Hello, everyone.
My name is Mike Fisher, and I oversee VA's 300 vet centers.
Today, we're going to talk about what Vet Centers are
and the work that we do there.
A little bit of background about myself --
I am a combat veteran who served in Iraq in 2005,
was actually in the infantry
and served with the Pennsylvania National Guard
and was very fortunate to find vet centers,
both professionally and personally
as I transitioned to life after that deployment.
Now, before we get into what a vet center is,
I think we should recognize that this has not been an easy month
and that many individuals and including myself
have experienced feelings and emotions like anxiety,
anger, grief, guilt or even numbness,
and it's perfectly fine to have those kinds
of feelings and emotions.
What's not okay is having to think
that you have to be by yourself
as you have those feelings or emotions.
And our hope is at the end of our discussion today
that you'll learn about a resource
that is available to you so you don't have to be alone.
So with that said, let's get right into what a vet center is.
So we are an organization in the Department of Veterans Affairs
that provides readjustment counseling to eligible veterans,
active-duty service members and their families.
We were created in 1979 because at that point,
Vietnam Veterans realized that they need to have a place
where they can go and experience community and camaraderie
and connection together after they deal
with the realities of what they experienced in Vietnam.
And really, we blossomed into where we are today
in that we have 300 vets centers, 83 mobile vet centers.
We also have over 1,000 vet center community access points
and still have held true to that idea of veteran helping veteran
in that the vast majority of our staff,
almost 70 percent, are veterans,
and many of them have served in combat.
In fact, I am the typical vet center employee,
having served first
and then has been able to be fortunate enough
to be able to give back.
So vet centers provide individual, group,
marriage, family counseling.
We also provide referral and connection to other services,
both in VA as well as within your community as a whole.
In fact, many of our vet centers
actually bring in community partners
designed to meet the need in that local community.
We have office hours at that vet center.
So what can you expect when you come into a vet center?
The first is that it's going to be a welcoming environment
where you can connect with other veterans,
other service members, other family members
and begin to create that community.
And really that leads into we create a community of support
and opportunity for those social connections
to be able to establish new relationships.
We also provide and you can expect practical
and therapeutic services.
Everything from talk therapy to recreational activities,
and really all designed to be --
to connect to whatever your individual goals and needs are.
In fact, we put you and your family
in the driver's seat of your care
and really help you identify a goal
somewhere in a very large spectrum of services,
then work to create a support structure around yourself
to accomplish those services -- to accomplish those goals,
and when you accomplish that goal,
then we want you to identify
or help you to identify another one.
And it's this lifelong process of just doing that over
and over and over again.
Our commitment when you come into a vet center
is that we will provide a safe and confidential environment
where you can do that.
In fact, the only people who will know
you are coming to a vet center are the people you tell,
the people you allow to know
through a signed release of information.
That includes anyone in the Department of Defense
or on the VA side,
or if there's a serious threat to yourself
or somebody else or concern about harm,
then we will break confidentiality for that.
And it really comes down to making sure that you are safe.
We will also make sure that you can expect
or we're committed to guided services by professionals.
And like we said before, many who are veterans
that have maybe experienced same things --
the same things that you have.
I think what really makes this successful is this ability
to just understand that experience.
You do not have to explain to me what an IED is.
I know firsthand the sights, the smells, the sounds,
that feeling that happens after that event,
and many of our staff had that similar experience.
Now one thing that we're proud of within vet centers,
and I think this really speaks to our ability
to create that safe environment,
regardless of experience is that 90 percent of veterans
and service members trust vet centers,
not only to make sure that we can provide access
to those services,
but also that we will provide quality services.
In fact, additional 92 percent of veterans
and service members stated that they trust vet centers
to improve the quality of their life.
Now, while we are a part of the Department of Veterans' Affairs,
there is no requirement to enroll in VHA Health Care
to use vet center services.
There is no requirement for service connection.
We don't means test.
It really is for individuals who experience...
You know, our eligibility is really based around
that service in a dangerous place
or experiencing certain kinds of trauma
like military sexual trauma or war trauma.
And we also provide services
regardless of discharge status or character.
So it really becomes that ability,
that safe place to begin that journey post deployment,
post experiencing those certain kinds of trauma.
We said that we don't charge for our services.
In fact everything is prepaid by your military experience.
And our services are lifelong.
So you can choose to use us today, tomorrow,
or 10 years from now.
I think the important thing is that when you are ready,
that you make that decision to come and give us a try.
So how do you get a hold of a vet center
or get connected to a vet center?
The easiest way is to visit our website,
www.vetcenter.va.gov,
or give us a call on our 24-7 confidential call center,
877-927-8387.
Once again, 877-927-8387.
This call center is actually staffed
by fellow combat veterans
and family members of combat veterans
and is really designed
as a place where you can call at any point
and talk about your military experience and transition home.
We started our time together today talking about
that you don't have to feel that you're alone.
And I'm actually going to give you just a personal,
my own personal experience of using vet centers.
And that is I am here today because a vet center counselor
actually wouldn't let me shut my barracks room door on him
until I came and talked to him.
My time, when all I wanted to do was say no,
vet centers helped me say yes.
And I submit to you, that is what we do every day.
We help you say yes when really all you want to do is say no.
And that gets into your not alone,
you don't have to feel that.
Give us a try.
So I do want to thank you for taking a couple of minutes
and hearing about what we do at vet centers.
And please, give us a try in calling
either our 24-7 call center
or also checking us out using our website
where you can find the closest vet center to you.
Thank you for your time.
Thank you for your service to this country.
And I look forward to you connecting with a vet center
in the very near future.
Thank you.