On this month's cover, a military veteran receives instruction in fly fishing from a volunteer with Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of injured and disabled active military service personnel and disabled veterans (http://www.projecthealingwaters.org). The organization, run by volunteers, offers free fly fishing classes and outings in all 50 states and serves thousands of veterans each year.
Project Healing Waters offers participants not only a new skill to learn, but also the company of others who have had similar experiences, which, for many, is therapeutic. According to a testimonial from one U.S. Army veteran, the program gave him "a mission" and "a passion" that he said helped him "unlock my core self and find myself again." Another veteran, who noted his struggle with agoraphobia and anger issues, said that after enrolling in Project Healing Waters, "I found the respite I did not know was possible. Here I found others who could empathize and relate to what I had gone through and what I was going through."
This month's original research article, "Primary Care Providers and Screening for Military Service and PTSD," addresses the crucial issue of screening in the private sector. In light of evidence that many primary care and mental health providers do not screen patients for military service, the authors of the study conducted a survey to learn more about the screening practices of providers in their area of rural Pennsylvania. Their findings underscore the need for private sector providers to regularly screen all patients for military service, so that when veterans are identified-all of whom may be at risk for long-term health conditions related to their service-they receive the care they need.-Diane Szulecki, editor