Stuart had multiple hospitalizations and multiple suicide attempts. He did have a short stint at Edgewood in Nanaimo, but it was not an appropriate place for him. For him, a huge obstacle was being sent somewhere where military members speak to other military members and have an idea of what's going on. That's why he wanted to be sent to Homewood, and they refused to do it.
In terms of family, once we realized that Stuart was in trouble and not doing well, I did have a conversation with the chaplain at the base and spoke with doctors at the civilian hospitals. The attitude I got from the hospitals was that he was a big boy, so let him get on with it. The attitude I got from the base was that he was a big boy, so let him get on with it: He's going to do what he's going to do. Neither of them was very satisfactory to me as his mom. I pushed hard, and after Stuart died, there was a closing of the ranks, because I think they knew there were some mistakes that, as I said, had a catastrophic effect.
There's one thing I really hope everybody hears today. Mental health issues among our soldiers are workplace injuries, not defects. Soldiers are not genetically predisposed to killing themselves; they don't want to die. I have yet to meet a soldier who wants to die. They want to get back to doing what they have done best. That puts an onus on all of us, in each of our capacities, to ensure that happens.