Hi Anthony and Kerrie-Ann,
So many ideas put us all 'on the same page' and that certainly makes for fertile ground in which ideas thrive.
I've always thought that Ex Service Organisation (ESO's) don't do enough outreach activities but sit back and wait for their clientele to come to them. Result- vets with problems are daunted by this as I guess they need that extra effort to encourage their participation. GT's idea re physicians, GP's, counsellors and the like is to coach the approach to their professional bodies along the lines of us seeking advice from them as to how they would recommend we get the message out to vets who may have fallen through the cracks. We could also emphasise the fact that we wish to facilitate communication with their partners too. He feels that this would avoid the risk of them feeling imposed upon.
The current affairs reporter route is so good and was one I was considering for promotion of the PVA. Coincidentally, I was hijacked by a team of roaming reporters last year wanting a sound bite on the Liberal leadership struggle and Robert Doyle. As I'm a first class show off I obliged. They screened it so the next week I rang the reporter and did my pitch and she was very interested. The PVA have used current affairs programs to good effect as well in the past too.
Anyhow. I was considering what to say in an email to her and one concept was to point out that the DVA doesn't recognise the partner as primary carer. They give that title to the LMO's. So the vital job that the partner/carer does is diminished by the Dept in charge. We carers on the other hand do all that we do with little recognition. Sometimes my evil and bitter tongue gets the better of me and I opine,' We provide all the primary care for the vet and sex and all for $94.60 a fortnight'. I think the whole way we look at people who require care has to be changed and all must move from the medical model and be more holistic; it's a TEAM effort and all should be consulted.
As to the problem of getting the young vets to recognise there's a problem, well it goes beyond the individual and can be traced to the culture of the defence forces. Do the powers that be encourage young men to admit to a problem? When they do does the Dept support them or throw them out on their ear? In the Special Forces area many bury their fears for fear of being posted out of a regiment they love. This means that the problem doesn't surface until it's too late to be proactive about it. I think it is not debated enough both within the military or without. Maybe a publicist could get this sort of debate going in the public domain. Something for a not for profit org could develop in the future.
Which brings me to the formation of aforementioned organisation. What about a STRATEGIC PLAN.
GOALS:- Short term
now to 12 months
-continue to refine the forum to support the partners of vets with PTSD
-mount a publicity drive to bring this forum to the attention of young vets and partners.
Medium Term
up to 5 yrs
-have publicity campaign up and running.
- maintain and grow forum.
- start building organisation
Long Term
10yrs+
Organisation established.
What do you think of this?
Hi Kerrie-Ann, This is so long I have run out of time to chat long but suffice to say that the thing I find hardest on the really, truly, madly feral days is that GT and I are not only not on the same page as each other, but we can be reading different books, his in Slovenia and mine in Swahili. Talk about barriers to communication! Often we separate for a few hours so that we can re find where we are in the book we both need to be reading; at the same time and at the same pace. Tomorrow I'll tell you a very funny (ironic) story about the game we use to play to re establish smooth channels of communication.
Cheers LT and her vet.
PS, GT prefers his book to be in Latin rather than Slovenian too Slavic!!!