OHA on statewide tour to gather information, improve veteran health

One in four Oregon veterans experience frustration in seeking care for mental health or substance use issues according to a large veteran health study funded by the Oregon Health Authority and the Oregon Department of Veterans Affairs.

OHA and ODVA is looking to find out more on a statewide tour over the next several months. The groups want to gather input from communities across Oregon regarding veterans' behavioral health needs and services. The study that recommended the tour is available on the OHA website. The Oregon Legislature invested $3.1 million over four years toward veterans' behavioral health, and OHA and ODVA used a portion of the funding to commission the needs assessment.

The Eugene forum will be 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29. The first hour, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., is for LGBTQ community members only. While all forums are free and open to the public, registration is required and includes the forum location.

The study's recommendations include steps to strengthen services and outreach for veterans, including:

• Reduce stigma about behavioral health issues to help more veterans feel comfortable seeking care

• Strengthen suicide prevention programs

• Improve care coordination for veterans and tailor services to better address the experiences those who have served in the military faced

• Expand the number of peer specialists who have first-hand knowledge of veterans' issues and can provide effective support

• Recruit more treatment providers to serve veterans

Follow Tatiana Parafiniuk-Talesnick on Twitter @TatianaSophiaPT or email at Tatiana@registerguard.com.

___

(c)2019 The Register-Guard (Eugene, Ore.)

Visit The Register-Guard (Eugene, Ore.) at www.registerguard.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.