Question Period Note: MENTAL HEALTH

• Veterans Affairs Canada is committed to ensuring eligible Veterans, retired Royal Canadian Mounted Police members and their families have access to the mental health support they need, when they need it.

• Veterans Affairs Canada funds a network of 11 operational stress injury (OSI) clinics across the country and nine additional OSI satellite service sites closer to where Veterans live.

• In addition, Veterans who qualify may have access to approximately 12,000 mental health professionals across Canada, who are registered with the Department, and a Veterans Affairs Canada Assistance Service which offers a 24-hour toll-free help line, face-to-face psychological support, bereavement support and referral services, to Veterans, former Royal Canadian Mounted Police members and their family members or caregivers experiencing mental health or personal difficulties.

BACKGROUND – MENTAL HEALTH

Veterans Affairs Canada funds a network of 11 operational stress injury Clinics across the country (10 outpatient and 1 inpatient) as well as 9 additional operational stress injury satellite service sites closer to where Veterans live. More operational stress injury satellite service sites will open across the country based on need.

Operational Stress Injury Clinics offer access (through referral) to an interdisciplinary team of mental health professionals who provide specialized assessment and treatment services to Veterans, Canadian Armed Forces, active and former Royal Canadian Mounted Police members and their families understand their experience and unique needs.

Veterans who qualify also have access to a national network of more than 12,000 independent mental health professionals across Canada, registered with the Department to deliver mental health treatments.

The Veterans Affairs Canada Assistance Service (1-800-268-7708) or TDD (1-800-567-5803) offers a 24-hour toll-free help line, face-to-face psychological support, bereavement support and referral services, to Veterans, former RCMP members, their family members or caregivers, close to where they live.

Also available is LifeSpeak, an online self-help resource that includes 900 short videos and podcasts featuring leading subject-matter experts who guide, advise and recommend on topics relevant to us all, from depression and nutrition to financial health and parenting. It features “Ask the Expert” sessions that can be accessed anonymously. URL: veterans.lifespeak.com. Password: canada (lowercase). LifeSpeak is also available as a downloadable free mobile app from the Apple Store or Google Play.

The Operational Stress Injury Social Support Service (OSISS) offers confidential peer support to Canadian Armed Forces members, Veterans and their families impacted by an operational stress injury. The support is provided by trained peer support, family peer support coordinators and volunteers, who typically have first-hand experience with these injuries and are familiar with VAC services and resources available in the community. Toll-free number: 1-800-883-6094, URL: osiss.ca.

A Canadian Veteran-specific version of Mental Health First Aid, which focuses on the Veteran experience, is also available due to an established partnership with the Mental Health Commission of Canada, to provide mental health literacy training to the Veterans community located across the country.

Veterans Affairs Canada has collaborated with a number of partners to develop a series of free online and mobile applications for Veterans and their families including PTSD Coach Canada, OSI Connect, Lifespeak, the Operational Stress Injury Resource for Caregivers, Veterans and Mental Health tutorial and an Online Caregiver Training Program.

In May 2018, Veterans Affairs Canada formed a partnership with the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group to establish the Centre of Excellence on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Related Mental Health Conditions. The Centre of Excellence officially opened in June 2019 and is working on expanding existing Canadian mental health clinical and research networks. The objective is to increase the creation and dissemination of new Canadian expertise on military and Veteran mental health, suicide prevention and substance-use disorder issues.

As of April 1, 2018, the Government committed $147 million over six years to expand access to the Veteran Family Program. The program aims to address the unique needs of medically releasing CAF members, medically released Veterans and their families. As a family journeys from military to post-service life, it can access the Veteran Family Program for information on overall health and well-being, including the Family Information Line and CAFconnection.ca.

Additionally, the Department of National Defence and Veterans Affairs Canada have developed a Joint Suicide Prevention Strategy. The Strategy was released on October 5th, 2017 and includes comprehensive Canadian Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs Canada Action Plans. The Veterans Affairs Canada Suicide Prevention Strategy Action Plan identifies 63 Action items, 81% of which have been completed or are ongoing.

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