KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN – The Honourable Peter Gordon MacKay, Minister of National Defence and Minister for the Atlantic Gateway, has announced the expansion of the Joint Personnel Support Unit (JPSU) to a further eleven locations dedicated to the care of ill and injured Canadian Forces (CF) personnel, former personnel, their families and the families of the deceased.
"The Integrated Personnel Support Centres provide essential services to members, veterans, and their families," said Minister MacKay as he spoke to CF personnel in Kandahar, Afghanistan. "Our Government is establishing new locations that will bring this 'one-stop service' to more communities across Canada."
The JPSU and its individual support centres, which will total 19 locations across the country, provide ill and injured CF members, veterans and their families access to an integrated “one-stop service” that brings together a number of important Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) and CF programs and services. The support centres, called “Integrated Personnel Support Centres” (or IPSCs), coordinate a range of casualty support and case management programs; plan and monitor the Return to Work Program; provide VAC client and transition services; and liaise with local service providers, base support representatives and unit Commanding Officers. They improve existing services by aligning progress on a member’s file with one defined set of priorities.
"Since they were introduced in March, the Integrated Personnel Support Centres have delivered outstanding service," said Minister MacKay. "By expanding the program, we can ensure that more members of the Canadian Forces family can access these services at these new locations."
The creation of the JPSU and its expanded network of ISPCs is one of a number of concrete measures designed to respond to the December 2008 DND/CF Ombudsman’s Report, “A Long Road to Recovery: Battling Operational Stress Injuries.”
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National Defence Media Liaison Office, 1-866-377-0811
or
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