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[Veteran Affairs Commission on March 12, 2026.]
WE HAVE A FORUM.EVERYBODY, PLEASE FIND YOUR PLACE.
NOW, TODAY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A PRESENTATION, UH, ALSO OF YOU ON THE, UH, WELLNESS ASSESSMENT.
WE'VE SCHEDULED TWO HOURS FOR THIS.
SO WE HAVE A FORM FOR FULL TWO HOURS.
BUT I PROMISE YOU THAT IF I GET THIS OVER WITH FASTER THAN THAT, I'LL, ALRIGHT.
SO FIRST ALL GOODNESS IS TO STAND IN THE DEEP, THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE, PLEASE.
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STATE ONE NOTION UNDER GOD, DIVISION, LIBERTY, AND JUSTICE BOARD.
ALRIGHT, EVERYBODY WILL HAVE A SEAT, PLEASE.
UH, AND I TURN IT OVER TO, UH, THE REPRESENTATIVES OF SMU TO, UH, MAKE YOUR PRESENTATION.
YOU GET THE PRESENTATION OUT, PLEASE.
I DIDN'T KNOW IF I SHOULD PUSH AND HOLD OR JUST SLIGHTLY TOUCH.
UM, SO, UH, THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING AND ACTUALLY I'M GOING TO START THIS OFF WITH DR.
JENNIFER GER, WHO'S GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW THIS CAME TO BE AND THEN WE'LL GO INTO THE ORIGINAL PRESENTATION.
UM, AND I GUESS THIS WILL BE GOOD BECAUSE YOU HAVE A NEW COMMISSIONER HERE TODAY, FIRST DAY.
SO JUST TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF A BACKGROUND STORY, UH, HOW THIS CAME TO BE, THIS REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL, ACTUALLY, UH, FROM YOU ALL WAS BROUGHT TO US ABOUT, TO DR. MCGEE, UM, THROUGH, UH, PRESIDENT EMERITUS, GERALD TURNER.
GERALD TURNER, AND DEAN ROBIN POSTON, WHO'S HERE ALSO WITH US TODAY.
UM, DR. MCGEE, UM, THEN CONVENED MYSELF, UM, DR.
AND, UM, WE ASKED THIS VERY SIMPLE FOUNDATIONAL QUESTION, HOW CAN WE SERVE THE COMMISSION AND THE CITY IN DALLAS, CITY OF DALLAS IN A WAY THAT IS BOTH ACADEMICALLY RIGOROUS, BUT GENUINELY RESPONSIVE? SO, UH, IT'S IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO KNOW THAT WE ARE ALL, UM, WE ARE SCHOLARS THAT ARE TRAINED IN INTERDISCIPLINARY NEXT TO METHODS RESEARCH.
VETERANS POLICY IS NOT OUR DISCIPLINARY HOME.
HOWEVER, WE ALL HAVE FRIENDS AND WE HAVE FAMILY WHO HAVE SERVED.
HOWEVER, WE DO NOT CLAIM LIVED EXPERTISE.
BUT INSTEAD, WHAT WE BROUGHT TO THIS PROJECT IS A DEEP EXPERIENCE IN QUALITATIVE INQUIRY, QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS, GEOSPATIAL MAPPING, AND PARTICIP PARTICIPATORY RESEARCH AND DESIGN.
FROM THE OUTSET, OUR COMMITMENT WAS HUMILITY, PAIRED WITH RIGOR TO REPRESENT VETERANS' PERSPECTIVE FAITHFULLY, AND TO BUILD AN EVIDENCE BASE STRONG ENOUGH TO INFORM POLICY WITHOUT OVERSTATING OUR AUTHORITY.
FROM THAT POSTURE, WE DEVELOPED AN INTEGRATED RESEARCH DESIGN, WHICH WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT REALLY SOON.
AND SO, AND, UH, SO THEREFORE, UM, THIS PRESENTATION AND THEN THE REPORT THAT WE WILL FOLLOW, UM, AND ALL YOU ALL HAVE DIGITAL COPIES OF RIGHT NOW IS BOTH EMPIRICAL AND REFLECTIVE.
IT RE REPRESENTS THE COLLECTIVE EFFORTS OF FACULTY, GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE ANALYSTS, CITY PARTNERS, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE VETERANS WHO SHARED THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH PANDO AND TRUST.
WE ARE DEEPLY GRATEFUL TO ALL OF YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO UNDERTAKE THIS WORK AND FOR THE CONFIDENCE PLACED IN US BY THE CITY OF DALLAS AND THE VETERANS COMMISSION.
