National Defence Committee on June 5th, 2013

Evidence of meeting #84 for National Defence in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was families.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

Care of ill and injured Canadian Forces members

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Russell Mann Director, Military Family Services, Department of National Defence

Glen Kirkland As an Individual

Clerk of the Committee Mr. Leif-Erik Aune

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

Six to ten times a day. Is that through injection?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Yes.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

So at some point you did get access to needles.

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Yes, much later. I think it was around a month after.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

On this injury that occurred, Corporal, when was that? I don't know if you've told us that or not.

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

My injury? I had a brain injury.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

No. The incident in Afghanistan when you were....

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Blown up?

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

When you were blown up, I guess is the proper way of putting it.

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

It was an ambush.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

Yes. Your LAV was blown up by a rocket. What year was that? When would that have been?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

It was September 3, 2008.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

You've said that you're awaiting a medical discharge. Is that what...?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Yes, sir.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

What do you see as your future?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Real estate, sir.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

You have said that you feel you're suffering from PTSD. Have you been diagnosed as having PTSD, or have you sought a diagnosis?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Yes, I have.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

Can you tell us what, if any, treatment you've been offered or have undergone with respect to this aspect of your injuries?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

I went to a facility for two years.

4:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

What facility was that?

4:55 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

It was Deer Lodge in Winnipeg, which sounds like it's great, but it's a two-and-a-half-hour drive, and the whole way, driving there and back, it's just.... Winnipeg is an air force base, and no disrespect to anyone in the air force, but they're not going through the same stuff as combat arms. I don't really understand why the main mental health clinic is two and a half hours away from the closest combat arms base.

5 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

Is the facility you call Deer Lodge a residential treatment facility?

5 p.m.

Cpl Glen Kirkland

Yes, sir.

5 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

How many individuals would have been there when you were there, clients or patients, or whatever you would call them?