December 2014The Dog Squad

www.youngdiggers.com.au

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What’s in this edition?President’s report 2Whiskey 3Bathurst Correctional Centre graduates four new dogs 4F100 Project 7Introducing Heidi 9Bonfire Chiro & Hot Yoga 10Drive for Diggers 12Dog Squad SEQ 14Useful contacts Sponsors 18Sponsors 19A new partner for the Dog Squad 24Invisible wounds of war 26Killology 32How to join the Dog Squad 35Welfare & Pensions Report 36

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President’s reportDECEMBER 2014

Firstly, it is with great sadness that I would like to inform the Young Diggers family that one of our Bathurst assistance dogs, Whiskey, passed away last month. Our condolences to his family.

Whiskey

Young diggers is still expanding at an alarming rate and I thank our loyal team for all of their hard work in helping this happen. Our directors, Peter, Angela, Steve, Cindy and myself take this opportunity to wish all of our members a merry Christmas and Happy new year.

Our new National dog squad coordinator, Heidi, is also our secretary and is doing a really top job. Kerry, our financial controller has just come on board and is already making a difference. Director Cindy, is processing new dog squad applications and is doing really great. Director of young diggers K9’s Steve is putting together a range of training videos for our website which we are really looking forward to. Penny, our coordinator in Townsville, has just represented us at a golf day in Townsville sponsored by the Port of Townsville authority and they raised $15,000 for the day. Well done.

Carol has just become our Victorian dog squad coordinator and we are looking forward to big things happening there.

Young diggers is looking at an opportunity to open an office in Townsville in January. This office would do DVA claims and run our many programs, we are really looking forward to this going forward.

Our Drive 4 Diggers program was launched last Wednesday and John Nolan and Becci and the team are getting ready for their first excursion into regional Australia to help troops and their families.

We are now waiting for the arrival, from America, the tray for our 1963 F Truck. It is expected any day now so there is some excitement about it’s arrival.

Operation Stone Pillow was held at the VVAA Remembrance House last month and was a resounding success. Some of our members attended and spoke very highly of the occasion.

Thank you all for a great year.

John Jarrett,president

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The Attorney General and Minister for Justice Mr Brad Hazzard, MP, personally handed over our latest graduates - Lexi, Jakey, Laney and Ed on 3rd September.

Inmates participating in the ‘Dogs for Diggers’ Program are carefully selected – they are dedicated to training their dogs and are proud

to donate them to such worthy recipients. By caring for and training unwanted, mistreated dogs the inmates who participate in the program gain new skills and a strong sense of responsibility and purpose which will help them to better re-integrate with society upon their release.

Jakey’ with the Attorney General, inmate Chris, Paul Toole, MP, Margot & her son

Bathurst Correctional Centre proudly handed over four highly trained therapy dogs to Young Diggers Recipients in September. A special ‘Handing Over’ ceremony was held to mark the 2nd Anniversary of the ‘Dogs for Diggers’ Program.

Bathurst Correctional Centre graduates four new dogs

‘Laney’ demonstrates walking beside a wheelchair

The ‘Dogs for Diggers’ Program started in September 2012 in partnership with Young Diggers and has donated 30 dogs to young veterans in this time. The program is continuing to help diggers and inmates while also saving dogs from death row.

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These highly trained dogs assist diggers in many different and individual ways. They can break down barriers of isolation and loneliness, restore confidence and help improve psychological, emotional and physical injuries.

‘Lexi’ demonstrates her ‘blocking’ skills when a stranger is approaching her handler

We will soon graduate another five dogs from the ‘Dogs for Diggers’ Program. We encourage any diggers who may be in need of help and support to contact John Jarret if they are interested in adopting one of our graduating dogs in the future.

‘Ed’ is handed over to his digger

Lexi, Ed and Jakey wait patiently for their turn in the spotlight during the graduation ceremony

Thank you to the Young Diggers and MARS Petcare for their on-going support for the ‘Dogs for Diggers’ Program.

F100 ProjectThank you to those who worked

on the F truck, sanding it back to bare metal and painting the chassis black. Though we said it would be finished by November, that’s not going to happen unfortunately — we’re now aiming for Anzac Day 2015. We’ve found some major rust in the cab and are in the process of cutting her apart and rebuilding individual panels.

