Veterans Affairs Committee on April 20th, 2026

[Pascale Marier-Deschênes]

That's a good question.

I can't speak to certain cases I've heard about and that are more recent. I'm thinking about people who were in rehabilitation over the past two years or so. They didn't participate in the previous program. However, there were services nearby, which they had access to before, but that's no longer the case.

I'm not necessarily talking about people who live very far from major centres. They sometimes live in the suburbs surrounding major centres. They don't necessarily live in isolation, but they still need to travel great distances, without necessarily being in a remote rural area. This is a new reality.

[Blake Richards, Conservative, Airdrie—Cochrane, AB]

Thank you.

Mr. Parsons, Dr. Sherry painted a picture of the situation that was a bit rosier. I suspect that's probably due to the difference between being one of the trusted partners within the Lifemark network and not being one.

Is there anything you want to respond to, in that regard? There seem to be two different realities we're hearing about here. I suspect that might be where the differences are, but I want to see what your thoughts are, if you want to speak to that.

[Michael Parsons]

Because of time limits, I will say that I do have a positive on PCVRS. As a veteran, when I was medically released in 2009, I heard, “Go find your own help. Go into the wild.” As they mentioned, that was not a bad thing, but with the barriers to care mentioned by Dr. Sherry.... I'm a frontline worker. I was working in the trenches with the frontline workers and not—

[The Chair, Liberal, Marie-France Lalonde]

I'm so sorry, Mr. Parsons. Mr. Richards is very much aware of his time.

[Michael Parsons]

—as a deputy minister or the deputy of some company. That's the difference.

[The Chair, Liberal, Marie-France Lalonde]

I'm going to have to interrupt you, sir. I apologize. Mr. Richards should know better. Thank you very much.

Next is Ms. Hirtle for five minutes.

I apologize again, Mr. Parsons.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Dr. Sherry, I'm going to come to you.

To follow up on the conversation that's been happening, do you think your experience is different because you have a team and you're acting as a trusted partner versus as an individual?

[Dr. Simon Sherry]

I have only my experience. I don't have a comparison, unfortunately. I do think we have worked to solve some problems that were mentioned here, and I think they are important problems.

For instance, on accessibility, you can provide therapy in a reliable, valid way through telehealth, which can help problem-solve the barriers of travel, parking and inconvenience. Of course, there are other interventions not amenable to online services.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

You're in Nova Scotia. I'm a Nova Scotian as well. There are common needs and concerns that tend to arise, I assume, from different individuals you've encountered.

Do Atlantic Canadians have different issues or similar issues? How does that impact the service you are able to provide?

[Dr. Simon Sherry]

I think you will see regional variability in the problems people face, even in Atlantic Canada. Everyone is unique.

If you're a psychologist, then you have to drill down and understand the geography, the history and the society that the person is living in and have respect for that culture. There's a lot of diversity within Atlantic Canada, so you need to be culturally responsive to people from different ethnicities, backgrounds and groups. As psychologists, we are trying to continually improve ourselves to provide effective treatment to the widest range of people possible.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Of the 283 therapy clients you've had since 2024, are the majority in Atlantic Canada, or are they across the country?

[Dr. Simon Sherry]

The majority are very much in Atlantic Canada.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

How well does the current service structure align with their needs, in your view?

[Dr. Simon Sherry]

We are empowered to provide evidence-based treatment, and that's very important to me. In psychology, we're trying to adhere to clinical standards grounded in rigorous science. For instance, if you're treating PTSD, there are several well-studied and approved interventions. PCVRS gives us an opportunity to deliver that care as best we can.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

What recurring challenges do veterans report to you when accessing psychological or mental health services?

[Dr. Simon Sherry]

I would say that they too struggle with the bureaucratically intense nature of PCVRS. You are well monitored by your RSS. There's regular communication. There are forms to fill out. As you transition from one service provider to another, there can be threats. One theme today has been that it's difficult to be reassessed, for example.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Would you say there are systemic or procedural factors? You mentioned the bureaucratic heaviness. Would that appear to contribute to these challenges?

[Dr. Simon Sherry]

I think it's double-edged. On the one hand, it creates paperwork. On the other hand, it drives action, timeliness and creates accountability in a way that's good.

One interesting thing about PCVRS is that they've implemented progress monitoring. If someone comes into the program and they're addressing depression and anxiety, for example, then their depression and anxiety is continually monitored. That's important. If we're helping people, then that should be evident in some sort of a quantitative way.

[Alana Hirtle, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Thank you, Dr. Sherry.

In my last 40 seconds, I'll move on to Professor Marier-Deschênes.

As someone who has lived with chronic pain for many years, can you tell me a bit about the program Agir pour moi? How does that help to address chronic pain?

[Pascale Marier-Deschênes]

I, for one, did not suffer from chronic pain. My partners did. I'm not sure I understood the question correctly.

My understanding of chronic pain leads me to take a critical look at certain aspects of the program, but it's really related to specific health issues. Let's take the example of fibromyalgia, which some veterans have. Rehabilitation approaches in general that encourage overshoot—

[The Chair, Liberal, Marie-France Lalonde]

Ms. Marier‑Deschênes, I'm very sorry to interrupt you again.

Thank you very much.

Ms. Gaudreau, you have the floor for two and a half minutes.

[Marie-Hélène Gaudreau, Bloc, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I'd like to ask Professor Marier‑Deschênes three questions.

We were talking earlier about clinical data. Are there any? If so, can they be used to assess the PCVRS program's impact?

[Pascale Marier-Deschênes]

I actually don't have clinical data on how much the program is being used. I'm more focused on developing educational projects for this clientele, and there's no specific data on that.

As Mr. Sherry said, it's likely all the reports that have been collected would enable us to assess the program's impact.

[Marie-Hélène Gaudreau, Bloc, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

Okay.

The only thing I want to emphasize is that this needs to be assessed for all veterans. We really targeted veterans in the Atlantic region. What's the situation in Quebec and other provinces?

We're talking about the old program, which was more flexible, more accessible, and so on. Right now, we're being told the new program is very good, on paper. People have told us that. However, it doesn't meet the needs of the most vulnerable veterans.

Isn't that true, Mr. Parsons?

[Michael Parsons]

From personal experience as a veteran, I used Veterans Affairs Canada to accommodate my schooling for psychiatric nursing. I used the old program, and in comparing it to this program, the old program built trust with VAC, which worked on it with the veteran. With PCVRS, it was like starting fresh. They did not have a clear understanding of that transitional...and the differences. They're starting from scratch. It's sad to see all that rapport, all that trust built with VAC, just go away.

That's what I noticed in the differences between the old system and the new system. I'm not saying that the old system was perfect. I had issues dealing with that, which I've actually discussed with one of the members here, when I graduated from school. However, with this new program, the term I would use is that it's their way or the highway.