There have been a few providers of service that have withdrawn from serving DVA clients in recent times. So the pool is shrinking. The reasons given are that payment by DVA is slow and affects cashflow. They are seeking to engage more with NDIS (Social Services) and My Aged Care (Health and Aged Care) as a preference.

Some of the problems stem from psychiatrists who lack the knowledge or are unwilling to complete DVA paperwork for veteran patients. There is a general lack of appreciation of the wellbeing needs of veterans.

Numerous occasions occur when veterans find they are not comfortable with their assigned rehabilitation coordinator and would like to change. This is a vital role for a recovering veteran, and the fit needs to be right.

DVA Webpage on Role of the Rehab Coordinator

DVA News on Changed to the Rehab Program dated 9 Jan 2024

Growing the number of advocates under ATDP is difficult in Townsville due to the paucity of mentors and effective on-site training.

We have had a good pool of physiotherapists to whom we refer veterans, and some have been withdrawing their service. When asked, they state that they can't sustain their business on the current funding model and feel they can't do their job for veterans with complex conditions. 

Veterans moving from incapacity payments to aged/service pensions experience a significant drop in income that requires some adjusting. This seems to be particularly bad for couples.

The Queensland Government has been running a trial for veterans and families for three years and it is due to end on 30 Jun 2024. No one seems to know whether it is to be extended or permanently established or discontinuted.

Some of the problems stem from psychiatrists who lack the knowledge or are unwilling to complete DVA paperwork for veteran patients. There is a general lack of appreciation of the wellbeing needs of veterans.

There is an ongoing difficulty in having a VLO at the Mater Hospital marry up with patients who are veterans and have indicated they are keen to have the VLO visit. 

We've seen some veterans awarded large sums with little or no financial advice to best manage it for the long term. Some have made poor decisions and find themselves in more trouble financially.

There appears to be a shortage of paediatricians taking new referrals. This is particularly difficult for new arrivals trying to get into a paediatrician, on posting into Townsville, especially for NDIS considerations.

Many ESOs in Townsville support veterans and families but do not have compensation advocates, making securing BEST grants difficult. For BEST grants, there seems to be a bias toward compensation advocates (who support individual veteran's claims) over wellbeing advocates who support many more in a broader range of functions.