Georgia Focus - Veterans Health

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:11):
Welcome to Georgia Focus. I'm John Clark on the Georgia
News Network. The Emory Healthcare Veterans Program reaches a milestone
anniversary this year, ten years dedicated to healing, growth, and
life chaining impact for the post nine to eleven veterans
and service members who are served. This year, this monsoring
the Emory Healthcare Veterans Program a concert later on this month,

(00:31):
November thirteenth, at seven pm at the Fernbank Museum. On
today's program, Sean Lewis, Lead Veteran Outreach Coordinator, and Jay
Budd Directory of Veterans Music Project talk about the program
Emory Healthcare Veterans Program coming up. Sean first, before we
get talk about the concert, talk about the Emory's Program
for Veterans. What are you doing to Emory.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
We are a program that was established in twenty fifteen
and we help veterans and service members who are battling
with PTSD traubatic brain injury, sexual trauma, anxiety, depression, in
related conditions, what we call the invisible wounds of service.
In that time frame, we have been able to help

(01:14):
over three thousand veterans, including bringing over thirteen hundred through
our two week accelerated Brain Health program where we can
cram in a full year's worth of treatment really just
in a two week period and we get phenomenal results.
We fall up with them for twelve months post treatment
to make sure they're maintaining their gains long term. Doesn't

(01:37):
make sense for somebody to come in for two weeks,
feel all great, and six months later they're back where
they were, so over eighty five percent or maintain their gains.
Twelve month follow up and everything we provide is completely
paid for. We're funded by the Winded Warrior Project and
by other generous em rednors, so we cover the cost

(01:57):
of treatment, cover the cost of transportation to get them
here from anywhere in the US Arts territories. We put
them up in a hotel for two weeks, cover meals, lodging.
Everything is paid for so they can focus one hundred
percent on their treatment, focus on getting better, getting back
to the life, getting back to their families in a
better place.

Speaker 1 (02:17):
And that's just for veterans and veterans of all. Any
veteran can come.

Speaker 2 (02:22):
To you right now. We are limited to post nine
eleven veterans funding sources, but we have treated pre nine
eleven the past, and hope to do as soon as
we in the future, as soon as we gain funding
for it. So if there's anyone out there looking for
funding for those veterans who are in need pre nine
to eleven, we're here. But right now, anyone who served

(02:43):
one day after September eleventh, two thousand and one, doesn't
matter if they're deployed or not, doesn't matter what their
discharge status is. We are able to see a lot
of veterans who are not able to access vacare because
of their discharge status. Maybe they had some administrative action
because of choices taken related to drinking, related to PTSD

(03:07):
that led to the dishonorable discharge or some other bad paper.
We're able to treat them. Also, I would say that
about twenty percent of the folks we serve are still
serving actiduty, and then about another five percent of Guard reserve,
so a quarter of the veterans we see are still serving.

(03:27):
So open up for those individuals as well and their families.

Speaker 1 (03:32):
Do you do you do hospitalizations if they need it
to or sing.

Speaker 2 (03:36):
Like that, We can if need to, If need be,
we do a pretty intensive screening before they come to
the program to make sure that they are ready and
in a good place to come through this treatment. Because
they come to us and our facility is an intensive
outpatient What that means is they come in, we have
them all morning, usually around eight am till five thirty

(03:58):
six thirty pm. We're just doing a lot of work.
But then they go back to the hotel room at night.
Uh So they have to be in a position where
they can be stable and they can be unsupervised in
the evenings. Uh So we do a really good job
screen for the compan working with them and if they're
not able to working with partners to get them Mabel

(04:19):
to We have relationships some great rehab clinics that that
help them folks who need that before they come to us.
But we do have registered nurse nurse practitioner on staff,
we have medical staff to we we do a health
assessment when they come in, look at their medical records,

(04:39):
look at their prescriptions, and if we need to escalate
to some of the resources we can.

Speaker 1 (04:46):
And now with the Emory Healthcare Veterance Program, here comes
Then's music project that it's a natural jay. It's a
really good fit. Yeah, so we're excited.

Speaker 3 (04:59):
We met Sean through our work with Ben Holst at
one hundred eight hundred East Studios and he came in.
He was there for one of our music videos from
a shot of music video in May, and we got
to know each other and then we found out about
their big awesome ten year anniversary when raising event coming

(05:24):
up in November, and so we started talking and we're like, hey,
what if we played some songs at the event. So
we're going to have our Veterans Music Project there as
one of their musical guests and we'll play a few
songs and it's I know, Sean will give you the details,
but it's going to be really exciting.

