HUFFINGTON
09.01-08.13
CHRIS HONDROS/GETTY IMAGES
INVISIBLE CASUALTIES
probably not going to get better.”
The Philadelphia VA’s work on
suicide prevention, although not
labeled as such, now includes
programs for housing the homeless, pain management, employment, and outreach to veterans in
legal jeopardy.
Under prodding from the White
House, the VA this summer organized dozens of meetings with
community mental health organizations to figure out better ways to
serve its communities. At a gather-
ing at the Philadelphia VA in midAugust, local activists and mental health workers brainstormed
about new ways to find and connect veterans to their resources.
“It’s not just what we can do in
this hospital, it’s what we can do
in the community to help veterans
get better,” said Dr. David W. Oslin, director of mental health services at the center.
But the fact is, community programs are often underfunded and
disconnected. At the Philadelphia
meeting, two officials of the city’s
Department of Behavioral Health,
which has an impressive array of
Iraq War
Veteran
Robert Wake
speaks with
physical
therapist
Nicole
Bormann
at the VA
Medical
Center in St.
Louis before
beginning a
counseling
session.