Terms of reference
(1) That the following matters be
referred to the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee for
inquiry and report:
(a) the
adequacy of current arrangements within the Department of Defence for the
health preparation for the deployment of the Australian Defence Forces (ADF)
overseas;
(b) the adequacy of record keeping of
individual health and treatment episodes of those deployed, and access to those
records by the individual;
(c) the adequacy of information provided to
individual ADF members, pre-deployment, of the likely health risks and
anticipated remedial activity required;
(d) the adequacy of current arrangements for
the administration of preventive vaccinations, standards applied to drug
selection, quality control, record keeping and the regard given to accepted
international and national regulation and practice;
(e) the engagement in this process of the
Department of Veterans Affairs and the Repatriation Medical Authority for the
purposes of administering and assessing compensation claims; and
(f) the adequacy of the current research
effort focussing on outstanding issues of contention from the ex-service
community with respect to health outcomes from past deployments, and the means
by which it might be improved.
(2) That,
in undertaking the inquiry, the committee consider recommendations for an
improved system within the Defence and Veterans administrations which will
give greater assurance to the individual that their health risks are minimised,
and fully recorded for the purposes of future compensation where justified.