FAYETTEVILLE — The mental health issues of veterans from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are driving an expansion of staff at the local veterans hospital.
In recent weeks, officials from the Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks have begun filling 25 new positions for mental health clinicians and staff. It's part of a national effort to increase access and cut wait times for veterans in need of help.
The new positions at the Fayetteville medical center near College Avenue and North Street include 21 psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, social workers and peer workers along with four additional support staff for clerical work. The hospital hopes to fill most of the positions by the end of the year, said Susan Hansen, public affairs officer for the center.
"The demand is access," Hansen said. "What we really want to do is provide access to all veterans, particularly the ones
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returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. They're coming back and they're having a lot of mental health care needs."
As part of a government-funded push to increase mental health services to veterans, the Central Arkansas Veterans Health Care System headquartered in Little Rock also will hire 18 clinicians and staff.
In Northwest Arkansas, government money will pay for the salaries of the new employees, Hansen said.
The nature of modern warfare is shaping the demand for mental health services across the nation, said Lori Holyfield, a University of Arkansas associate professor of sociology who specializes in veterans and mental health.
"In urban warfare, more soldiers are living through injuries that would have killed them 20 years ago," Holyfield said.
BY THE NUMBERS
Outpatient Visits
The number of outpatient visits since 2009 at the Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks in Fayetteville has increased.
2009: 31,097
2010: 40,628
2011: 42,146
Source: Veteran's Health Care System Of The Ozarks
That leads to increased mental health issues such as depression, substance abuse and anxiety, she said.
The Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks provides veterans in Northwest Arkansas, southwest Missouri and eastern Oklahoma with specialized care. In addition to the Fayetteville center, which includes a hospital and outpatient facilities, the system includes six community outpatient clinics in Fort Smith, Harrison and Ozark in Arkansas, Branson and Mount Vernon in Missouri and one facility in Jay, Okla.
The center employs 67 mental health clinicians and 13 support staff. The 25 additional employees will provide both inpatient and outpatient services, Hansen said.
"We deal with veterans every day and we're seeing more and more patients," she said.
Between fiscal 2009 and 2011, the medical center saw a 35 percent increase in outpatient visits, from 31,097 to 42,146. Likewise, the number of individual veterans treated at the center increased 8.4 percent from 4,007 to 4,345.
The number of veterans enrolled to receive treatment in the facility has steadily increased through the same years, from 44,709 in 2009 to 47,541 in 2011, according to figures Hansen provided.
The general veteran population in Northwest Arkansas was estimated to be more than 40,000 in Northwest Arkansas in 2011, Hansen said. Several thousand veterans outside of Northwest Arkansas choose to come to the area for services.
Stele James, veteran service officer for Benton County, said the stabilizing effect created in the area as a result of increased mental health clinicians is important for the veteran population.
"We're keeping these people alive by addressing the medicine and counseling services they need," James said.
Other mental health centers in Northwest Arkansas have seen veteran patients as the demand continues to increase.
Sharon Nelson of Nelson Counseling in Rogers said veterans make up a small number of the people they treat. The addition in mental health staff for the Fayetteville medical center will be good for the industry, she said.
"We're glad for the attention in mental health," Nelson said. "It's giving awareness to the need, awareness that it's OK to get help."
Nelson offers counseling, therapy and addiction treatment to individuals and their families.
Post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, anxiety, depression and relationship issues are among the most common problems veterans face after returning from warfare, said Tom Petrizzo, chief executive officer for Ozark Guidance.
Ozark Guidance, a counseling, educational and rehabilitation mental health center, has several locations across Arkansas, including Springdale, Fayetteville, Bentonville, Siloam Springs, Rogers, Huntsville and Berryville.