Serving The Military & Veteran Population
Honestly it really saddens me to read that social workers aren’t trained in how to understand and assist military personal and their families. I come from a long line of family members who served in the military, it’s a big part of my identity. I know how much they respect and sacrifice for their position in the military, to serve, to protect. Regardless of politics and how you feel about where we are or what our soldiers are doing, they deserve our respect and at the very least our assistance in integrating back into civilian life.
Deployment for a soldier and their family is very difficult. This is a time when the family needs support, they can often times be in a new place, far from family and friends. It’s a time to help them get acquainted with the area, have people they can ask for help or just confide in. It’s a time to help them learn about the resources available to them for their kids and for themselves. Some challenges that military families will face during deployment are; frequent relocating, financial strain, behavior issues from children, injury or death of loved one. Sometimes their ability to deal with these stressors can lead to domestic violence and neglect.
After a soldier returns from deployment can be a very difficult time for the family and the soldier. The family has created a routine and dynamic while that loved one was deployed. Upon returning it can be hard for them to find where their place is in the family dynamics. This can cause strife in the marriage. Family relationships can be threatened by combat experience. It’s important for them to beware of signs of domestic violence and who to contact if it occurs. It’s important to note that there are different responses for civilian and military domestic violence incidents. Social workers should be trained and aware of these differences.
*Confidential reporting options represent a
significant cultural change in the military environment, providing victims with the time to make a decision about whether they want to report abuse.
Army wives during their husbands’ deployments was
more than three times the rate of child maltreatment
by wives while their husbands were not deployed.
The elevated rate of child maltreatment during times
of deployment was particularly pronounced for child
neglect. This research represents the first national
study of child maltreatment perpetrated by the wives
of soldiers during the soldiers’ deployment, and it
highlights the specific effect of deployment on the
civilian spouses and children of deployed soldiers
Social workers working with victims of domestic
violence who are affiliated with the military system
should also be familiar with transitional compensation, which provides financial benefits to the families
of service members who have been discharged for
child abuse or domestic violence (DoD, 1995)
Social workers should be educated in the many contributing factors affecting the mental health of military children. In addition, there are a number
of resources available to children of military families, and these may be accessed by civilian social workers.
The DoD reports that over 25,000 service members
have been injured in combat since the onsets of
OEF and OIF (DoD, Statistical Information Analysis
Division, 2007)
There is a 98 percent survival
rate among service members injured in Iraq is higher
than that in any previous war (Kilbride, 2007). This
progress, however, means that more service members
return home with grave injuries that transform
their lives: damaged brains and spinal cords, vision
and hearing loss, disfigured faces, amputated limbs,
and psychological problems such as depression and
PTSD.
Although physical injuries may be easily identified
for treatment, mental and emotional damage is often
invisible until it manifests in an associated behavior.
When mental health issues are not addressed, the
results may be deadly. In December 2006, the Army
released the results of the Mental Health Advisory
Team III Report (MHAT III). The MHAT III
examined the behavioral health care requirements
of the then most current deployment of soldiers
(2004–2006). Of note in this report was the suicide
rate, which showed a moderate increase to 19.9 per
1,000,000 from 18.8 per 1,000,000. The leading
suicide risk factors were problems with relationships
at home and in combat, followed by legal actions,
issues with fellow soldiers and commanders, and
dissatisfaction with duties (Army Mental Health
Advisory Team, 2005).
Civilian social workers in all practice areas should be
aware of benefits and services available to military
service members and their families and the regulations governing access to services. Both the military,
through DoD’s TRICARE insurance network, and
the VA, through nationwide Vet Centers, have well established systems in place to address health care and
transition issues. In addition, numerous professional
and charitable organizations provide specific benefits
for veterans and their families that supplement those
provided by the DoD and the VA.
Brendon Mowery
Hey Danni,
Great job on your blog post for this week! I really enjoyed reading your blog and it was very touching and humbling to me. I’m not in the military and nobody really close to me is either, so it isn’t really I think about too much. However, I wholeheartedly agree that they should be respected and honored for their service and how much they sacrifice for this country. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for someone to leave their family knowing they might never see them again. I really liked the fact that you brought up how difficult it can be for the military families as well, I feel like that is something that isn’t talked about that much. It was really sad to hear what it is like when someone returns to their family after so long and how they don’t really fit in to the family structure. I agree that social workers should be well educated on how to counsel and help those who have served in the military. I think that it would be helpful for someone who has been in the military and gotten treatment and have recovered from their mental health disorders to, if they are able and willing, teach social workers on what was helpful and what wasn’t. Really good job on your blog, way to finish the semester strong!
