Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Review: "Healing Suicidal Veterans"

I haven't reviewed this book but based on its review, I feel that it is important that veterans be aware of it.

Veteran's Book Could Help Stem Suicides

by Freddy Groves

"Author Victor Montgomery is a former crisis intervention therapist for the National Veterans Suicide Crisis Hotline and is a Vietnam-era veteran. He's been a counselor for 20 years. His specialty, it seems, is veteran suicide crisis rescue."

"If you're a veteran, or hang around with veterans, there are things you need to know, signs you need to be aware of. Or maybe you know a veteran who made the attempt and thankfully wasn't successful, but who still isn't doing well. Maybe you're a family member, a friend or a veteran with suicidal thoughts. This book can help save a .life

The book covers, among many other things, the signs of depression, assessing the risk factors, and strategies to heal and cope. Women veterans aren't left out either."

"The book: "Healing Suicidal Veterans (Recognizing, Supporting and Answering Their Pleas for Help)" by Victor Montgomery III, New Horizon Press."

Fayetteville VA Medical Center Director Unexpectedly Retires

Is this the start of a cleanup by the VA? Lets hope so. In a separate article Fayetteville VA hospital worst in job satisfaction and VA system fails local veterans


Leader of Fayetteville VA hospital to retire

Bruce Triplett, director of the VA Medical Center in Fayetteville, plans to retire, the Veterans Administration said Wednesday. He has been in the post since November 2006.

Triplett will relinquish control of the hospital Nov. 20; his retirement will be official March 1.

The director of the Durham center, Ralph Gigliotti, will fill in in Fayetteville on an interim basis, the VA said.

VA Overhauling their Homlessness Stance

Words sound nice, but where is the action?

Full Article at: VA seeks to overhaul homelessness stance
Published: Nov. 4, 2009 at 2:08 PM

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- The U.S. Veterans Administration says its new plan to fight homelessness among vets involves a complete overhaul of its traditional framework on the issue.

Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki has indicated the agency is shifting to a focus on prevention and housing instead of on providing shelter services, the military newspaper Stars and Stripes reported Wednesday.

"This plan tries to do something different," Shinseki told the newspaper. "It aims as much if not more at preventing homelessness as it does rescuing those already on streets."