WE OFFER THIS WORK AGAIN, WITH HUMILITY, COMPETENCE IN THE INTEGRITY OF OUR METHODS, AND THE CONTINUED COMMITMENT TO LEARNING ALONGSIDE THE VETERANS AND CIVIC PARTNERS FOR WHOM WE WORK WITH.
I'D JUST LIKE TO OFFER SOME ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS BEFORE WE CONTINUE OR ACTUALLY START THE PRESENTATION.
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WOULD LIKE TO, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE DALLAS VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMISSION, ALL OF YOU HERE.UH, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK, UH, CO-CHAIR OR CHAIRS, UM, CHARLES IN AYS, UM, ALL OF YOU SITTING HERE.
JUAN PRESIDIO, LAKIRA, HOUSTON, GALEN SHERMAN, SERGIO, WE ORTEGA GLEN, RALPH HUNTER, MICHAEL P WE, SCOTT CHASE, STEVE COLE, ALSO CO-CHAIR AND RAY SMITH AND MATTHEW BELL.
AND THEN THERE ARE NEW ONES HERE TODAY, UM, AS WELL STARTING.
SO I REALLY THANK ALL OF YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO, FOR US TO UNDERSTAND MORE ABOUT THE SITUATION OF VETERANS IN DALLAS.
UM, THANK ALSO JENNIFER ER, UM, JESSE ZAGO, ROB POSTON THAT ARE ALL SITTING HERE FOR THEIR EXPERTISE AND HELP IN THIS PARTICULAR ARENA.
WE WILL GO THROUGH EXACTLY WHAT EACH ONE OF US DID, UM, VERY SHORTLY.
UM, THE GEOSPATIAL MAPPING, DATA COMPILATION AND ANALYSIS WERE CONDUCTED BY DYLAN HARVEY, WHO IS AN SMU GRADUATE STUDENT IN STRATEGIC DESIGN, HOLLY HARRIS, AN SMU GRADUATE STUDENT IN HISTORY.
AND ERIC SCHLITT, A SMU GRADUATE STUDENT IN ANTHROPOLOGY.
UM, THEIR TECHNICAL EXPERTISE AND ANALYTICAL CONTRIBUTIONS SHAPED THE FINDINGS THAT ARE PRESENTED HERE.
UH, SOCIAL MEDIA ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED BY AUBREY BROWN, WHO WILL GRADUATE IN, UH, IN 27, I BELIEVE, AND SHE'S A TOWER SCHOLAR AND A PRESIDENT SCHOLAR, AND A MEMBER OF THE SMU SOCCER TEAM, UM, CONTRIBUTING.
SHE CONTRIBUTED ADDITIONAL INSIGHT INTO PATTERNS OF ENGAGEMENT THAT ARE RELEVANT TO VETERAN OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES.
UM, WE ALSO HAD FIONA GRAY BILL, WHO WAS AN SMU, UH, GRADUATE OF 2025, UH, AN ENGLISH, ARABIC AND RUSSIAN, WHO'S, UH, CODING AND CO COAST READING EXPERTISE PROVIDED ESSENTIAL INTERPRETIVE GROUNDING FOR THE THEMATIC ANALYSIS THAT'S PRESENTED IN THIS COURSE.
UM, THE VIIF OR THE VETERANS INNOVATION AND INSIGHT FORUM WAS DEVELOPED BY OUR RESEARCH TEAM LED BY LAURA ROBINSON DOYLE, WHO MANY OF YOU MET AT THE VIIF.
UM, SHE'S AN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY AND SPORT MANAGEMENT AT SMU.
AND SHE CONTRIBUTED TO ITS CONCEPTUAL FRAMING AND PRESENTATION.
OUR PROGRAM COORDINATION AND THE REPORT DESIGN WAS, UH, PROVIDED BY KELLY SHAND PAUL, UM, WHO IS A PROGRAM SPECIALIST IN THE OFFICE OF ENGAGED LEARNING AT SMU.
UM, FACILITATION OF THIS VETERANS INNOVATION AND INSIGHT FORUM WAS PROVIDED BY SMU STAFF AND STUDENTS, INCLUDING ALICIA BAILEY, DORY BIMAN, ARI DEATH, UH, BELL DIAZ, MARTHA FERNANDEZ, MONICA FIELD, FIONA GRAYVILLE, DYLAN HARVEY, MARISSA HYATT, RU EF, MELODY KA, ANGELA MAR, MORO HARRIS, RIHA, MARIA, ADAM NEIL MOLINA, RIN, OLIVIA
ALL OF THESE SUPPORTED MEANINGFUL DIALOGUE AND COLLABORATIVE DATA COLLECTION THROUGH THEIR WORK.
