My name is Stéphane Guay, and I am a researcher and Director of the Trauma Study Centre at Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital in Montreal. I am also an associate researcher for Veterans Affairs Canada, at the Sainte-Anne Centre located at Sainte-Anne Hospital. I am affiliated with the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Montreal. I am a psychologist by training. I received my PhD in 2001 and subsequently did post-doctoral studies on treatment of post-traumatic stress in civilians. This was a study aimed at determining whether the involvement of a relative could increase the effectiveness of treatment. At the present time, my main activities involve assessment of various methods of psychological treatment of post-traumatic stress in different types of sufferers, mainly civilians, but also some military personnel.
Since 2003, I have been conducting research projects that are supported by a variety of Canadian funding organizations, such as the Canada and Quebec Health Research Institutes, and the Quebec Health Research Fund. In recent years, much of my writing on the subject has been published in both Canada and abroad, and I have also presented papers at a number of different conventions. Recently, a book I wrote on post-traumatic stress with my colleague, André Marchand, entitled Les troubles liés aux événements traumatiques : Dépistage, évaluation et traitement was published by the Presses de l'Université de Montréal.
As regards my appearance before the Committee this morning, I believe that the fact I worked on two major studies involving Canadian Forces members is of particular interest to you. One of them consisted of analyses based on the Canadian Community Health Survey and the Supplement involving members of the Canadian Forces. That survey was conducted using a representative sample of the military population. There was a sample of 8 441 participants. I also conducted a study with military personnel at the Valcartier Base in Quebec City which was intended to assess the quality of life and social support provided to soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress. We completed that study some time ago.
I believe I will be in a position to provide information and clarification with respect to the results of those studies based on the questions you have for me this morning. I am here today in my capacity as a researcher. I am also a psychologist and clinician, but I believe I have been invited to speak to you primarily as a researcher, and I will attempt to clarify data found in literature on the subject, as it relates to veterans, to the best of my abilities.