received the James J. Leonard Award for Excellence in Teaching Internal Medicine for 2000-2001 from the Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine.

The SAFAC (Soldier and Family Assistance Center):

• AFMAC- Adult Family Member Assistance Center........................... 433-8550
• MFTC- Marriage and Family Treatment Center..............................  433-8550
• CAAC- Child and Adolescent Assistance Center................................  433-8140
• SAC- Soldier Assistance Center............................................................  433-8600

Feeling Depressed, Hopeless, or experiencing a Mental Health Crises?  There is a team of trained and experienced professionals who can provide help to you or a family member .  They are open 24-hours a day, 7 days a week.  In Honolulu, call (808) 832-3100.  On the Neighbor Islands, call Toll Free at 1-800-753-6879.  You may also call:

• 1-800-SUICIDE / 1-800-784-2433
• 1-800-273-TALK/ 1-800-273-8255

You may also call these numbers, even  if you are not feeling suicidial, and they will be there to talk to you and help.

Help for Domestic Violence:

If you are in a crisis situation and need immediate help, dial 911, or call the 24-hour shelter hot line on your island:

• Oahu - (808) 841-0822 (Town and Leeward side)
• Oahu - (808) 526-2200 (Windward side)
• Hilo, Big Island - (808) 959-8864
• Kona, Big Island - (808) 322-7233
• Maui - (808) 579-9581 
• Kauai - (808) 245-6362

        For an Appointment to see a Military and Family Life Consultant, please call (808) 222-7088.

        All cases are treated in strict confidence recognizing the privacy needs of you and your Family.

From Military.com, Dated May 4, 2009

Swine Flu: Protecting Yourself and Your Family

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends the following actions people can take to stay healthy:

     (1)   Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.

     (2)   Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners also are effective.

     (3)   Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth -- germs spread that way.

     (4)   Avoid close contact with sick people, particularly if they are coughing or sneezing.

     (5)   Stay home if you are sick to avoid infecting others.

*     For more information, visit the DoD Pandemic Influenza Watchboard, the Centers for Disease Control Swine Influenza Website , the pandemicflu.gov website, and TRICARE's Swine Flu Facts webpage cited below.

http://fhp.osd.mil/aiWatchboard/

http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/?s_cid=swineFlu_outbreak_001

http://www.triwest.com/document_library/pdf_docs/swine_flu.pdf

Playing the computer puzzle game Tetris can help reduce the effects of traumatic stress, UK researchers say.

Volunteers were exposed to distressing images, with some given the game to play 30 minutes later, the PLoS One journal reported.

Players had fewer "flashbacks", perhaps because it helped disrupt the laying down of memories, said the scientists.

It is hoped the study could aid the development of new strategies for minimising the impact of trauma.

However, the researchers accept translating their findings into practical applications could prove difficult.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), often associated with experiences during conflict, can affect anyone who has suffered a sudden and shocking incident.

One of its main features is the "flashback", in which the distressing sights, sounds or smells of the incident can return in everyday life.

The Oxford University experiment works on the principle that it may be possible to modify the way in which the brain forms memories in the hours after an event.

A total of 40 healthy volunteers were enrolled, and shown a film which included traumatic images of injuries.

Half of the group were then given the game to play while the other half did nothing.

The number of "flashbacks" experienced by each group was then reported and recorded over the next week, and those who played Tetris had significantly fewer.

Dr Emily Holmes said it might produce a "viable approach" to PTSD treatment, although she acknowledged that a lot needed to be done to translate the experiment into something that could be used to help real patients.

She said: "We wanted to find a way to dampen down flashbacks - the raw sensory images of trauma that are over-represented in the memories of those with PTSD.

"Tetris may work by competing for the brain's resources for sensory information.

"We suggest it specifically interferes with the way sensory memories are laid down in the period after trauma and thus reduces the number of flashbacks that are experienced afterwards."

She stressed that no conclusions could be drawn on the general effects of computer gaming on memory.