AND WE'RE ALSO GRATEFUL TO SPENDING, UH, ZUKU AND CHRISTINA DE SILVA FOR THEIR PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND LIAISON.
ON THE BEHALF OF THE CITY OF DALLAS AND THE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMISSION, WE ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE AND THANK THE VETERANS AND COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE VETERANS INNOVATION AND INSIGHT FORUM AND PROVIDED THEIR LIVED EXPERIENCES.
WITHOUT THEM, WE COULD NOT HAVE DONE THIS REPORT.
AND NOW LET'S GO ON TO THE REPORT.
SO LET'S MOVE ON TO THE SECOND SLIDE.
SO, THE PURPOSE OF OUR STUDY WAS TO UNDERSTAND HOW VETERAN SUPPORT SYSTEMS FUNCTION ACROSS DALLAS AND TO IDENTIFY ANY BARRIERS THAT VETERANS FACE WHEN NAVIGATING SERVICES.
WE ALSO WANTED TO PROVIDE SOME ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS FOR POLICY AND COORDINATION.
UM, SO ALL OF WHAT WE DID IN THIS PARTICULAR STUDY WAS DONE WITH THESE THREE PURPOSES IN MIND.
OUR PARTNERSHIP, OF COURSE, WE ARE COMMISSIONED BY THE CITY OF DALLAS VETERAN AFFAIRS, COMMISSIONED TO DO THIS WORK.
AND, UM, WE CONDUCTED, WE, WE'LL SEE MORE ABOUT HOW THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM, UH, FUNCTIONED AT SMU.
YOU CAN SEE I'VE ALREADY READ OUT INDIVIDUALS FROM HISTORY, ANTHROPOLOGY, STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT, UH, ENGINEERING, ALL OVER SMU.
WE HAD INDIVIDUALS CONTRIBUTING TO THIS PARTICULAR STUDY, AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR THAT INTERDISCIPLINARY AND MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH.
AND WE'LL ALSO BE, WE ALSO WANNA FOCUS ON IMPROVING VETERAN WELLBEING ACROSS DALLAS COUNTY.
YOU ALL HAVE SERVED OUR COUNTRY WITH DISTINCTION, AND WE THINK YOU SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED AND REWARDED FOR THAT.
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SO I THINK IT'S INTEREST, IT'S, IT'S VALUABLE AT THIS POINT TO SHARE THAT.
THE REASON THIS IS AN INTERESTING AND EXCITING TO US.
IT'S NOT JUST THE CONTENT, BUT ALSO THE PROCESS.
WE HAVE BEEN WORKING IN WHAT IS QUITE AN INNOVATIVE WAY OF WORKING, EVEN WITHIN THE ACADEMIC CIRCLES, NEVERMIND WITHIN GOVERNMENT, BUT THIS WAY OF BRINGING TOGETHER PEOPLE ACROSS DEPARTMENTS IS NOT VERY USUAL, EVEN IN THE UNIVERSITY SETTING.
AND, UM, THE WAY THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING, BRINGING TOGETHER BOTH QUANTITATIVE, UM, DATA, PARTICULARLY IN STATISTICS AND ENGINEERING AND QUALITATIVE DATA AROUND LANGUAGE AND FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS, AND TRYING TO REALLY MESH THOSE TWO SETS OF DATA TOGETHER IS A VERY UNUSUAL WAY OF WORKING AND VERY INNOVATIVE.
SO WHEN PEOPLE ARE ASKING ABOUT THIS WORK, YOU WON'T FIND OTHER EXAMPLES OF THIS KIND OF WORK READILY AVAILABLE.
AND WE THINK IT'S REALLY EXCITING THAT WE'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE THIS SET OF METHODS WITH THIS CONTEXT.
SO, UM, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE, THE QUALITATIVE RESEARCH AND THE QUANTITATIVE, UM, INDICATORS, WHICH WERE DONE AS SEPARATE PIECES OF WORK, THE HUMAN CENTERED FRAMEWORK, THE PARTICIPATORY MAPPING, UM, THE TOPIC MODELING, THE SENTIMENT ANALYSIS WERE ALL BROUGHT TOGETHER, BOTH IN THE SPATIAL WORK AND IN THE, UM, ANALYTICAL TEXT.
UM, THE RESEARCH DESIGN WAS BASED AROUND A SECOND SET OF INNOVATIVE PROCESSES, WHICH IS WORKING IN A PARTICIPATORY WAY WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
MANY OF YOU WERE THERE AT THE VETERANS INNOVATION FORUM, WHICH WAS LAST SUMMER, AND IT WAS REALLY EXCITING TO BE ABLE TO WORK WITH A TEAM, QUITE A LARGE TEAM OF COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND VETERANS AND OTHERS WHO WORK IN VETERAN SERVICES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND WE USED A REALLY QUITE CREATIVE METHOD TO, UM, HAVE EACH OF THOSE PARTICIPANTS SEARCH WITHIN THEIR EXPERIENCE, WITHIN THEIR BACKGROUND AND PULL OUT, UM, SPECIFIC PIECES OF INFORMATION.
