Advice please - boxing injury

Greetings,
Seeking advice from experienced USMA staff and/or grads. My cadet was recently diagnosed with Occipital Neuralgia after 1.5 years of constant headaches and head pressure. The headaches began after treatment for a concussion sustained in plebe boxing. The injury has cost cadet dearly - cut from Division I sport, dreams shattered, difficulty concentrating so impact on grades, etc.

I am concerned that it took so long to get a diagnosis despite numerous visits to a plethora of physicians. I am angry that my Cadet was told to seek counseling for anxiety and depression. Most of all I am furious that my Cadet suffered severely and paid such a huge price for an injury that did not need to happen.

Cadet was treated and released for the boxing concussion, but I am unaware of any additional follow-up. Thus, I don't believe there is a process in place at USMA to ensure this type of injury is caught and treated early. Nor do I have confidence in the medical staff to diagnose this type of injury - a personal chiropractor provided the initial insights into the root cause which led to the neurologist referral.

No Cadet should experience what my Cadet suffered. I have been debating whether to contact the Athletic Director about my Cadet's experience, but Cadet does not want any attention. Should the USMA Athletic Staff be made aware of this story so that better protocols can be put into place?

Thanks for your ear and your thoughts.

Copenhagen

Do you think your cadet will be allowed to commission? That was my first thought. WP takes concussions very seriously. I imagine protocols are already in place. If you contact them, I imagine a future conversation will go like this: "Why did your mother contact us, cadet? Why didn't you do XY&Z, cadet? Why aren't you contacting us, cadet?" Just my 2 cents.

Please respect your cadets wishes and do not contact anyone at USMA. I'm sure you're frustrated. I worried the whole time mine was in plebe boxing. I just don't see any upside to venting your frustration with the athletic dept. It will, without a doubt, embarrass your son. If you betray his trust, your son might decide not to share things with you. Of course you can offer advice, but after taking moms thoughts under advisement, he should decide how to move forward.
I do feel for you. There is nothing worse than wanting to help our kids when they're hurting but not being able to do anything.

I disagree with leaving your cadet to fend for himself completely, unless that is the cadet's choice. The condition you describe sounds serious and a young cadet should have the benefit of advice from someone with more experience, whether that is a parent or someone else of trust. Most twenty something year olds do not have the experience to deal with serious issues alone, especially something as bureaucratic as the military medical system. The medical forms filled out during in-processing provide authorizations for others to be able to receive medical information.

Sadly, military medical care can be hit or miss. I have experienced and witnessed several medical screw-ups (some minor, some not), both military and civilian. Better to suffer a little embarrassment than the consequences of a poor diagnosis or treatment.

However, I would limit interaction to serious or urgent issues with the appropriate source. I would not recommend contacting the Athletic Director in this case, since the athletic department has little control over care after injury.

jl123 said:

I disagree with leaving your cadet to fend for himself completely, unless that is the cadet's choice. The condition you describe sounds serious and a young cadet should have the benefit of advice from someone with more experience, whether that is a parent or someone else of trust. Most twenty something year olds do not have the experience to deal with serious issues alone, especially something as bureaucratic as the military medical system. The medical forms filled out during in-processing provide authorizations for others to be able to receive medical information.

Sadly, military medical care can be hit or miss. I have experienced and witnessed several medical screw-ups (some minor, some not), both military and civilian. Better to suffer a little embarrassment than the consequences of a poor diagnosis or treatment.

However, I would limit interaction to serious or urgent issues with the appropriate source. I would not recommend contacting the Athletic Director in this case, since the athletic department has little control over care after injury.

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I can tell you the medical personnel at West Point are among the best in the service and truly care for those entrusted to them. They are probably ahead of most universities as far as concussion detection goes due to the nature of the education/training and I can guarantee you the OP's DS had a baseline done during Beast. The coaches and trainers are trained to identify concussions and they take them very seriously. Unfortunately the injuries do occur- contact sports are part of the academy and officer development, especially when playing D1 sports.
I think there is probably more to the story, but the OP is within bounds reaching out to the SA for some answers. Understand, however, that medical personnel will NOT be able to discuss the issue with a parent.

https://www.verywellfamily.com/18th-birthday-from-parent-perspective-3570787

Thank you all for your responses. To clarify the Occipital Neuralgia was a result of a neck injury (whiplash), not the concussion. I agree that West Point is top notch at recognizing and treating concussions, but I am concerned based on my cadet's experience that training is lacking for this type of injury also common in boxing.

UHBlackhawk said:

I can tell you the medical personnel at West Point are among the best in the service and truly care for those entrusted to them. ...........Understand, however, that medical personnel will NOT be able to discuss the issue with a parent.

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Agree with most of what you said, but a couple of caveats:

1) Yes, the medical personnel at West Point are among the best, but they do make mistakes. DS completed was prescribed penicillin by medical staff at USMA to treat Strep throat shortly before coming home on leave. Strep didn't clear up. Our local doctor was shocked they had prescribed penicillin without testing for strain of Strep. He had a penicillin resistant strain that was easily and routinely detectable with in-office test.

Additionally, Keller Army Hospital no longer provides the comprehensive service it once did - cadets now need to go off post to civilian contracted doctors for some routine services that are standard at almost any hospital or medical facility.

Military medical care is no better or worse than civilian medical care. I can give numerous examples of medical screw ups, both military and civilian. The difference is that if you get bad civilian care, you go find another doctor. In the military your alternatives are more limited.

2) Medical personnel will be able to discuss the issue with parents if the proper authorization has been given. It is a common problem that after children turn 18 parents find out the hard way that they need prior authorization to discuss medical issues.