VA Police, Social Workers Team Up to Prevent Veteran Suicide
VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System is putting into practice a vetted approach that couples a licensed clinical social worker with VA police officers when responding to calls for service involving a Veteran who is experiencing a mental health crisis or who are at risk.
The Veteran Mental Health Evaluation Team, or VMET, is expected to not only reduce use of force incidents and Veterans placed under arrest, but also reduce the number of Veteran suicides by increasing participation in mental health treatment.
While a recent study by VA shows suicides decreased among Veterans between 2019 and 2020, the issue continues to be a top priority for VA. Anywhere from 17 to 24 Veterans a day take their own lives, according to studies by VA and outside agencies. Most Veterans who committed suicide were not receiving services at VA.
Members of VMET are contacted by local law enforcement agencies, social workers in the community or healthcare providers to respond to a Veteran in need. Calls can range from a simple welfare check when a Veteran misses a medical appointment to the more life-threatening in the event a Veteran is threatening to hurt themselves or others.
“We’re meeting the Veteran where they are, both geographically and where they are emotionally at that moment,” said Capt. James “Dave” Harris, a sworn VA Police officer and supervisor of VMET for VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System. “We don’t refer to people as suspects, we refer to them as clients, using the language of the mental health world. It’s truly a partnership between the VA police and our clinical partners.”
Harris’ partners currently include an additional VA police Sergeant and a licensed clinical social worker with West LA VA. The team will expand in the coming weeks to include two additional officers, and two clinicians/social workers. Meanwhile, Harris is establishing partnerships with local law enforcement agencies, including the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, to expand coverage and hopefully help more Veterans.
West LA VA’s VMET program is rooted in the “Mayor’s Challenge to End Veterans Suicide,” an initiative spearheaded in 2017 by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to reduce suicides among service members, Veterans and their families using a public health approach.
Eight cities were selected to participate in the challenge including the County and City of Los Angeles because of the area’s sizable Veteran population and number of recorded suicides.
VMET members receive extensive training in crisis negotiation, de-escalation, and mental health evaluation, and run through various scenarios to prepare for real-world incidents. It helps that many VA Police officers also served in the Armed Forces and can more easily connect with those Veterans during a mental health episode. Harris, who served in the Army and the National Guard from 1993 to 2021, said he unfortunately sees former comrades struggling while on patrol at West LA VA.
“It’s become much more personal for me,” he said.
Harris said he too had some challenges returning to civilian life. Luckily for him he has a strong support system. He shares this story with the Veterans he connects with through VMET. It can be difficult for combat Veterans who have been trained to not exhibit emotion to embrace the reality that they are hurting and need help.
Others suffer from depression resulting from a feeling that they’re no longer of value to society. “While in combat zones many young soldiers were placed in leadership positions and charged with operating multi-million-dollar equipment, but once they returned home they’re told, ‘You’re just some 20-year-old kid. What do you know?’” Harris said.
While it’s his job to engage with Veterans and bring about a peaceful resolution, it’s up to his partner Angira Jhaveri, LCSW, to get the Veteran connected to services. As a training and education coordinator with West LA VA who has helped launch programs and has wealth of knowledge of VA systems, Jhaveri is the ideal person for the role, those around her said. She can investigate a Veteran’s medical history and relay useful information to officers, including techniques used in prior incidents that have resulted in a de-escalation without use of force.
“Having that ability, as a social worker, to really connect with people on a human level tends to calm things down a bit,” she said. “Social workers look at the person as a whole. Whomever it is, I meet them where they are. Our true value is knowing all the resources available at the VA, having the experience to understand which programs work in particular cases, and then knowing the people involved so these patients can get the help they need and follow up with them to ensure they’re staying on track.”
Jhaveri’s goal is to build a strong foundation for VMET that is rooted in solid data collection to bring about better outcomes and more resources for Veterans. Both Harris and Jhaveri understand the road ahead will be challenging, but the rewards are
well worth the effort.
“Our measure of success if restoring a life,” Harris said. “This is the most gratifying work I have ever done in my life.”
If you are a Veteran struggling with your mental health or someone who is supporting a Veteran in need, you are urged to contact the Veterans Crisis Line. Those in distress can dial 988, then press 1 to be connected to 24/7 support 365 days a year. Veterans, service members, National Guard and Reserve members, as well as those who support them can still dial (800) 273-8255 or text to 838255. You don’t have to be enrolled in VA benefits or health care to connect.