WE THEN HAD TO GO THROUGH MONTHS OF REALLY QUITE RIGOROUS STRUCTURED WAYS OF TAKING THAT DATA, THAT INFORMATION, THOSE STORIES, AND TURNING IT INTO INFORMATION THAT WE COULD THEN USE AND INTEGRATE WITH THE MORE QUALITATIVE DATA.
SO THE VETERANS FORUM GAVE US INFORMATION IN THREE DIFFERENT FORMATS THAT WE THEN BROUGHT FORWARD INTO THE WORK.
ONE OF IT WAS THE, THE TEXT FORMAT OF THE STORIES, WHICH WAS, UM, ANALYZED AS QUALITATIVE DATA CODED INTO DIFFERENT THEMES.
AND OUT OF THOSE THEMES WERE DRAWN CONCLUSIONS.
SECONDLY WAS THE VISUAL INFORMATION, THE INFORMATION PUT ONTO THE MAPS, WHICH WE THEN DIGITIZED AND BROUGHT INTO RELATIONSHIP WITH THE GEOSPATIAL MAPPING, UM, FROM CITY DATA AND NATIONAL DATA ON VETERANS.
AND THEN THE THIRD WAS, AGAIN, THE TEXT, WHICH WAS USED AS DATA TO BE BROUGHT INTO THE COMPUTER AND, UM, INFORMATION EXTRACTED FROM THAT AS A, THROUGH A DIGITAL TEXT ANALYSIS.
SO WE, UM, ACTUALLY, IF YOU COULD GO BACK QUITE, MAYBE I CAN EXPLAIN THIS BETTER.
THE, THE, THESE ARE THE MAPS THAT WE MADE AT THE FORUM ON THE LEFT AND ON THE RIGHT YOU CAN SEE SOME OF MY STUDENTS TAKING THE INFORMATION FROM THOSE MAPS.
UM, THAT INFORMATION WAS DIGITIZED, THE LINES, THE POINTS, UM, THE SMILEY STICKY STICKERS WERE ALL PUT INTO THE COMPUTER DIGITALLY AND BROUGHT TOGETHER WITH THE BACKGROUND DALLAS DATA.
AND THE NEXT SLIDE, THIS NEXT SLIDE SHOWS THE BEGINNING OF THE BACKGROUND DATA, WHICH LAYS OUT THE CONTEXT INTO WHICH THIS NEW INFORMATION WAS POSITIONED SO THAT WE COULD START TO SEE THE CONTRASTS.
SO ON THE LEFT YOU SEE THE DALLAS, UH, VETERAN POPULATION DENSITY.
THIS SHOWS, UM, THE NUMBERS OF VETERANS IN EACH TRACT.
THIS IS INFORMATION FROM THE CENSUS, WHICH WAS THEN NORMALIZED USING THE PERCENTAGE OF EACH TRACT THAT HAS RESIDENTIAL, BUT THAT WE DIDN'T WANT TO SHOW THAT THERE WERE LOTS OF VETERANS IN AN AREA.
UM, I BOUGHT ONLY A FEW IN AN AREA, UM, WHERE THERE WAS MOSTLY NOT HOUSING BECAUSE ACTUALLY THAT WOULD MEAN THAT THEY WERE A BIGGER PROPORTION OF THE POPULATION AND ALSO NORMALIZED BY LAND AREA.
SO WE WERE REALLY SHOWING DENSITY.
AND THEN ON THE RIGHT YOU CAN SEE THE SERVICES.
UM, THESE ARE ALL THE VETERAN SERVICES THAT WERE IDENTIFIED.
YOU REMEMBER, WE TOOK INFORMATION FROM ALL OF YOUR COMMUNITY MEETINGS.
WE EXTRACTED THE CONVERSATIONS YOU'VE HAD HERE OVER THE LAST YEAR, AND ALSO INFORMATION FROM ALL OF THE AVAILABLE SOURCES OF
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VETERAN SUPPORT SERVICES.UM, UM, SO THIS IS, THIS BECAME SORT OF BACKGROUND INFORMATION ONTO WHICH EVERYTHING ELSE IS VALUED.