The remainder of the truck is coming together gradually. The engine is prepped and ready to go back in as soon as we find bearings for the front axle. It might mean some early mornings and a few late nights to come — love the work Colin!

— Adonis Habchi

The Ute’s going so I should be in more often, so if you’re not doing anything on a Tuesday or Thurs-day between 10am and 2pm come down to the bunker and lend a hand as there’s always some sanding to be done, we’re all learning as we go along, or just come in and say hi. If there are any panel beaters out there who would like to lend a hand or de-part some knowledge you’re always welcome. Tank is with me soaking up the air con. So until next time have a nice day.

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Have you or a family member ever served in the Australian or New Zealand Defence Forces? Do you need someone on your side who will listen and to talk to? Have you or a family member ever been injured — not just physically — whilst in the service? Our mission is to help you and your family make informed choices to enhance and maintain quality of life.

Our purposeIt’s simple. Too many serving

and ex-serving personnel and their families have difficulties coping with the stresses and fall-out of military service. Our purpose is to provide you with the help you need.

Our focusOur motto is ‘It’s about YOU’.

It is important to recognise you are and always will be a valued member of our community, irrespective of your injuries and experiences you have endured. We are completely committed to providing exceptional help and advice. Our speciality is information and support and education — it is our core focus. We provide a personalised and professional information, support and training services, with ‘quick results’ and ‘keeping you informed’ being our main objective.

We have an in-house Pensions Officer and a national network of pensions and advocacy contacts who can assist you with assessing and reviewing your entitlements, we have registered trainers in mental health care for families for free.

You are not alone!We will listen and provide you

and your family with information and assistance, so you can make informed choices about today and for your future, which will ultimately lead to securing and maintaining quality of life.

Our difference� We are innovative!� We listen!� We take action!

With your approval and assistance, we will investigate and pursue issues raised in an attempt to enhance your quality of life or right any wrongs.

We closely scrutinise government agendas and act as your voice to ensure welfare, pension and advocacy services and entitlements are maintained and also improved for the future.

IT'S NOT ABOUT US — IT’S ABOUT YOU

Introducing HeidiHi everyone my name is Heidi Youle and I am the newest

recruit to Young Diggers behind the scene team. My family and I have breed, trained and shown dogs for 20 years and looking forward to the exciting times ahead. I have been appointed as the secretary and also the national training co ordinator so at sometime I’m sure our paths will cross. The team have been working hard over the last couple of weeks to put procedures and structure in place so you will see some changes filter through. One of our directors Leanne Kyle will be updating the website and we will be having all the National Training times and locations listed. So stay tuned for the updates.

Heidi YouleSecretary &National Training Co-Ordinator

National Training Co-Ordinator

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My husband and I see Dr Stew once a week for chiropractic adjustments at Bonfire Jindalee. We have been attending there since February this year and it has been amazing.

When I last wrote about Bonfire my husband and I had only been going to Dr Stew for less then a few months, even back then we gushed about how wonderful they were to us. Not once were we ever made to feel uncomfortable, even Bonza (our assistance dog) was welcomed with such warm positive energy that it became one of my husband’s safe places.

Now when we first started my husband was not too keen on the idea of seeing a Chiropractor, I myself wasn’t sure what it was all about. Now eight months on we couldn’t picture our lives without Dr Stew or the rest of the Bonfire gang.

I have learnt so much form the Bonfire team, they have shown me a way to improve my life without it feeling like a drastic change. I have more energy and feel positive. The last three years I’ve struggled with weight loss and since June this year

Bonfire Chiro & Hot YogaI’ve lost almost 10kg and kept it off. Even my husband (who is very much a typical man) is willing to give hot yoga ago. It is amazing and I feel amazing.

Dr Stew came down to the bunker on his day off to help support my husband and his Drive for Diggers project. Dr Stew got to meet and chat with the President of Young diggers about his work and how he can help other Young Diggers like my husband and myself. Dr Stew was even able to chat to some of the guys so they could get to know him better; it was wonderful to be able to share our experiences with them too.

Next week we start hot yoga, which has had some great studies done on how it can help with those who suffer from PTSD and stress. I am very excited. Also we are planning on getting Dr Stew back to the bunker again soon, for another chat to those who would like to learn more about what chiropractic work is and what it might be able to do for you. Please keep your eyes peeled on the Young Diggers facebook page for more information on when Dr Stew will be visiting.