Speaker 1 (05:44):
It's in November, Sean, what'd you think we hear this
venous music Prize is coming.

Speaker 2 (05:48):
Oh, that's amazing.

Speaker 1 (05:49):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (05:49):
I actually saw them perform in Midtown I think it
was called Vinyl last year and it was really impressive.
Had a great time met Ben, then med Jay and
learned about the program. It's amazing program. I actually knew
some of the veterans who were going through it, so
those small world making those connections and yeah, getting to
see how the process, the video shoot, everything behind the

(06:13):
scenes was really cool and since then, we've referred it
to a lot of the veterans who come through our program.
So they come to us for two weeks, we make
great progress. They gain a lot of life skills, but
we want to give them tools and they're leaving the
program to stay connected, stay engaged. Outlets for communication and
for telling their story, and music is one of those,

(06:36):
you know, huge outlets. So it's a you know, phenomenal,
mutually beneficial relationship.

Speaker 1 (06:41):
So you've had to come in there and you refirm
to Veteranus Music Project. They come to you and they
learned to make music. They make music.

Speaker 3 (06:49):
Finally, it helps there's there's veterans that really can connect
with writing songs telling their stories through music. When with
the veterans we were with, sometimes they need a couple
of they need some help to get started in that
process because it can be a little daunting if you've
never done it, and it's like, wow, what do I do?

(07:09):
And how do I get to a studio? And so
it's Veterans Music Project is free for all the veterans
that come through. So it's been it's been a great
experience and it's fun to give veterans support through the
power of music.

Speaker 1 (07:24):
Now Veterans Music Project, and we've had them on the
show before and I have seen them and it's wonderful.
They do some great work. They're veterans, they did take
put their experiences at war or whatever in music for
it's fascinating. You have some great songs. It's pretty cool.

Speaker 3 (07:42):
We have. Yes, we have fifteen songs out now and
it's if you search on whatever digital streaming platform like
iHeartRadio on iHeartRadio and you just search on Veterans Music
Project and so far we have fifteen songs. And the
only prerequisite that we say is you just have to
love music. So a lot of the veterans come in

(08:06):
with journals or things that they've written down and stories
that they want to tell, and we help them put
it to music.

Speaker 1 (08:13):
And it's been a lot of fun. It is a
lot it's just a lot of fun. It really is. Now.
The concert the Emory Healthcare Veterans Program is number thirteenth.
It's seven o'clock and it's at the ferm Bank. That's
that's correct.

Speaker 2 (08:27):
That the concert will be yep, the firm Bank Museum.
So we're going to have veterans and dinosaurs looking for
a wonderful night. We're blessed to having a great location.
We're inviting all of our alumni to attend. All of
our alumni. If you are an alumni of the program,
you and your guests are free. For the other members
of the community who want to come there is there's

(08:48):
a fee which covers your meal and the expense and
also includes donation to the program. You know, we are
a nonprofit, so those tax you could write it off
from your taxes. But we're going to have dinner, have drinks,
We're going to have performances by Alchemy Sky, and we're
going to have also performance by J. P. Hill, who
is a singer songwriter who is also a veteran and uh,

(09:11):
you know, integral part of the program. So it's going
to be a great night of empowering stories from our
veterans and music from veterans and just drinking, singing, dancing
and having a good time.

Speaker 1 (09:26):
It sounds like fun. Sounds like fun. Back to Emory
helps care and what you do do for veterans, what
are some of the problems that they they bring to
you and they go have the problem with this or that,
and what are the main problems.

Speaker 2 (09:39):
They have to treat that's a that's a very broad question.
So when we started the program, we were laser focused
on PTSD. Our program director, doctor Barbara Rothbaum, she has
been treating PTSD almost since before they called it PTSD.
If anybody was a psych major in college, you've read

(10:01):
her books. She's literally written the book on the subject.
But along the way you learned there's so many other
issues of people who are dealing with along with PTSD, depression, anxiety,
a lot of TBI and a lot of a lot
of folks at TBI have PTSD, and a lot of people
with PTSD have TBIs, and a lot, unfortunately a lot

(10:23):
of sexual trauma in the military and outside the military.
So we've expanded it to cover all of these invisible wounds,
and we're trying to make a place where people and
come get on solid ground, get good footing, and make
it as easy as possible. Take away all the barriers,
take away the financial costs. We bring them in for
two weeks. Even folks who are local, who live in