I, I SHOULD, UM, MENTION THAT THE PRESENTATION AND THE SLIDES THAT YOU SEE ARE A SAMPLING OF WHAT'S IN THE LARGER REPORT THAT WILL HELP US TO MOVE ALONG WITH THINGS, BUT NOT GO SO MUCH IN THE IN DEPTH THAT WE MIGHT, UM, LOSE SOME OF THE LARGER, UM, THE ARC OF THE NARRATIVE HERE.
ZAGA SHOWED A COUPLE OF MAPS, THAT'S ONE OF ABOUT 10 MAPS THAT ACTUALLY SITUATE IN DALLAS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO, UM, POINT THAT OUT.
SO, UM, MOVING INTO THE THEME, SOME OF YOU HAD A PREVIEW OF THE THEMES, UH, AND, AND ACTUALLY TO, UH, WE LEARNED A LOT ONCE WE STARTED COMBINING THE QUANTITATIVE PIECES, LIKE THE TOPIC MODELING, NOT ONLY OF THE VETERANS INNOVATION AND INSIGHT FORUM DATA THAT REINFORCED WHAT WE WENT THROUGH, THE QUALITATIVE, UH, CODING, WHICH TYPICALLY IS NOT GENERALIZED PHASE EIGHT, IT'S NOT GENERALIZABLE.
OR WE STRENGTHEN THAT WITH THIS QUANTITATIVE TOPIC MODELING AND THEN LAYER IN THE MAPS AND THE CENSUS INFORMATION.
AND WE LAYER IN SOCIAL MEDIA INFORMATION.
AND I THINK THAT THE, WE HAVE SOME CHANGES IN THOSE ORIGINAL THEMES THAT MAYBE YOU SAW A LITTLE BIT EARLIER, BUT PRETTY MUCH THEY STAYED THE SAME, WHICH IS REALLY GOOD NEWS, RIGHT? BECAUSE, UH, WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE LIVED EXPERIENCE ACTUALLY HIT WHAT WE WOULD CALL A LEVEL OF SATURATION.
THAT WE WERE GETTING STORIES THAT WERE PERVASIVE.
AND, UM, AS WE LAYERED ALL THESE DIFFERENT METHODS TOGETHER, WE LEARNED THAT THAT ACTUALLY WAS TRUE.
SO AGAIN, WE BRING THOSE METHODS TOGETHER, JUST STRENGTHENS THE, UM, THE, I GUESS, ASSUMPTION AND THE, UM, CONTENT THAT WE BRING TO YOU TODAY.
BUT, UM, IN, UH, FOR THE RE REMAINDER OR MOST OF THE PRESENTATION, WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA TALK ABOUT EACH OF THESE THEMES A LITTLE BIT MORE IN DEPTH.
AND THEY DO RUN ALL THE WAY FROM NAVIGATION AS A PRIMARY SYSTEM BREAKDOWN INTO MENTAL HEALTH, MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH NEEDS, BEING DEEP, CHRONIC, AND STRUCTURALLY UNSUPPORTED TRANSITION AS A MULTI-YEAR CHALLENGE, NOT A MOMENT IN TIME.
UH, COMMUNITY BELONGING AND SOCIAL CONNECTION AS ESSENTIAL AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS FOR VETERANS EMPLOYMENT BARRIERS, UNDERMINING STABILITY AND PURPOSE, HOUSING STABILITY, BEING FRAGILE AND DEEPLY CONNECTED WITH EMPLOYMENT AND HEALTH.
HEALTHCARE ACCESS SUFFERS FROM CULTURAL MISMATCHES, REFERRAL FAILURES AND ACCOUNTABILITY GAPS.
AND THEN EIGHT FAMILY SHOULDER, FAMILY SHOULDERING HIDDEN LABOR WITHOUT, UH, WITHOUT RECOGNITION AND SUPPORT.
AND THEN NINE LEGAL INJUSTICE ISSUES IN THE WOVEN WITH MENTAL HEALTH, HOUSING AND ELIGIBILITY.
AND THEN 10 SYSTEMS FRAGMENTATION AND SILOING AS INFRASTRUCTURE PROBLEMS BEHIND OTHER PROBLEMS. SO WE'RE GONNA GO INTO DEPTH FOR EACH ONE OF THESE.
AND I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND I'M GONNA BEGIN WITH BEING ONE.
SO IF YOU COULD MOVE TO THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
SO ACROSS THE, THE V AND I'M, I'M GONNA REFER TO THE VETERANS INSIGHT AND INNOVATION FORUM FROM NOW ON AS BIIF, IF THAT'S OKAY.
'CAUSE IT'S SUCH A MOUTH, I'M SURE IT'S A TOO MUCH OF A TOPIC FOR ME.