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I returned from my third deployment in 2013, this one was to Afghan for nearly 8 months; everything was going fine until I had to return to work after my leave. My wife noticed some pretty severe changes in me, so she tried contacting a few different organisations to get me help and the only one that wanted or was willing to help was Young Diggers.

After speaking with the founder he suggested an assistance dog; we were willing to try anything at that stage, so in December 2013 we were granted the opportunity to take on Bonza, I can recall one event when I had only had Bonza a couple of weeks and I had hit a pretty dark patch when suicide was contemplated, and if it wasn’t for Bonza walking over and just looking up at me with those big brown eyes, that might have been the night that I left my wife a widow and my kids without a father. A lot of people that we speak to say that they would love to have his life because he does get spoilt, but I can also say that he works as hard as any other family member.

I was out with the founder of

Drive for Diggersyoung diggers doing a bit of a talk about the dogs to a small group of people. Afterwards, me and a mate, (he also has an assistance dog) decided to go to a cafe bakery for some lunch. They didn’t want us in there with the dogs even though they were assistance dogs. We were shocked and our anxiety begun to peak as we both got quite annoyed. It was only a week or so prior in which our nation had lost 4 or 5 returned vets to suicide. So both my mate and I decided that something needed to be done.

We came up with the idea of driving around Australia to bring awareness to defence suicides, PTSD/combat stress and the assistance dog program. This way we could not only educate people but hopefully meet other returned service people who were struggling too. After many discussions we thought it would be great to make it a challenge, my wife coming up with the idea of an old ambulance as our vehicle. A week or so later, we had our 1973 F100 ambulance thanks to Young Diggers who took on idea and helped us make it into a project. From there the

restoration begun, as we worked to get the ambulance running.

Beginning of October we were told about Operation Stone Pillow (helping veterans get off the street), which Young Diggers hoped to have the ambulance attend, as it’s first event. We raced to get the ambulance running smoothly. Not worrying to much about the fact that the back of the ambulance had been stripped almost bare. Our focus was one getting the old girl running and after nearly ten days straight of around the clock work she was running and road worthy.

Things didn’t go as planned however as the ambulance made it’s way to the Event we in counted not one but two flat tyres and had to limp back to a mates house so we could jump into his Ute and carry on to the event. It was great to do the sleep over though we felt sad that the ambulance didn’t make the journey.

Now it’s been a few weeks since then and we have moved forward, the Ambulance is slowly getting covered in stickers from wonderful business who want to support us and what we

are trying to achieve, along with great young diggers and Drive for Diggers stickers. We still have a long way to go but I am glad we are doing this. Hopefully you will see us around.

We would like to thank the guys down at Auto 1 Browns Plains for helping us find parts for the Ambulance, the guys at Inhouse Print and Design for the great stickers, Matt for the wielding and help to get her running, Addo for helping us get her running, Caine Classroom for being so supportive and helping spread the word, Bonfire Chiropractic and yoga for keeping me running smoothly and the wonderful support. Also we would like the thank all the Young Diggers family for their on-going support and to those who like our page and keep encouraging us with likes and messages of support. It really does make a difference!

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First, let me start by saying hi and welcome to our new members, our numbers are steadily growing and it is good to see so many new and fresh faces joining our charity, supporting our cause and helping us raise awareness.

Next id like to thank family, friends

and the wonderful members of the community, that have given up their valuable time and effort to help raise funds for this amazing program, allowing it to grow and support our struggling members of the defence force.

A thank you goes out to Matt

Tolson, who has personally taken it

upon his shoulder and stepped up to open a canine Qstore for us, which will be both self sustaining and raise money for the dog squad. It will also allow us to purchase cheap food and supplies.

A special mention has to go out

to Dave our head trainer for SEQ, from Canine Classrooms, who has recently completed his Public Access Testing Certification and now can fully accredit our dogs the whole way through the program. Dave is an awesome trainer and is amazing with the soldiers, his patience with us and our canine companions is endless. Thank you and congrats Dave.

Dog Squad SEQ

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One final mention has to go to Kym Melzer, a wonderful photographer who has come on board with our cause and has helped us putting together photos for the mag and a calendar.

