National Defence committee  I understand that the CAF doctors have offered a reason that they don't make attribution to service. I would ask the committee to ask Veterans Affairs Canada how many claims are denied because of attribution to service, in other words, when they are unable to draw the link betwe

National Defence committee  I will answer in English, please. Excuse me, but it is harder through video. I am not certain that mental health.... VAC has put in place a program whereby now, if you put in a disability claim for a mental health condition—not all mental health but some—you're eligible for trea

National Defence committee  I have exactly the same answer.

National Defence committee  In my—

National Defence committee  I'm sorry, Mr. Chair. In my role as the veterans ombud, I can only observe and offer recommendations to the minister. The gap that exists, or the impact on women as opposed to men or other equity-seeking groups with service in the Canadian Forces, is real, and we see it. We see

National Defence committee  Through the chair, thank you. It's lovely to see you again as well. First of all, our recommendations were accepted. We understand that a program has been in development and is in the process of being implemented. I don't know exactly where they are with it, but I understand it'

National Defence committee  We did a study, a literature review—last year, I believe it was—in which we found a number of significant differences between how service affects men and how service affects women. There are a number of gaps and impacts. If we have time, I would invite my colleague Mr. Schippers

National Defence committee  Good morning, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for inviting me to contribute to your study on challenges associated with medical release and transition to civilian life. As the veterans ombud, my mandate is to receive and review complaints from clients of Veter

Veterans Affairs committee  I don't know all the researchers in Canada, but there is one I do know and the Office and I met with her last week. She is Maya Eichler of Mount Saint Vincent University. Also at Mount Saint Vincent there are Deborah Norris, who studies the families of members of the military, an

Veterans Affairs committee  Mr. Chair, that happened in 1989. Since then, women have had access to all positions in the Canadian Forces.

Veterans Affairs committee  We believe they do the GBA+, but we don't know how well it's done. If they published it, we could look at it. It would be transparent, and women veterans could see it. I think it would go a long way to improving women's sense of confidence that the department is looking to meet t

Veterans Affairs committee  Thank you very much for that question. In our scoping review, we found that women veterans earn less than their male counterparts post-release. I remember General Natynczyk speaking about purpose. If you don't know what you're going to do when you leave the Canadian Forces, it i

Veterans Affairs committee  I would encourage you to speak to the Canadian Forces transition group about how they do transition today. It has changed a great deal in just the past four years. Whether they do anything specific for women, as they do for men, would be a great question for them.

Veterans Affairs committee  Again, I'll invite my colleague Dr. Kelly to share with you some of the things we found in the scoping review. The document from the scoping review we did captures all the research we were able to find. We published it in October 2021. Dr. Kelly, perhaps you could add more to wh

Veterans Affairs committee  I wonder if I could take that. I've been out across the country, actually, for the past several weeks, and that is exactly what we hear, particularly with people who get out of the military on what I like to call the 30-day plan. They decide, “I'm outta here”, and in 30 days th