SO, UM, NAVIGATION DID, DID EMERGE AS THE MOST PERVASIVE AND CONSEQUENTIAL BREAKDOWN IN THE VETERANS SERVICE ECOSYSTEM IN DALLAS.
PARTICIPANTS DESCRIBED THE SYSTEMS AS SCATTERED, DUPLICATIVE, INVISIBLE, AND IMPOSSIBLE TO FIGURE OUT.
OKAY, UM, I WANNA STOP JUST A MINUTE.
'CAUSE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT NAVIGATION, IT REFERS TO HOW VETERANS MAKE SENSE OF SCATTERED SYSTEMS, UH, KNOWING WHAT SERVICES EXIST, WHICH ARE LEGITIMATE, HOW ELIGIBILITY WORKS, WHERE TO GO NEXT, AND CLEAR GUIDANCE AS BEEN MOVED THROUGH BETWEEN, UM, PROVIDERS.
SO IT'S NOT LIKE NAVIGATING THE, THE CITY STREETS AND STUFF.
SO I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT, THAT, THAT WAS CENTERED.
SO SOME OF THE UNDERLYING CONDITIONS THAT WE LEARNED THROUGH THE DATA WAS, UH, AS FAR AS IT FAILING, IS THAT, UM, ONE IS THAT THERE'S NO SINGLE TRUSTED SOURCE OF INFORMATION.
THAT WAS ONE THAT WAS REVEALED, UH, THAT THERE'S A PROLIFERATION OF UNVETTED AND POORLY COORDINATED
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ORGANIZATIONS.THEY SAID, UH, THINGS LIKE CONFUSING AND INCONSISTENT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, UM, MAYBE WEAK OR NON-EXISTENT HANDOFFS BETWEEN PROVIDERS AND LARGE AND DECENTRALIZED GEOGRAPHIC SERVER SERVICE AREA AND THE BFW, UH, DALLAS FORT WORTH.
AND THEN LIMITED CROSS SYSTEMS DATA SHARING.
SO WHEN THE METHODS CONVERGED, AS I MENTIONED, NAVIGATION ENDED UP BEING TOP OF ALL.
AND THE VIIF THEMES WERE, UM, REPEATEDLY SHOWING US CONFUSION, REDUNDANCIES, AND BREAKDOWN IN REFERRAL PATHWAYS.
AND TOPIC MODELING OF THAT DATA ACTUALLY REINFORCED IT SURFACING FRAGMENTED SERVICES, CLAIMS, NAVIGATION, AND INFORMATION GAPS AS THE DOMINANT THEMES.
SO AS WE MOVE INTO LIKE THE TOPIC MODELING THEN OF THE REDDIT POST FROM 20 20, 25, THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT CLOSELY ALIGN.
ONE, UH, HAS TO DO WITH HEALTHCARE AND CLAIMS NAVIGATION AND SERVICE CONNECTIONS AND CLAIMS. SO IN THIS, THE SENTIMENT ANALYSIS REVEALED TO US THAT SUSTAINED INCREASE, THERE WERE SUSTAINED INCREASES IN FEAR, SADNESS, AND TRUST LANGUAGE BEGINNING IN 2023, SIGNALING TO US A DEEPER EMOTIONAL INVESTMENT IN INSTITUTIONAL PROCESSES AND BENEFIT SYSTEMS. AND SO TOGETHER THESE PATTERNS INDICATE PERHAPS THAT NAVIGATION STRAIN IS DRIVEN NOT BY SERVICE SCARCITY, 'CAUSE ACTUALLY THEY'RE LIKE, THERE'S A LOT THERE, BUT BY THE COMPLEXITY AND MAYBE THE BURDEN OF MOVING THROUGH THE LAYERED ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEMS. SO IN TOTAL CONCLUSION NUMBER ONE, ACROSS THE QUALITATIVE INSIGHT, COMPUTATIONAL ANALYSIS AND SPATIAL EVIDENCE NAVIGATION EMERGES AS A CENTRAL SYSTEM CONSTRAINT.
THE PRIMARY BARRIER IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF SERVICES.
PEOPLE SAY THERE'S A LOT OF STUFF OUT THERE, RIGHT? BUT DISCONNECTED ENTRY POINTS, MAYBE SOME WEAK COORDINATION AND UNCLEAR PATHWAYS BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONS.
SO THEREFORE, STRENGTHENING NAVIGATION WOULD ENHANCE THE PERFORMANCE OF EXISTING RESOURCES AND PROVIDE THEM A MORE HIGH IMPACT FOUNDATION FOR BROADER SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT.
SO, UM, MOVING, I'M SORRY THAT JESSE, I, I ACTUALLY FORGOT.