Now that all of the mentions are out the way, a thank you goes to all of our members who have been patient and considerate with us through out this year, we have had our ups and down and I know at times it seemed like we were taking two steps back for every one forward. But as you can imagine turning this charity from a bunch of guys struggling to make ends meet in to a fully functioning self-sustaining charity is by no easy feat.

Anthony JonesSEQ Dog Squad Manager

Having said that 2015 is looking amazing for us, starting with getting as many dogs fully qualified with their public ceritifcation as possible, to a full weekend long reunion for the entire Young Diggers Membership. We are also endevouring to try and get a more family orientated feeling back down at the bunker by having fortnightly bbqs on the Wednesdays and are inviting as many people as possible down. Feel free to come down and join us.

All in all it has been a wonderful year and we can not wait to crack into next year. thank you to every one and as always, keep an eye out on our website and facebook pages for up coming events and training days.

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The demand for Assistance Dogs is growing and the Young Diggers Dog Squad is growing rapidly to meet this need, so the Foundation wants to lend a helping hand. Over the next 2 years, we are going to help by raising funds through Dog Sponsorships, fundraising events, on bases and at Defence Bank branches to pay for the training of more dogs. This will allow Young Diggers to help more soldiers and their families.

About The Defence Bank Foundation

The Defence Bank Foundation is an independent charity (separate to Defence Bank’s operations). It was established to help injured, wounded and disadvantaged serving and former Australian Defence Force members and their families. Our

primary beneficiary is The Young Diggers Dog Squad.

Our aim is to complement and enhance the support already provided to current and ex-serving personnel and families by the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and other major charities currently supporting the Defence Community.

The Defence Bank Foundation and Young Diggers partnership

The Foundation chose the Young Diggers Dog Squad as our primary beneficiary because it is a highly effective project benefiting both Defence members and their families.

The Defence Bank Foundation’s role is to help the Dog Squad raise much needed funds through donations and Dog Sponsorships.

A new partner for the Dog SquadThe Defence Bank Foundation is proud to announce our new partnership with the Young Diggers Dog Squad.

Dog SponsorshipsDo you know a group

or a business that would be interested in Sponsoring a Young Diggers Dog Squad dog?

It costs $2,500 to rescue and train a dog to become an Assistance Dog and John Jarrett and his team at Young Diggers are aiming to train up to 300 more dogs over the next 2 years. So, we are going to need a lot more dog sponsors.

Dog Sponsorship Application Forms and full details are available at: defencebankfoundation.com.au or email: lkyle@dbfoundation.com.au

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Nearly 20 per cent of military service members who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan - 300,000 in all (in the USA) - report symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder or major depression, yet only slightly more than half have sought treatment, according to a

new RAND Corporation study.

In addition, researchers found about 19 per cent

of returning service members report

Invisible wounds of war

that they experienced a possible traumatic brain injury while deployed, with seven per cent reporting both a probable brain injury and current PTSD or major depression.

Many service members said they do not seek treatment for psychological illnesses because they fear it will harm their careers.

But even among those who do seek help for PTSD or major depression, only about half receive treatment that researchers consider ‘minimally adequate’ for their illnesses. In the first analysis of its kind, researchers estimate that PTSD and depression among returning service members will cost the nation as much as $6.2 billion (in the USA) in the two years following deployment — an amount that includes both direct medical care and costs for lost productivity and suicide. Investing in more high-quality treatment could save close to $2 billion (in the USA) within two years by substantially reducing those indirect costs, the 500-page study concludes.

One in five Iraq and Afghanistan veterans suffer from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or major depression

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served in Iraq and Afghanistan to assess their psychological and cognitive injuries; economic modelling to estimate the cost not only of providing needed treatment, as well as the costs associated with lost productivity and suicide; and an assessment of treatment services that are available to service members, as well as barriers to treatment.

Researchers surveyed 1,965 service members from 24 communities across the country to assess their exposure to traumatic events and possible brain injury while deployed, evaluate current symptoms of psychological illness, and gauge whether they have received care for combat-related problems.

Service members reported exposure to a wide range of traumatic events while deployed, with half saying they had a friend who was seriously wounded or killed, 45 per cent reporting they saw dead or seriously injured non-combatants,

and over ten per cent saying they were injured themselves and required hospitalization.

