Beginning
in May 2014, a needs assessment survey, conducted by the VetCorps Program and
the Putnam County Communities That Care Coalition, was administered and
collected that targeted veterans and military families. The survey is intended
to help provide a more accurate picture of the needs of veterans and military
families in Putnam County. The results of the twenty-five question anonymous
survey will be used to guide development of
programs, outreach, and advocacy of current services available in order
to provide the best community support for this population.
Of
the seventy-two respondents, the demographic results depicted that:
·
71% of the respondents were males and 29% females.
·
81% between the ages of forty-five and sixty-five or older.
The
assessment was open for veterans, active duty/reserve military personnel, and
military families to complete. As such,
·
66% served in the branch of the United States military and
31% were assumed an affiliated military family member.
·
Of those who served in the military, 62% served over seas
with 71% having returned more than six months ago.
Of
this particular sample, 63% of respondents returned more than nineteen months ago,
but no less than sixteen months. It is also important to make note that 33%
served during the ‘Vietnam Era,’ 16% served post-9/11, 14% served during the
‘Gulf War,’ 8% served during the Korean War, and the remained served during
other ‘non-war’ periods. These percentages will help provide generalized
representation of the respondents in order to successfully tailor the
improvements within the community.
Respondents
revealed that assistance and enhancements within the VA healthcare system, job
training, and education benefits would help provide the most support of
veterans and their families. There have
been changes within the VA healthcare system that veterans and military
families may be unaware of, therefore education and outreach is critical. For
example, the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 is working
to improve the access to and quality of care for veterans, expand VA’s internal
capacity to provide timely care to veterans, provide real accountability for
incompetent or corrupt senior managers, and improve education benefits for
veterans and dependents.1
Based
on the survey responses, another service that is in need of expansion is for
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD can occur after enduring a
traumatic experience. Traumatic events are something that is emotionally
traumatizing that you hear about, visually witness, or physically endure. For
example, combat exposure or a victim of a terrorist attack can lead to PTSD and
often times can lead to substance abuse.2
Moreover, it was reported that 93%
respondents felt alcohol is the most abused and prescription drugs is the
second most abuse (44%) substance among veterans and active duty/reserve
personnel, and/or military family members. According to Healthy Alcohol
Market Place, “drinking has long been part of the culture of the
military. Being in very stressful situations, being away from family and
home for long periods, being a young adult-- all of these factors contribute
to, and booster an environment where heavy drinking is commonplace.” 3 According to a study in 2010,veterans aged 21 to 39
were more likely than nonveterans to report alcohol as their primary substance
of abuse (50.7 vs. 34.4 percent) and less likely to report heroin as the
primary substance of abuse (9.0 vs. 16.8 percent).4
A
current initiative that has been successful addressing alcoholism in the
military community, is California’s ‘Responsible Beverage Service Program,’
which trains servers to understand how alcohol is consumes, its affects among
patrons, and suggested responsible sales practices and training for providers.2
The Putnam County Communities Than Care Coalition sponsored an identical training
held on June 10, 2014; in which there were 30 attendees from local establishments that sell alcohol and/or
alcoholic beverages.
In
addition to this initiative, the Putnam County CTC Coalition, Putnam County
Health Department, and Putnam County Sheriff’s Office co-sponsors a ‘Medication
Take Back’ day event bi-annually. The next event being held September 20th
at the American Legion in Cold Spring. This is an opportunity for residents to
dispose of old prescriptions in efforts to limit its tendency for abuse. Prescription
drug drop off containers are also located at Kent and Carmel Police Departments.
The
aforementioned information was only a summarization of the survey results. If
you would like a more detailed report please visit the VetCorps’s website at http://www.putnamncadd.org/html/vetcorp.html. If you have
any questions about substance abuse preventative services in Putnam County,
would like to become a volunteer, and/or suggestions of how to improve current
services please contact VetCorps Prevention Coordinator, Chauntel Wright, at putnamvetcorp@gmail.com or VetCorps Supervisor, Elaine
Santos, at putnamdfcgrantee@gmail.com. Both can be
reached by phone at 845-225-4646.
Thank
you to all service members, veterans and military families for their
participation!
1 House
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. (2014). The veterans access, choice, and
accountability act of 2014 highlights. Retrieved from the House Committee
on Veterans’ Affairs Website: https://veterans.house.gov/the-veterans-access-choice-and-accountability-act-of-2014-highlights
2 U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs. (2014). What
is PTSD? Retrieved from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Website: http://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/PTSD-overview/basics/what-is-ptsd.asp
3 Gervaise, L. (2014). Alcohol in the military…a deadly foe!. Retrieved from the Campaign
for a Healthy Alcohol Marketplace
Website: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?ca=3d5a148a-01ac-4a0b-a053-0c63b07e2d0d&c=8fc2eda0-7d71-11e3-ac95-d4ae529ce48a&ch=90e4b150-7d71-11e3-acbd-d4ae529ce48a