SO ACTUALLY TO ADD TO THAT, WOULD YOU PLEASE GO TO THE SECOND SLIDE FOR NAVIGATION? MY APOLOGIES, JESSE.
GER THAT, UM, THIS IDEA OF, UM, OF CONNECTIVITY ISN'T NECESSARILY REALLY ABOUT TRANSPORTATION.
UM, I'M ACTUALLY GOING TO JUMP INTO THE ISSUE OF CONNECTIVITY BEING ABOUT TRANSPORTATION.
THAT'S 'CAUSE I'M THE MAP PERSON AND I PUT EVERYTHING IN THE CONTEXT OF HOW YOU CONNECT WITH IT.
UM, ON THE LEFT YOU SEE A MAP THAT SHOWS THE RESOURCES, UH, A HEAT MAP SHOWING WHERE THERE ARE AREAS IN THE CITY THAT ARE REALLY DENSE IN THE RESOURCES THAT WERE IDENTIFIED AND USED.
YOU CAN SEE THAT ACTUALLY THE RESOURCES ARE PRETTY WELL SPREAD ACROSS THE CITY, AND THERE SEEMS TO BE LOTS OF AREAS WHICH HAVE ACCESS TO A NUMBER OF RESOURCES.
UM, THE GREEN SHOWS THE AREAS THAT ARE REALLY ACCESSIBLE BY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION WITHIN 15 MINUTES TO SOME OF THOSE, TO ANY ONE OF THOSE RESOURCES.
AND THE RED AREA SHOWS ONES THAT ARE LESS ACCESSIBLE BY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.
SO THERE'S AN AWFUL LOT OF RED THAT DOESN'T LOOK THAT GOOD.
BUT IF YOU LOOK ON THE RIGHT HAND MAP, THAT'S A STUDY OF RESOURCE CONCENTRATION IN TERMS OF DRIVING DISTANCES.
AND YOU'LL SEE THAT THE NUMBERS OF AREAS IN DALLAS THAT ARE NOT ABLE TO ACCESS ANY OF THE RESOURCES, WHICH ARE THE DARK RED, ARE ACTUALLY VERY FEW AND REALLY ON THE OUTSKIRTS.
SO IN GENERAL, I THINK THIS IS QUITE A POSITIVE MAP BECAUSE IT SHOWS, IT ILLUSTRATES THAT IF YOU COUNT ALL OF THE RESOURCES TOGETHER, THEY'RE PRETTY ACCESSIBLE THROUGHOUT, THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
WHAT WE'LL DO LATER IS DIG DOWN INTO WHICH SPECIFIC RESOURCES ARE ACCESSIBLE TO WHICH SPECIFIC AREAS.
CAN I ASK, COULD YOU IDENTIFY SOME LANDMARKS ON THE MAP SO WE KNOW WHERE IS WHAT, UH, IS THE, THE WHITE THING IN THE MIDDLE? IS THAT WHITE ROCK LAKE? OR COULD, WHAT'S, WHAT'S NORTH? WHAT'S EAST AND WEST AND SOUTH? YES, THE WHITE, THE WHITE THING IN THE MIDDLE IS HIGHLAND PARK.
THAT'S THE LITTLE BIT BIT, OH, IN CENTRAL CITY.
AND THE DIAGONAL KIND OF EMPTY BIT ACROSS THE DIAGONALLY, ACROSS THE CENTER OF THE MAP IS WHERE THE RIVER IS.
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CAN SEE THE, THE DENSE PART DOWNTOWN IS WHERE THE, THE BIGGEST RED DOT ON THE LEFT OR IT'S RED SMUDGE THAT CLOUD OF, UM, NUMBERS OF VETERANS RESOURCES.THAT'S IN, IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY OF DALLAS.
AND YOU CAN SEE BELOW IT, BELOW THE GREEN, THAT'S WHERE THE, UH, VETERANS HOSPITAL IS.
THERE'S A MAP COMING LATER, WHICH HAS ALL THE WORDS ON THEM.
AND IF YOU HAVE THE DIGITAL COPY, IT'S RIGHT AROUND 67, 68, WHERE YOU COULD SEE SOME OF THOSE TWO AS WELL.
SO I'M GONNA TALK ABOUT THEME TWO, WHICH IS MENTAL HEALTH.
AND I KNOW THAT THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT THEME FOR THIS COMMISSION AS WELL AS, UM, MANY OTHERS IN THE CITY.
SO, UM, OF COURSE THIS POPPED UP AS ONE OF THE NEEDS OF, OF VETERANS, AND WE DISCOVERED THROUGH THE BIIF AND OUR OTHER SOURCES THAT NEEDS ARE DEEP AND CHRONIC AND SERVICES EXIST, BUT ARE DIFFICULT TO ASSESS.
