Veterans Affairs committee  I'm pleased to have the opportunity to maybe refer to what the ombudsman was talking about—accessibility. Do we have a sufficient level of service, and is it fair in terms of access? In 2007 the government did approve the doubling of the OSI clinics. We have now 10, and with the 7 DND operational trauma stress support centres there are 17 sites across the country that CF members, RCMP members, and veterans can have access to.

Veterans Affairs committee  No, I was not aware.

Veterans Affairs committee  No, I was not aware.

Veterans Affairs committee  I think everyone at the table, all veterans associations, did support the doubling of the OSI clinics.

Veterans Affairs committee  We have ten clinics. Nine are outpatient clinics and one is the in-patient residential clinic. As the ombudsman was saying earlier, there is concern about the access to some of our clinics. We hear that it's mainly around the access to the in-patient clinic. We are working at developing policy options to ensure that we can better serve those who, I would say, require crisis emergency support.

Veterans Affairs committee  If a veteran comes to see us five, 10 or 15 years later because he is having service-related problems returning to civilian life, because he has mental health problems that he was not aware of earlier, the new charter gives us the opportunity to consider a rehabilitation plan. In the context of a rehabilitation plan, we put services in place to solve medical, psychosocial and professional problems.

Veterans Affairs committee  No. The 24 weeks is for disability pension applications. It's much quicker for rehabilitation program applications, 95% of which are accepted. Those applications are processed by the case manager at the district office. The case manager responds to them very quickly. I don't know the exact time frame.

Veterans Affairs committee  There is a policy, but I couldn't give you any details about it.

Veterans Affairs committee  It's currently 24 weeks, but it will be reduced to 16 weeks. However, that doesn't mean the person can't receive service in the meantime.

Veterans Affairs committee  We receive these people at our clinics, conduct an assessment, reach a diagnosis and send it to the district office. We continue treatment pending the outcome of the decision process.

Veterans Affairs committee  In a disability case, yes.

Veterans Affairs committee  The decision is made by the case manager at the district office level. Economic support may be offered to replace income. That represents 75% of income. The person does not have to go through the disability process, wait a number of weeks and file an appeal, and so on. Services can be provided in the context of the rehabilitation program.

Veterans Affairs committee  Maybe I could clarify. It's the closest available suitable therapist. If he can get the service in his area, we will not pay for him to travel to another city.

Veterans Affairs committee  Why there are no clinics in Saskatchewan and Newfoundland is a matter of the number of clients. To sustain a clinic, you need a minimum number of clients. If it's too small, you cannot justify having a psychiatrist or a psychologist. As I explained, using Telehealth, the client may come to Calgary and then go back to Regina and get treatment, either by Telehealth or from a local psychologist.

Veterans Affairs committee  If you want information on the kind of research that's being done in the world, in the trauma field, the ISTSS.org website has all the information on the symposium—