Care issues top EUCOM conference agenda

[unhappycamper]

Care issues top EUCOM conference agenda
By John Vandiver, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Monday, March 9, 2009

STUTTGART, Germany — Family members and military leaders will be gathering in Garmisch all week, working to identify a host of issues facing the overseas military community and try to come up with solutions.

The annual U.S. European Command Quality-of-Life Conference will be held at the Edelweiss Lodge and Resort, pulling in participants from across Europe.

"What we find is that military people are military people and they experience some of the same things in different locations," said Wayne Boswell, EUCOM’s quality-of-life chief.

In the past year, the EUCOM quality-of-life staff has solved or closed 19 issues from previous conferences. Initiatives established as a result of past forums include a compassion fatigue program that supports caregivers, a simulated driver education program, and a policy that helps families avoid upfront out-of-pocket costs for dental care on the economy.

Expanding access to "space available" flights for single parents who must return children stateside before deployments is another policy that has emerged from the EUCOM meeting.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=61209