Veterans Affairs committee  --the members, regular members and civilian members.

Veterans Affairs committee  I can't say that for every single one, but the position of the caucus as a whole is that they support our position.

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes, they support our position.

Veterans Affairs committee  If I could comment on that, as soon as our members are exposed to a tragic event, there are two ways. In the member employee assistance program, the person will get in touch with the family. We also have a staff relations representative who will also get involved and assist the family in making sure that the spouse or the partner accesses everything that he or she needs to move forward.

Veterans Affairs committee  Thank you.

Veterans Affairs committee  It's not a recognized association. It's very limited, to a certain part of the country, so we don't really have an association. It's not a sanctioned association. What we have is a staff relations program.

Veterans Affairs committee  For that specific case, I think, if I were provided the information, we would review that case specifically with all its components. I couldn't comment on whether that person had been treated unfairly or not, but we could surely review the case in its entirety, with the numbers, and go where it would take us.

Veterans Affairs committee  No.

Veterans Affairs committee  Forgive me, but what page is it? I just need to find my place.

Veterans Affairs committee  I think it kind of comes back to what Superintendent Boughen was saying. We are talking about recognizing the symptoms of PTSD, and I think the pilot project we are currently working on with the Canadian Forces....

Veterans Affairs committee  Not necessarily, and I don't know the exact details. As far as I know, it doesn't necessarily address the family component, even though I think that through our M/EAP, our employee assistance program, we recognize more and more now that unless we involve the families, we're not going to solve the issues, or we're not going to be able to move forward on some of the issues that are outlined.

Veterans Affairs committee  I'd like to make a couple of comments regarding the point you raise, which is a critical one, about the supervisors and the detachments themselves. It's a critical point in what we're talking about. As far as the senior position that we have created is concerned, it's a position at the senior rank, at the assistant commissioner level, which I am starting as of today.

Veterans Affairs committee  I haven't read the report, so for me, it's very difficult to comment on it. But as I think I explained earlier, when the initial study was done on whether we should enter into the new veterans charter, as a sample, about 1,500 veterans were surveyed. But that dealt mostly with people who had retired.

Veterans Affairs committee  I'll make a quick comment and then Rich can respond. I think one of the issues we're faced with is that we still have to break down the walls for people to feel comfortable when admitting that they need assistance, that they need help, and that they need somebody to walk them through this.

Veterans Affairs committee  In certain specialized areas, it's the force policy that our members, our employees, receive briefing and counselling before they enter the specialized sections, during their service, and also after they leave to make sure that the follow-up is done. This is done on a continuous basis in some highly specialized areas where they're exposed to these types of situations.