title: Partnering with communities to address the mental health needs of rural veterans.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Many veterans who face mental illness and live in rural areas never obtain the mental health care they need. To address these needs, it is important to reach out to community stakeholders who are likely to have frequent interactions with veterans, particularly those returning from Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF).
  
  
  METHODS
  Three community stakeholder groups-clergy, postsecondary educators, and criminal justice personnel-are of particular importance for OEF/OIF veterans living in rural areas and may be more likely to come into contact with rural veterans struggling with mental illness or substance abuse than the formal health care system. This article briefly describes the conceptualization, development, initial implementation, and early evaluation of a Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center-based program designed to improve engagement in, and access to, mental health care for veterans returning to rural areas.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One year since initial funding, 90 stakeholders have attended formal training workshops (criminal justice personnel = 36; educators = 31; clergy = 23). Two training formats (a 2-hour workshop and an intensive 2.5-day workshop) have been developed and provided to clergy in 1 rural county with another county scheduled for training. A veteran outreach initiative, which has received 32 referrals for various student services, has been established on 4 rural college campuses. A Veterans Treatment Court also has been established with 16 referrals for eligibility assessments.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  While this pilot program is in the early stages of evaluation, its success to date has encouraged program and VA clinical leadership to expand beyond the original sites.
authors.affiliation: United States Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Quality Enhancement Research Initiative, North Little Rock, Arkansas 72114, USA. kirchnerjoanne@uams.edu
authors.forename: JoAnn E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Kirchner
authors.forename: Mary Sue
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Farmer
authors.forename: Valorie M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Shue
authors.forename: Dean
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Blevins
authors.forename: Greer
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sullivan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001131:Arkansas; D002977:Clergy; D019058:Community Networks; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003416:Criminal Law; D005178:Faculty; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders; D008875:Middle Aged; D016730:Program Development; D012424:Rural Population; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult