WASHINGTON — The American Psychological Association called for funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs to support psychological research, recruit and retain an adequate workforce of qualified mental health professionals and construct and maintain research facilities.
“As the largest provider of training for psychologists, the VA also plays a vital role in equipping the mental health workforce to provide culturally competent and integrated mental health services to veterans and their families,” Heather O’Beirne Kelly, PhD, APA’s director of veterans’ and military health policy, testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies.
Specifically, APA, as part of the Friends of VA Medical and Health Research coalition, urged Congress to provide $713 million in fiscal 2018 for VA medical and prosthetic research.
“A strong VA psychological research program provides the scientific foundation for high-quality care within the VA system, particularly for suicide prevention efforts and for veterans suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, substance abuse, and aging-related and other disorders requiring physical and psychosocial rehabilitation,” said Kelly. “We have better treatments now because of prior investments in VA intramural research, and we desperately need to further advance our knowledge of these signature wounds of war to alleviate veterans’ suffering and help them regain lives of purpose and joy.”
APA also encouraged the subcommittee to provide at least $50 million for up to five major construction projects in VA research facilities and $175 million for nonrecurring maintenance and minor construction projects to address deficiencies identified in the independent VA research facilities review provided to Congress.
Additionally, APA asked Congress to enhance access, continuity and integration of mental health care in the VA; track and improve the quality of non-VA care; and address recruitment and retention challenges for VA psychologists.
“The VA, in the face of increasing demand for mental health care and recognized access difficulties in rural areas specifically, must remain a pioneer in the health care arena by allowing specially trained and certified psychologists to work at the full scope of their practice and to serve veterans with the expertise and dedication they employ in other government agencies and the private sector,” said Kelly.
The American Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA's membership includes nearly 115,700 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives.