Welcome, Dr. Belzile.
I'll start with a couple of observations. I listened very carefully to what you had to say, and I found it very interesting. I'm certain you would agree with me that those people who decide to go into the police force or the fire department or the military understand that there's going to be a lot of trauma involved in their jobs. Our job here is to actually try to support them after they have done their duty.
One of the other difficult things for Veterans Affairs personnel, I would imagine, is that we don't get the case from the very beginning, because it's cross-jurisdictional. The defence department would be in a position to see this person coming out of service at the early stage, and it wouldn't come to Veterans Affairs for a time afterwards.
Having said that, what I'd like to know from you is the same question I asked the last witness. How do you think Veterans Affairs Canada can contribute to changing the negative stereotype for veterans who suffer in silence from PTSD? How do we break that barrier, so that the men and women who are serving are more comfortable admitting they have a problem and seeking help, without feeling that they're weak or that there's something wrong with them or that they are inferior in some way, because they have witnessed something that has been too difficult for them to handle and they need that support? How do you think Veterans Affairs Canada can help in this regard?