Access To Mental Health Services

The Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA) has been tasked with providing support and benefits to Veterans after they have completed their service. However, many Veterans are reporting difficulty accessing care due to systematic barriers within the VA’s Veterans Health Administration (Oliver, 2007). Complex eligibility requirements, long wait lists and lack of providers are a few of the issues Veterans are faced with when trying to access health and mental health care. Additionally, studies indicate that veterans, predominantly those from the recent wars in Iran and Iraq, have disproportionately high amounts of mental illness (Shim & Rust, 2013). These same veterans are experiencing difficulty accessing mental health care due to issues around a backlog of healthcare eligibility applications and a shortage of mental health providers through the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), which operates the Nation’s largest, integrated health care delivery system (APA, 2014). In 2014, at the request of the Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) evaluated the merit of the allegations of mismanagement at the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) and the Health Eligibility Center (HEC).

Problem Statement: The World Health Association defines ‘good’ health as: “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” However, in the United States, access to care and funding for mental health care are grossly neglected and underfunded in comparison to other aspects of health care.

Veterans are everywhere throughout the United States, but just because they are everywhere, doesn’t meant they are getting the proper care. According to the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans of America, “One in three veterans return home and suffer from some sort of mental health issue.” Their mental health issues vary from post traumatic stress disorder to anxiety and depression. The switch from fighting everyday to being home is tough for the veterans and they need to receive the proper treatment so they can possibly live a life as normal as possible. The state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, started a $810,000 program to support these veterans with their issues returning home. The transition is hard, not

Of recent Veterans entering the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare system, over 30% are diagnosed with a mental disorder. One of the most common diagnoses is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), given to 52% of those receiving mental health diagnoses [1, 2]. Moreover, an estimated 41% of Veterans enrolled in VA care reside in rural settings, including a disproportionate number of younger Veterans and female Veterans returning from the wars in the Iraq/Afghanistan regions (Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom [OEF/OIF] ). To meet the needs of the changing Veteran population, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is tasked with increasing access to and utilization of mental health services for geographically and culturally diverse Veterans. The exponential advancement in society’s use of technology, and the resultant field of e-mental health, provides a great opportunity to surmount current barriers many Veterans face when accessing mental health care. A number of resources have been developed to meet the needs of Veterans diagnosed with PTSD, yet few studies have examined willingness to use technology-based mental health treatment approaches within a sample of ethno-racially and geographically diverse veterans who served after September 11, 2001.

Veterans often experience long wait times to schedule an appointment for PTSD. Through additional research I have found that according to a study in 2003 by the American Legion, of approximately 300,000 veterans waiting for health care, over half of them had been waiting over eight months for an appointment (American Legion, 2013). I further researched how many VA facilities in the United States offer specialized treatment for PTSD. In all 50 states, and Washington, DC, there are a total of 139 facilities (US Department of Veterans Affairs, 2015). I propose to conduct a telephone

All elements in this domain scored a five. The VHA focuses on diversity and disparities among Veterans. The comprehensive electronic health record captures demographic information, such as race, ethnicity, language on the initial visit to the facility. This information can then be viewed in the first pane of the patient chart. Although English is the primary language, an interpreter can be made available if necessary. Those patients who are hearing impaired are provided with an interpreter fluent in sign language. Multiple programs are available to Veterans who are underserved. A series of questions are reviewed with the patient annually, with the goal of identifying the Veteran’s needs. These questions focus on routine health care, as well

About 57,436 Veterans chose to use Non-VA (Department of Veterans Affairs) facilities for healthcare service while waiting more than 90 days for appointments with their VA clinicians (Couzner, Ratcliffe, & Crotty 2012). Since post-hospitalization follow-up with primary care providers has a great impact on theses Veterans’ health outcome by promoting recovery and preventing readmissions (Martinez, 2014). The Patient Aligned Care Teams track Veterans’ admission and discharge in VA facilities through the VA’s electronic medical record to ensure timely post-hospitalization with Veterans’ primary care providers. There are no data about post-hospitalization follow up among Veterans who is admitted into Non-VA facilities.

Enhancing veteran care is the top priority for us all, providing opportunities to veterans enabling them to become actively involved with their healthcare will generate an enriching supportive foundation on every level of health care. Utilizing this “multi-disciplinary” structure encompuses and promotes active health care management that heighten their physical/mental well-being.

Men and women serve in the United States armed forces in hopes of receiving the promise of a dependable income and reliable benefits. The primary influence for those joining the armed forces is tuition reimbursement followed by health care benefits (Clever, & Segal, 2013). The majority of enlisted military only serve for seven years and often work in minimum wage jobs without health insurance after departing from the military. Before the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, veterans could only utilize veteran hospitals and outpatient clinics for military related health problems (United States Department of Veterans Affairs, 2016). Once the Affordable Care Act was initiated, all veterans could utilize veteran medical services for any of their health care needs. The problem needing to be addressed is the number of veteran facilities available to provide treatment for the vast amount of veterans now qualified for medical services.

Client reported his willingness to seek psychiatric help through the VA. Client is open to receiving MH services that can help him find better coping strageties and to address his PTSD.

Countless medically discharged or retired veterans of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom are entering the nation’s healthcare systems in large numbers attempting to seek medical or mental health care. Those that enter find a growing lack of concern for the inadequacy of the administrative system required to process their claims or support their growing addictions to medications prescribed by physicians unprepared for the level of damage sustained in combat. The Veterans Administration is consistently backlogged on both sides of their service departments. The disability and claims division provides a determination of whether a veteran has a service-connected injury and thus entitled to VA health benefits. The VA health care system is overworked and understaffed to provide care to a growing and aging population of veterans.

Veteran populations supported by the Veteran Health Administration has a problem when their patients need help that requires counseling. A report produced examining the different problems that exist was produced in April 2012. The Veterans Affairs (VA) was investigated by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) in a report entitled “Review of Veterans’ Access to Mental Health Care.” (Howley, 2014). It was determined that the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) does not have a method to track whether patients are provided timely access to mental health services (Office of Inspector General, 2013). VHA failures include neglecting to meet first-time patients with timely mental health evaluations and existing patients often waited more

Many groups in the United States are facing delays in medical care, this is most evident and concerning when it comes to military veterans. Military veterans are experiencing extended wait times in all states, which are affecting their health and well-being. In Phoenix Arizona, over 9,000 veterans have to wait over three months to receive their required medical treatment. The number of veterans needing care is only growing with each year that passes as more service members exit combat zones and the service. These men and women are having to have blood tests done every three months as they are not able to see their primary care physicians if their lab work is over three months old, this has been observed at the Long Beach VA hospital. A veteran

Creating immediate access to care for veterans by reducing length of stay and readmission rates.

The SVMC ED cares for 18,000 patients a year and has seen an increase by 2% a year for the past five years. Of those patients seen in the ED, approximately 20% are for substance abuse or mental health issues (St. Vincent’s Medical Center [SVMC], 2018). Patients presenting with mental health or substance abuse issues are medically cleared in the ED and treated in the Behavioral Health Unit (BHU). The BHU is managed by the Behavioral Health Service Line and staffs the unit with dedication behavioral health professional. Psychiatrist coverage is only provided during business hours, resulting in patient boarding in the ED overnight waiting for a Psychiatric consult and evaluation. This proposal suggests implementing a telepsychiatry program to