Veterans Affairs committee  To begin with, I'm surprised to hear that it doesn't take even longer. Where I am, I've been told that it takes much longer to get a response for francophones than for anglophones. To return to claims reported by women to Veterans Affairs Canada, because that's what we're here to talk about today, agents are not as familiar with pelvis and back problems and it's more complicated for women to substantiate them.

Veterans Affairs committee  I've been told that two have just been hired.

Veterans Affairs committee  I didn't think there were any before. I believe that once pregnant, women had permission to receive care outside the forces medical system. Now, we're beginning to get some within the armed forces. You'd have to ask Major-General Lise Bourgon. She could tell you.

Veterans Affairs committee  When I was in the armed forces, there were no other women in my unit. So I had no women friends who could understand what I was going through. When you leave the armed forces, you think you've left military life behind, putting all your equipment aside and becoming a civilian. But a career in the military gives you a sort of second skin for the rest of your days.

Veterans Affairs committee  I'm sorry, but I don't know who your question is for.

Veterans Affairs committee  If an injury follows you to Veterans Affairs, then absolutely that's where it should be dealt with. As Dawn said, sometimes you don't know that you've been injured. Sometimes you don't speak up when you have been raped or abused because the consequences are often worse than the act itself, believe it or not.

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes, absolutely it's current. It's happening now.

Veterans Affairs committee  I'm sorry. Who did you want to respond?

Veterans Affairs committee  I snuck my points in there, so I think I'm good.

Veterans Affairs committee  How many agents do we have working on appeals to claims who could be working on improving claims instead of veterans fighting for these claims? That's the first thing. Secondly, in French, the wait time is much longer. I have many friends, and they all say, “Don't do it in French, because you're going to be waiting double the time for the agents.”

Veterans Affairs committee  One thing I would be a proponent of is to have scenarios developed by the military. All soldiers would then be put through scenarios where they get a chance to be champions of diversity and of any actions they deem sexual misconduct. Right now we have fake scenarios. We're in a classroom and soldiers get to practise them: “What would you do in this type of situation?”

Veterans Affairs committee  This is so important. Women are having babies. They're going back to work. Within a certain time, they're being asked to pass a physical training test, a battle fitness test. Sometimes that time is too fast and they're having pelvic health issues. We don't know about that in the military because we don't have OB/GYNs and medical doctors who are used to dealing with women going back after pregnancies.

Veterans Affairs committee  If the victim has suffered trauma in the same way as she might have suffered an injury, then I fully agree. It would be important to enter that in her medical file.

Veterans Affairs committee  It's hard to answer that question, because I'm no longer in the armed forces.

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes. Most of my women veteran friends are about my age. Nevertheless, we still see a lot of women veterans in their 30s who have just left the forces for medical reasons owing to trauma resulting from sexual misconduct. So I don't have percentages, but I can say that while it may be lower than before, it's not dropping fast enough.