Rates of PTSD and major depression were highest among Army soldiers and Marines, and among service members who were no longer on active duty (people in the reserves and those who had been discharged or retired from the military). Women, Hispanics and enlisted personnel all were more likely to report symptoms of PTSD and major depressions, but the single best predictor of PTSD and depression was exposure to combat trauma while deployed.

Researchers found many treatment gaps exist for those with PTSD and depression. Just 53 per cent of service members with PTSD or depression sought help from a provider over the past year, and of those who sought care, roughly half got minimally adequate treatment.

There is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan, said Terri Tanielian, the project’s co-leader and a researcher at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for the nation. Unfortunately, we found there are many barriers preventing them from getting the high-quality treatment they need.

The findings are from the first large-scale, nongovernmental assessment of the psychological and cognitive needs of military service members who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past six years. The RAND study is the first to comprehensively assess the current needs of returned service members from all branches of the military.

Researchers concluded that a major national effort is needed to expand and improve the capacity of

the mental health system to provide effective care to service members and veterans. The effort must include the military, veteran and civilian health care systems, and should focus on training more providers to use high-quality, evidence-based treatment methods and encouraging service members and veterans to seek needed care.

Since October 2001, about 1.6 million US troops have deployed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with many exposed to prolonged periods of combat-related stress or traumatic events. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of the deployments may be disproportionately high compared with physical injuries.

Tanielian and project co-leader Lisa Jaycox headed a group of 25 RAND researchers who conducted a three-pronged assessment of the needs of returning service members: a national survey of those who had

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and performance measurement techniques.

Researchers suggest special training programmes are needed to instruct mental health providers in the military, veterans and civilian health systems about the type of evidence-based treatments needed by service members. Only providers with such training should be eligible to treat service members and payment programs should be retooled to reward providers who use science-based treatments.

It’s going to take system-level changes - not a series of small band-aids - to improve treatments for these illnesses, Tanielian said.

The RAND study estimates the societal costs of PTSD and major depression for two years after deployment range from about $6,000 to more than $25,000 per case (in the USA). Depending whether the economic cost of suicide is included, the RAND study estimates the total society costs of the conditions for two years range from $4 billion to $6.2 billion (in the USA).

The RAND study also estimates that about 320,000 service members

may have experienced a traumatic brain injury during deployment - the term used to describe a range of injuries from mild concussions to severe penetrating head wounds. Just 43 per cent reported ever being evaluated by a physician for that injury.

While most civilian traumatic brain injuries are mild and do not lead to long-term impairments, the extent of impairments that service members experience and whether they require treatment is largely unknown, researchers said. In the absence of a medical examination and prognosis, however, service members may believe that their post-deployment difficulties are due to head injuries even when they are not.

One-year estimates of the societal cost associated with treated cases of mild traumatic brain injury range up to $32,000 per case, while estimates for treated moderate to severe cases range from $268,000 to more than $408,000. Estimates of the total one-year societal cost of the roughly 2,700 cases of traumatic brain injury identified to date range from $591 million to $910 million (in the USA).

If PTSD and depression go untreated or are under treated, there is a cascading set of consequences,Jaycox said. Drug use, suicide, marital problems and unemployment are some of the consequences. There will be a bigger societal impact if these service members go untreated. The consequences are not good for the individuals or society in general.

Service members report many reasons for not seeking treatment. Many are worried about the side effects of medication or believe that family and friends can provide more help than a mental health professional. Even more reported that they worried seeking care might damage their career or cause their peers to lose confidence in their abilities.

The RAND report recommends the military create a system that would allow service members to receive mental health services confidentially in order to ease concerns about negative career repercussions.

We need to remove the institutional cultural barriers that discourage soldiers from seeking care, Tanielian said. Just because someone is getting mental health care does not

mean that they are not able to do their job. Seeking mental health treatment should be seen as a sign of strength and interest in getting better, not a weakness. People need to get help as early as possible, not only once their symptoms become severe and disabling.

Researchers also found an urgent need to train more mental health providers throughout the US health care system on delivering evidence-based treatments to service members and veterans. While many opportunities for treatment exist for active-duty personnel, there is no system in place to monitor the quality of those services to ensure they are getting the latest science-based forms of treatment.

