Former candidate makes Senate submission
Pearl Beach resident and independent candidate in the 2016 Federal Election, Mr Van Davy made a submission to the Senate inquiry into veterans and Australian Defence Force personnel suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
In the submission Dr Davy stated that the lack of a Department of Veterans Affairs branch at Gosford, bureaucratic tangles, medical assessments, poor educational and transitional support services, social isolation and insufficient pensions were turning veterans suffering the disorder into homeless men and women with bleak futures.
Dr Davy's submission proposed strategies including better medical services, guaranteed retraining, low-cost housing, the employment of former defence force personnel by the Department of Veterans Affairs and a public inquiry into the department's processes.
Dr Davy said better bulk-billed medical centres and services were needed for self-referral, diagnosis and support.
Guaranteed TAFE, university or vocational training for veterans or similar re-training or re-skilling program for successful reintegration into civilian life were also needed, he said.
He said independently-managed Government-funded low-cost housing could be provided to affected veterans.
He called for the Department of Veterans Affairs to be staffed with "as many ex-ADF personnel as possible".
Dr Davy recommended that education, independent counselling and medical centres, and guaranteed security be at the core of policy.
He said a branch of the department should be established immediately in Gosford.
He suggested the terms of reference for a public enquiry into the management of the department include: "The need to reform and simplify DVA processing of veterans' claims; the need to provide a better model for rapid diagnosis, rapid access to counselling, medical, and rehabilitation care required by ill veterans; and the need to restructure departmental structures and procedures to ensure prompt delivery of care to veterans."
Documents, 8 Oct 2016
Dr Van Davy, Pearl Beach