(10:44):
Atlanta area, you can just drive in every day, we
still put them up with the hotel across the street.
Bring him in for two weeks because we want them
immersed living, breathing in that environment. You know, the whole
time they're there and working through things, and and we
just through that, you not only have an opportunity to

(11:07):
see real growth really quickly, but the individuals come through
as a cohort, build a team together. We bring in
different cohort of veterans every week, so take out the holidays.
We're talking forty seven, forty eight weeks out of the year.
We're starting a new cohort of veterans. So you got
your week one folks, you know, day one first in

(11:30):
the ground. Then you got your week two. Folks, We've
already been there. They've already kind of learned everything learned.
The ropes can guide them, and I think that helps
with our attention. We have a ninety two percent completion rate,
which if you look at treatments for PTSD, outpatient treatments
for PTSD, other standard treatments for PTSD, you see dropout

(11:51):
rates between fifty and then the VA put out a
study in twenty nineteen where they had a seventy percent
dropout rate for the PTA treatment. So the vast majority
not completing to the vast majority completing. So that alone
is a huge win getting them through full a full
dose of treatment and then doing the follow up. But yeah,

(12:13):
I always encourage people to come to us. If there's
anything that's holding you back from living the life you
want to live, if there's something that's keeping you from
doing things you want to do, being a man or
woman you want to be for your family, come to us.
We can do the assessment. We can do an evaluation
at no cost. And maybe you don't have PTSD, maybe
it's something else, but we can do that evaluation then

(12:35):
get that information. We also don't require prior diagnosis. A
lot of the folks we see are coming to us
referred from the VA are referred from military health care providers.
They have already been diagnosed with this or that, and
that's that's fine. We still do the full evaluation because
we found people who are misdiagnosed. And also people if

(12:55):
they've they've never seen or they never sought treatment for
mental health, they can come to us. We'll do the
full evaluation, we'll do all the legwork, get them the
information to make the decision, and if they're a good
candidate for our program, we'll start working everything to get
them in our program. If they're not, or if there's
something else will be a better benefit for them, we

(13:17):
can refer them to a partner or help them work
through a plan. But either way they have the information
to make their life better.

Speaker 1 (13:24):
Are most of your all your patients? Are they from
outside the Atlanta area or are they from the Atlanta inside Atlanta?

Speaker 2 (13:34):
Most of our patients about forty percent of our patients
are from Georgia. So and of those, I would say
probably half are from the Atlanta metro area. We see
a lot from the Fort Benning area, Columbus area, We
see a lot from the Fort Stuart Savannah area, So
we see a lot, and then we see a lot,

(13:54):
of course from the metro Atlanta area. And then we
see sixty percent from all over the country. We've had
veterans from all fifty states, Puerto Rico.

Speaker 1 (14:04):
And Guam.

Speaker 2 (14:05):
I've actually had we've actually had a few from Guam.
And we pay for that flood all the way in
cover that so they can get the treatment they need.

Speaker 1 (14:12):
And then once they finish and they leave your program,
do you have them follow up with a source then
get them maybe just maybe you follow up some money
in Honolulu. Whoever, But do you have some them follow
up with them.

Speaker 2 (14:25):
Oh absolutely yes, our case managers, they're all licensed clinical
social workers. They're probably the hardest working members of our
team because they're working with the veterans before they get there,
they're seeing them daily while they're there, and then they're
managing their follow up treatment plan and make sure they
stick to it, so everyone before they leave on the
final day will have a follow up treatment plan. For

(14:47):
a lot of our folks, about two thirds or folks
use the VA, so a lot of them will be
with their VA providers. The active duty folks it will
be with their military healthcare system providers. But then we
have about another thirty percent who don't use the VA
who are not still serving in the military. Some of
them are using private insurance, some of them don't have

(15:08):
insurance or not VI eligible. Those are the ones who
are you know that our case managers work really hard with.
But we make sure they have some resource to go to,
be it the VA, be it a private provider with
private insurance, or be it another nonprofit for free or
reduced cost treatment for those who don't have access to
those resources.

Speaker 1 (15:29):
So so cost is not a problem with you, really.

Speaker 2 (15:31):
Oh absolutely take care of absolutely not, and even we
try really hard to take down every barrier we can,
because not everybody has two weeks pay time off. For
those who don't, we work with other nonprofits. The Simplify
are used to be called Simplified Fund now believe it's
called America's Fund. They've helped us in multiple cases where

(15:52):
we've had veterans who needed to pay for childcare for
two weeks. They've helped us with people who work in
the service industry and you know, they can take time off,
but they're not getting tipped and they can't pay their
rent without that assistance. So we've worked with other non
profits to take down those cost barriers, and that's once
again our our case management team, the social workers are

(16:15):
working and collaborating with other services to take away those
those cost barriers.

