Understanding Military Veterans

Program Equips Law Enforcement and Clinicians with Tools to Understand Military Veterans

Veteran Experts Launch ‘Combat to Community’ Training.

"Our goal is not to give veterans a ‘get out of jail free card,’ but rather to make sure that the population is understood. Because veterans make up less than one percent of the population, there is often a lack of cultural competency"

July 20, 2010

More veterans are returning from duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, some struggling with transition to civilian life and the invisible wounds of war.

Swords to Plowshares’ new training program, Combat to Community, provides law enforcement personnel, clinicians and service providers with the resources they need to successfully work with the veteran population.

Combat to Community is designed to improve the ability of police officers and clinicians to work with young veterans with PTSD and other mental health disorders. In so doing, we hope to increase officers' ability to recognize veterans, maximize officers' safety and effectiveness when interacting with veterans, minimize critical incidents and poor outcomes, and increase officers' ability to direct veterans toward appropriate treatment rather than incarceration. In the clinical context, awareness of military and veteran culture and the realities of deployment improves communication between client and provider. Continued