Danni Reuter
I agree that would be a good idea for the military to give some special training course or something to help educate people in the social work field. I’m actually pretty surprised that the military doesn’t employ their own social workers.
Devin Gittlein
I agree that military members should have a good support system to help them integrate back into civilian life. There are not many people close to me that have been in the military, but there have been people in my life who’ve been diagnosed with PTSD and that makes you feel far away from the rest of the world, let alone all the other things that come along with being a service member. I think that your blog was well written, and I liked the images that you included. I had been reading about military assistance within the different levels of social work, and I think that that is a good way to help break up all of the things social workers can do to help service members. I read that, on a micro level, awareness of military structure such as rank, branches, active duty/reserve/National Guard is essential, on top of all of the other cultural factors that come along with being a member of our society. On a mezzo level, educating the community on supporting the service members in their lives and on the resources available for transitional periods (deployment, relocation, reintegration) is beneficial. To help on a macro level, advocating for systemic changes addressing military needs and to overall focus on the “active duty family,” not only the one member of the family that is active duty. I thought that the point you addressed about social and emotional challenges manifesting through associated behaviors was something that is good to keep in mind, as it isn’t something that I frequently think about.
Mindy Haley
Given your family’s history of military service, I wonder whether you have ever had discussions about emerging acceptance of mental healthcare for servicemembers over the years. I get the sense that things are improving somewhat, but a generational comparison would be really interesting.
When my brother-in-law was deployed for the third time in 2019 I spent some time with my sister and her young children. I wanted to help ease her loneliness and stress of being essentially a single parent of 3 children under the age of 7. While I was there, I was pleased to learn of some of the support they received while he was away to ease some of their burden: free hourly childcare for her kids (she was allotted a certain number of hours each month to use at her discretion) at the childcare facility on post; monthly gatherings of spouses and children for the deployed unit to facilitate peer support and reduce isolation; care packages for the children that included workbooks that explained deployment in an age-appropriate way and prompted kids to do things like write letters to their deployed parent (I think they had a page per day, and workbooks were sent out monthly); in-school counseling for the children on a semi-regular basis; phone trees and established plans to pass on critical information that couldn’t be shared on social media or through newsletters.
While the support they received didn’t solve every problem, I found myself somewhat impressed by the thoughtfulness of the offerings. After reflecting on this, and reading about military social work, I wonder who established these programs and how widespread they are. I also wonder how they may vary depending on branch, rank, geographic location, etc.
Danni Reuter
You know I haven’t had that discussion with them. My brother is still very active in the military due to his rank, even though he is in the reserves. I know he helps out a lot with other members where he can but that’s definitely a conversation we should have.
Joshua Escobedo
Hi Danni,
I found your blog to be quite intriguing. I often contemplate the accuracy of statistics when reading them, reminding myself that even if the data collection follows all required procedures, it may still fall short of providing an accurate representation. Your perspective on deployments resonates with me, and I agree that they can be exceptionally challenging.
Despite the intentions behind MHAT III, I can attest that during the years 2004-2006, deployments were more demanding compared to later years. For instance, on my initial deployment in 2006, I had to wait in line for approximately an hour to use the phone to call home. In contrast, during my most recent deployment in 2017, I could video chat from my cell phone. While this may appear to be a simple variable, the significance of being able to communicate with loved ones easily in these challenging times cannot be overstated.
Danni Reuter
The ability to reach out to your family is huge, especially for marriage and maintaining that connection. I also think that children being able to be in contact with their parent probably makes a big difference in how they deal with their absence. I’m glad there was that at least. It’s hard to believe we have been sending soldiers over there that long.
Katherine LeBlanc
Hi Danni, this was a great blog. It can be a hard topic to tackle but you did it well. I really appreciate your first paragraph where you say that regardless of our beliefs, we should support military members. I absolutely agree, and it goes beyond just military members. I believe that as social workers our personal beliefs should not be put ahead of prioritizing our purpose of helping people. Regardless of if they are military, of their religion, race, if they struggle with substance abuse or mental health, they are all people and deserve help and resources when they need it.
With that said, being in the military can be hard for a lot of people. I’m glad that the culture in the military is shifting away from hiding your problems and feelings instead of asking for help. Things such as deployment, relocation, injury, the mental and physical requirements, can all make it incredibly stressful for some. As social workers it is important that we understand the struggles that service members and their families go through so we can properly assess and help them.