Speaker 1 (16:19):
Where's your where your office is located? Where do you
go to receive treatment?

Speaker 2 (16:23):
We're located in Atlanta drive off eighty five north, right
behind where the New Children's Hospital is, so north side
of Atlanta, and the hotel we stay at is that
we have a veteran stat is a courtyard Marriott right
across the street from the facility. So they've got that
right there. For folks who are flying in, we have
a we have a we have a guy who picks

(16:47):
them up at the airport Sunday night, comes in, checks
them into the hotel, get some good and those who
drive in, they can just drive into the hotel. And
we reimburse mileage for those who are driving in so
they don't have to pay a pocket for gas to
get here.

Speaker 1 (17:00):
And the Veterans Music Project, now you're doing this concert
and the proceeds from the concert go to the go
to Emory right, Jay, Yes, okay, they all pro state.
So you need some people to come out, come out
and watch them. This is the great They're a lot
of fun to watch. I love to watch him play.

Speaker 3 (17:15):
You know, it's gonna be a great night. And ferm
Bank is an amazing venue. Yeah, and you love that
huge t rex in the middle.

Speaker 1 (17:24):
So cool. That's great.

Speaker 3 (17:26):
Great, Yeah, it's gonna be a wonderful night. So it's Thursday,
November thirteenth at.

Speaker 1 (17:31):
Seven o'clock Fermbank Museum. Now the Veterans in Veterans Music
Project are the same ones you've had for years.

Speaker 3 (17:39):
We have some some ogs that are always there, and
then we we like to circle in some new veterans
as well, so we'll have some familiar faces and some
new faces.

Speaker 1 (17:50):
Yeah, your your familiar faces. I'm very familiar with them,
and they're really good. They're really good. It's been fun.

Speaker 3 (17:59):
We have a new song coming out on November seventh
called Love Comes Full Circle, so that'll be a really
fun song. Look for that on Friday, November seventh.

Speaker 1 (18:11):
I think I've seen about four times, I guess now.
And I love them. I love them, I love listen
to them. And also it's really those people that have
been veterans. It's helped them. I guess it's sort of
been therapeutic for them too. That did make write the
music and all. Does that help them?

Speaker 3 (18:30):
It has been been. It's been a wonderful opportunity for
them to process a lot of their experiences and a
lot of what they've gone through and their service and sacrifice,
but also do it in a fun and collaborative way.
So we usually have about three or four veterans on
each song, and then we pair them with the music producer.

Speaker 1 (18:53):
So it's it's.

Speaker 3 (18:55):
An opportunity for them to tell their story but also
in a really fun and collaborative way.

Speaker 1 (19:00):
Yeah. Yeah, And I'll add on to that.

Speaker 2 (19:03):
First off, I'm not a clinician, but a lot of
what we do in our treatment is helping veterans process
the trauma that happened to them or they experienced, and
a lot of that, a huge part of that is
learning to tell their story, to tell it to themselves,
to tell to others, to reframe it in a way
that makes sense and is logical and helps the process it,

(19:26):
and that can you know, sometimes that's just straight up
recording it into a microphone and listen to it over
and over again. Sometimes it's putting into words of a poem,
and sometimes very often as putting it in song. We
actually have a music therapy session within the program. It's
very limited is because of the time christraints for two weeks,

(19:47):
but it's a sort of a kickstarter for that kind
of process, and then if they can follow onto a
program like Alchemy Sky to further go down that road,
then you know.

Speaker 4 (19:57):
It's just it Dove tells, so well, Yeah, they say,
I guess they've been all this, been to the army
or whatever, and they do all these things this whole
time in the brain they.

Speaker 1 (20:09):
Have thought, God, I'd like to get into music but
I don't know how. And now they get into music.
I just song and they sing it and they like, Bam,
I did that, I did it. I finally did. I
guess you get a lot of that, don't you. We do.

Speaker 3 (20:22):
And a lot of times when people are telling their stories,
at first they don't think it's that big of a deal,
or they don't think their story is unique. And giving
them the space to kind of to validate their story
and have them put it in a way that makes
sense to them and then at the end celebrate it

(20:42):
in a song, I think gives the veteran a unique
opportunity to say like, yeah, this is my journey and
it's worth a lot and some what these veterans have
gone through so that we can live our life is immense.
I am immense gratitude for that.

