Veterans Mental Health Summit on tap Thursday

Aug. 06--A full day of programs and information to help veterans, their families and the community is on tap Thursday.

It will all be happening at the fourth annual Veterans Administration Mental Health Summit, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday at the Kerrville Veterans Administration Medical Center auditorium, 3600 Memorial Blvd., sponsored by the South Texas Veterans Health Care System.

The summit is meant to bring together key stakeholders in the community to enhance veterans' access to all aspects of mental health.

"It's really addressing mental health and it provides an opportunity to sustain and enhance the working relationships we've built over the past three summits," said Dr. Denise Herbst, program manager for the Kerrville VA Medical Center's mental health program.

The day will include a review of the third annual summit in 2015, as well as several informational sessions on aspects of mental health care.

The first session, "My VA Access," from 9:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m., will explore ways in which veterans can find and use mental health services through the Kerrville VA Hospital, Herbst said.

"It'll be about getting into the mental health care system and how it can help them," she said.

That includes outpatient mental health services at the Kerrville facility and at the Audie Murphy VA Medical Center in San Antonio, which houses the psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery center, an outpatient learning center supporting recovery and integration into the community for veterans with mental illness and severe functional impairment.

The second session, from 10:30 to 11:15 a.m., deals with suicide prevention for veterans, including services both within and outside of the VA system, Herbst said.

The third session, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., will detail local mental health services for veterans and their families, Herbst said. She encouraged those with organizations providing mental health services to attend and share what resources they offer.

"That's really going to be what we hope is a really rich discussion on VA and non-VA mental health resources," Herbst said.

Anyone wishing to attend and offer information may do so, but Herbst encouraged those from such organizations to call.

To learn more, visit My HealtheVet, www.myhealth.va.gov, which allows veterans access to health care information, or call Herbst at 792-2451.

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