Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
It's a pleasure for me to appear before this committee again to discuss how we in the Canadian Forces care for the men and women of the Canadian Forces and provide support to them and their families if they are injured or become ill while serving.
Since assuming my present position in 2010, my top two priorities have been the care of the ill and the injured, and mental health. My ultimate goal is a health care system and a personnel administration support system that provide the best possible care to all members of the Canadian Forces, both regular and reserve.
In this regard, both the rollout of our health system renewal through the Rx2000 project and the lessons we have learned in support of operations in Afghanistan have led to significant advances and improvements in the care of our ill and injured. This significant improvement is facilitated by a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach that requires the integration and coordination of services available through the military health care system, the military administrative and social support system, and the transition and veteran support system.
In this latter regard, I work very closely with Veterans Affairs. This approach has been communicated to Canadian Forces personnel and their families, as well as other stakeholders in our recent publication entitled, “ Caring for Our Own”.
Our model of care for the ill and injured is based on three phases. The first phase, acute recovery, includes physical, mental, and spiritual care. The second phase involves a longer term clinical, physical, mental, vocational, and non-clinical rehabilitative support for the patient and his or her family, while ultimately preparing for the third phase, namely, reintegration.
There can be significant overlap between the three phases as ill or injured members move from acute recovery to rehabilitative support, and often simultaneously prepare for reintegration.
Our ultimate goal is to reintegrate personnel to duty in their current military occupation when and where possible. The reintegration plan is dependent upon a reliable prognosis or functional capacity assessment. If it is not possible to reintegrate the member in his or her current military occupation, then transition to an alternate occupation consistent with his or her abilities and interests is considered.
When the illness or injury leads to permanent medical employment limitations that do not meet the conditions of universality of service, our focus then, rightly, needs to be on reintegration into civilian life or consideration for employment with Cadet Organizations Administrative and Training Service, or the Canadian Rangers for those who wish to stay within the Canadian Forces.
Some ill or injured Canadian Forces members who are employable on a full-time basis within their medical employment limitations may be retained in the regular force or primary reserve for up to three years prior to reintegration into civilian life. The reintegration into civilian life of severely ill or injured who are not employable in the CF may also result in up to three years of transition support by the Canadian Forces.
This support is provided in coordination with Veterans Affairs Canada in preparation for them to assume responsibility for their further reintegration and coordination with the provinces for the health care needs of the veterans and their families.
I often say that Veterans Affairs and the Canadian Forces look after the same people; we just have to look after them at different points in their career and their lives.
Our framework of care is supported by five pillars that define how the integrated, equitable, responsive and well-communicated delivery of health care and support services meets the unique needs of ill and injured Canadian Forces personnel, veterans and their families through the phases of recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration.
The first pillar is governance, which consists of a whole-of-government approach to care and support.
The second pillar is an integrated multi-disciplinary and multi-agency delivery system.
The third pillar is consistency. We are talking about access to consistent care and case management, wherever the Canadian Forces members may serve.
The fourth pillar is continuous improvement. Focus is placed on continuous improvement to evaluate the effectiveness of policies, programs and services in support of identified deficiencies.
The fifth pillar is communication—both internal and external—of how we care for and support ill and injured Canadian Forces members and their families.
In addition to the five pillars, it is imperative that our three phases—recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration—remain anchored to the principle of universality of service. All Canadian Forces personnel must be ready to perform general military duties and common defence and security duties, not only those of their military occupation or occupational specialty.
The minimum operational standards associated with this principle include the requirements to be physically fit, employable without significant limitations, and deployable for operational duties. Universality of service is an essential and equitable approach for preserving the Canadian Forces trained effective strength and the capacity to meet its operational requirements.
Within the Canadian Forces we continue to work diligently to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness and operational stress injuries, as evidenced by the participation and support of the Minister of National Defence, the Minister of Veterans Affairs, the chief of the defence staff, both former and current, and senior leadership of the Canadian Forces at my recent symposium on mental health on October 22. It is essential that we continue to maintain a focus on mental health as an essential component of our care for the ill and injured and ensure that Canadian Forces personnel are able to readily access the mental health system available to them. We continue to work with commanders, supervisors, and Canadian Forces members through our mental health education and training program, including but not limited to programs such as the road to mental readiness, the joint speakers bureau and the be the difference campaign, to ensure our people are aware of and get the treatment they need. The Minister of National Defence has also recently committed an additional $11.4 million to further enhance the mental health care services available to Canadian Forces personnel.
Canadian Forces personnel have access to one of the best mental health care systems in Canada, which incorporates a comprehensive multi-disciplinary primary care model other Canadian health jurisdictions are striving to achieve. It also integrates a mental health care system recognized by organizations such as the Canadian Psychiatric Association. This system extends from in-garrison care to the exceptional health care provided during operations such as Operation Athena. Thanks to the exceptional care provided by our highly skilled medical technicians at the point of wounding, and the medical evacuation chain of the Canadian-led Role 3 Multinational Medical Unit in Kandahar, our health care system has earned the recognition of the NATO Baron Larrey Award of Excellence.
Integrated with the exceptional health care is our comprehensive military administrative and social support system overseen and coordinated by Colonel Blais, the director of casualty support management. This system is centred on the regional joint personnel support units with component integrated personnel support centres established across the country to provide a comprehensive, decentralized and integrated network of casualty support, which ensures equitable and consistent support for our ill and injured and their families. Support includes return to work program coordination, casualty tracking, support outreach and administration and coordination of services provided by organizations such as Veterans Affairs Canada, the service income insurance plan and personal support programs.
The health and well-being of Canadian Forces members is the shared responsibility of leaders, health care providers and the members themselves. That includes a whole-of-government approach to ensure that those who serve their country and are called upon to serve with unlimited liability are provided with the care and support they and their families need in the unfortunate event that they become ill or injured. This is the social contract. It is essential that Canadian Forces members have the confidence that, should they become ill or injured, they will receive the treatment and rehabilitation services necessary to restore them to health and normal functioning, and that their families' needs will be met. If they cannot resume military service, they know that the Government of Canada will support them as they make new lives for themselves. Veterans Affairs Canada and the Canadian Forces are committed to providing Canadian Forces personnel and their families with the comprehensive care and services they require. The two departments have a strong partnership and collaborate closely to integrate their services and provide continuity of support to our ill and injured in order to ensure the best possible care and, where necessary, a smooth transition to civilian life.
Members of the committee, I thank you for your continued interest in the care of the Canadian Forces ill and injured and for your strong support of members and families of Canadian Forces.
With that, Mr. Chair, I would be pleased to answer any questions you might have.