Speaker 1 (21:00):
Yeah, you get the veterans that come from just recent
wars they had, they have PTSD. Of course, as you mentioned,
is it because of what they experienced in war? Talk
about that a little better, but what they've experienced in war.

Speaker 2 (21:16):
For the majority, yes, it is connected to what they
experienced in combat. For a lot, it could be something
that they experienced here in the States, like we've had.
The veterans we see the most of statistically are your
combat arms individuals, people who are frontline door kickers, which

(21:36):
you would completely expect, completely normal. But the ones we
see the second most of are our healthcare providers, medics.
They're exposed to trauma, not even deployed. We've had a
lot of medics who who've had to respond to training accidents,
rollovers and other accidents stateside and see horrible things and

(21:58):
have been affected by that. And I don't want to
give the impression that it's just people who've experienced those
kind of combat things. We see people from all walks
of service, you know, from frontline door kickers to logistics
people or people who have you know, done the administrative
side of things. Because everyone's experience is different, everyone's trauma

(22:21):
is different. We also see some individuals whose trauma was
prior to the military, maybe childhood trauma. Unfortunately sometimes childhood
sexual trauma, and service has exacerbated that and made it
something that has been even harder to deal with. So
with our program, the trauma does not have to be
related to military service. I would say probably eighty nine

(22:45):
percent time it is, but we see a significant number
whose trauma was not or before service.

Speaker 1 (22:51):
Oh gosh, where can they go to get help? Is
this some workplace online?

Speaker 3 (22:55):
Now?

Speaker 2 (22:55):
You have your websites right, So the easiest thing to
do is go to our websitehealthcare dot org slash veterans
and then there's a blue mak an employment button you
click on that. You put in your name, your phone number,
your email address, and your city state, and within two
business days, one of our patient care coordinators, Philip Rishamedri,

(23:18):
we'll have two of them. One of them will give
you a call within two business days and start the process.
If you don't remember that website, just google Emoryhealthcare Veterans Program.
It'll come up. That's the easiest way. If anybody I
don't know, if I can put my contact from any
show notes, anybody who wants to reach out to me,
I'm happy to talk you through it. I'm happy to

(23:38):
give you a tour the facility. Let you know what
we do, let you know what you're signing up for
if you're interested. Really, there's no bad way to come
through the program.

Speaker 1 (23:49):
And now the concert's coming up November thirteenth, seven pm.
Tell us where to get tickets for that?

Speaker 2 (23:55):
Okay? Same website, Emoryhealthcare dot org slash veterans. You'll see
a link for the ten year anniversary concert and you
can go buy tickets or the actual what the actual
link is www dot engaged dot Emory dot e d
U slash eh v P ten. I know that's a mouthful.

(24:15):
So if you go to our website, you'll probably be
able to be able to find a link, or you
can look at the show notes for this podcast.

Speaker 1 (24:23):
And Jay, I know you're you're probably getting ready, tuning
up and picking in and ready to go and practicing,
ready to play for that night. Where do you find you?
Out about you?

Speaker 3 (24:33):
We're our website is Alchemysky dot org and our artist's
name is Veterans Music Project wherever music is streamed or sold,
so you can check us out.

Speaker 1 (24:42):
All right, Well, guys, I this is gonna make fun event.
Veterans Music Project and Emory gotten together. It's a great partnership.
I think it's a great partnership for the Emory Healthcare
Veterans Program. November thirteenth at seven pm at the Fernbank Museum.
Go go. You should have play a ticket k for everybody? Right?

Speaker 2 (25:00):
Oh yeah, yeah, thank you?

Speaker 3 (25:02):
John I appreciate your time.

Speaker 1 (25:03):
Thanks, thanks you all so much. That's Sean Lewis, lead
veteran Outreach coordinator at Emoryhealthcare of Atlanta's Veterans Program, and
Jay Budd, the director of Veterans Music Project. Don't Forget
November thirteenth at seven pm at the Fernbank Museum. It's
the Emoryhealthcare Veterans Program a concert. Find out more at
Emoryhealthcare dot org, slash Veterans, and Alchemysky dot org. The

(25:25):
questions or comments on today's program, you can reach me
John Clark at Georgiannewsnetwork dot com. Thanks for listening. I'll
talk to you next week right here in your favorite
local radio station on Georgia Focus