The Department of Defence’s (USA) newly created Defence Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury may provide a historic opportunity to change the culture of psychological health within the military and to promote and monitor the use of high-quality care to service members. The RAND report provides information that the center could use to pursue these objectives through the use of innovative care models

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Killology

Human horror about one to one violence is very deep. Soldiers have to be taught how to kill and it’s something many can never learn. And so are themselves killed. For survivors, the psychological scars remain ingrained. And yet, through violent videos we are training children much as we train soldiers. Behavioural scientists are now very interested in what is being called, believe it or not, Killology.

by LTC David Grossman

At a conference in Canberra in 1999, Colonel David Grossman spoke about ‘Killology’, a term he coined to describe his work in behavioural science as it relates to human combat. Grossman has worked within the military establishment and with law enforcement groups and he’s written on the effects of violent video games on children. His book, ‘On Killing’ has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

Colonel Grossman began by telling the conference that in every war this century, the US military has had more psychiatric casualties than physical casualties, and to understand why the psychiatric toll has been greater than the physical, we need to understand what is happening on the battlefield.

Napoleon said that on the battlefield, the moral is to the physical as three is to one. That is the psychological factors are three times more important than the physical factor. If you think you’re going to win a war by pounding somebody to death, you have missed the essence of it. You do not defeat the enemy, you defeat their minds. How do you do that? That’s what we need to understand. We need to understand the dynamics.

For those of us who have been in the situation of having to do this, it has been a most harrowing experience and not one that is relished, however necessary it may be - and many emotional scars are part of the aftermath.

We in the Defence Forces have a particularly nasty business to conduct, and dealing with this through assisatnce from our peers and comrades, our families, our leaders and commanders, provides a depth of understanding to help us guide others - particulalry our children - to consider the options before embarking on any choice of action that will involve killing.

Published with kind permission of LTC David Grossman, through LTCOL Bob de Haas, RAInf, Officer Cadet School Portsea Alumni.Further information: Killology Research Group Consultancy company of LTC David Grossman:http://www.killology.comThe National Centre for War-related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder The National Centre was established to respond to the clinical challenge of PTSD in Australian veterans and Defence Force personnel.http://www.ncptsd.unimelb.edu.au/

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HOW TO JOIN THE DOG SQUAD

Email john@youngdiggers.com.au giving your service details and a scanned copy of your doctors or phsycs recommendation, if they believe that adog would be of benefit to your well being.

Training a dog to become a companion or assistance dog is a two-year commitment at least, and advancement is assisted by having the appropriate age and breed of the dog.

Dogs of 8 months old to a maximum of 2 years are the best age for training; young enough to learn new things, old enough for us to gauge the dog’s personality.

Should a dog not be accepted into this training programme or applicants do not have access to a dog, contact should be made to The Dog Squad as they will assist with sourcing a suitable breed of the right age, and give advice prior to making a decision on a dog.

The Dog Squad is a new initiative, and all participants have a shared responsibility to make this programme a success for the participants and all future Diggers, The Dog Squad operators retain the right to reject any dog that is not deemed suitable.

Finally be clear about the reason for the dog. It is to assist you control, overcome and cope with your combat stress. This is a huge task for a four-pawed colleague. Do not expect more from the dog by thinking it will be good for breeding, showing, hunting, fighting, macho image maker, and other ideas you may have for the dog. It is a dog not a wonder drug; it will try and do everything you ask, but do not destroy your bond by expecting too much.

How to join the Dog Squad

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Since our last news letter welfare and pensions section has been very busy. The number of people seeking assistance with their claims to the Department of Veteran’s affairs has increased.

We have also been very active in the legal side of things. There are a steady stream of service men who have been charged with offences relating to alcohol and drug use and causing problems for the police. They are charged and bought before the courts when what is needed is to get them the correct treatment with a psychiatrist who understands the difference between civilian PTSD and military caused PTSD. These problems are generally a direct result of their war service.

Welfare & Pensions Report We have been to court to explain

to the judges why our service men drink to excess and take drugs and then offer the court a solution to the problem instead of doing goal time we offer to get them into hospital and on the correct medication. We have a very high success rate with these people.

Hopefully in the new year we will have our mobile office up and running. This will allow us to travel to isolated country areas through out Australia to help those who have gone bush and require help with their claims to DVA.

Peter WaltersSenior Welfare and Pensions OfficerMob: 0416 108 450