AND THAT'S, AGAIN, SOME OF THE NAVIGATION ISSUE POPPING INTO THIS AS WELL.
AND THIS IDEA OF CULTURAL COMPETENCE GAPS.
AND I BELIEVE THAT'S A, A DIFFERENCE IN THE WAY THAT VETERANS TALK ABOUT THEIR MENTAL HEALTH VERSUS THE WAY THOSE WHO MAYBE DON'T HAVE THAT EXPERIENCE WITH VETERANS.
SO THERE'S A, MAYBE A DICTIONARY PROBLEM, A WORD PROBLEM, SOME SORT OF DIFFERENCES IN HOW, UH, MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS UNDERSTAND VETERANS AND VICE VERSA.
SO LET'S GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
UM, SO ONE, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I DID, UM, BEFORE I GO, BEFORE I GO TO THIS, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID, WE'VE MENTIONED IT SEVERAL TIMES AND I HAVEN'T REALLY TALKED ABOUT IT TOO MUCH, IS, UH, STATISTICAL TOPIC MODELING AND STATISTICAL TEXT-BASED ANALYSIS AND STATISTICAL SENTIMENT ANALYSIS.
SO WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS? UM, STATISTICAL TOPIC MODELING TAKES TEXT FROM, UH, THIS BOOK OR A BUNCH OF STICKY NOTES FROM THE VIIF OR A, UM, BUNCH OF POSTS FROM REDDIT, FOR EXAMPLE, AND TAKES THOSE WORDS, BREAKS THEM DOWN INTO PIECES, AND THEN PULLS THOSE PIECES TOGETHER INTO TOPICS THAT HAVE SOME RELEVANCY TO ONE ANOTHER.
AND WHEN I DID, SO I DID TWO TYPES OF TOPIC MODELING AND TEXT-BASED ANALYSIS.
SO JENNIFER AND HER GROUP PROVIDED DR.
INGER AND HER GROUP PROVIDED A, A SPREADSHEET THAT HAD ALL OF THE CODED DATA FROM THE VIIF ON IT.
AND I WENT THROUGH THAT SPREADSHEET.
I ENTERED IT INTO STATISTICAL SOFTWARE AND GATHERED TOPICS FROM THAT.
AND I THINK, I BELIEVE I, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, THERE WAS ABOUT SIX, UH, THREE TOPICS, SORRY, FROM THE VIIF.
IT WAS A MUCH SMALLER DATASET.
AND THEN FROM THE REDDIT DATA ANALYSIS.
SO I TOOK, I COMBED, OR AUBREY BROWN, ACTUALLY I SHOULD SAY, COMBED THE DATA FROM, UH, REDDIT, UM, SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS THAT WERE ALL CONCERNED WITH VETERANS.
SO THEY HAD TO HAVE SOME SORT OF VETERAN, UH, SUBREDDIT OR VETERAN REDDIT, UM, ATTACHMENT TO IT AND WENT THROUGH THOSE.
AND, AND WE ALSO, AND WE DID THE SAME THING WITH THOSE.
SO THERE'S TWO SEPARATE TOPIC MODELS THAT WE DID.
INTERESTINGLY, AS WE'VE MENTIONED BEFORE, THOSE TWO TYPES OF ANALYSIS FROM TWO, THE SAME ANALYSIS FROM TWO DIFFERENT SOURCES OF DATA GAVE US ROUGHLY THE SAME THINGS.
SO THERE WERE REINFORCING EACH OTHER, UM, WHICH IS, WHICH IS GOOD.
SO, UM, AND THE, SO THE VIF WAS A MUCH MORE STRUCTURED, MORE LIKE A FOCUS GROUP TYPE OF ATMOSPHERE.
AND THE REDDIT IS MORE LIKE, UH, VETERANS TALKING TO ONE ANOTHER IN THE WILD, IF YOU WILL.
UM, JUST NOT, NOT STRUCTURED, UM, JUST THOUGHTS AND THINGS THAT COME UP AND GETTING ADVICE AND THOSE SORTS OF THINGS.
UM, SO WHAT IS THIS? THIS IS ACTUALLY FROM THE, UM, VIIF DATA, THIS PARTICULAR HEAT MAP AND IT'S MENTAL HEALTH AND IT'S QUARTERLY, I'M SORRY, IT CAN'T BE FROM VIIF BECAUSE IT HAS TO BE FROM REDDIT BECAUSE IT'S QUARTERLY.
SO, UM, THE NICE THING ABOUT REDDIT TOO IS I WAS ABLE TO GATHER DATA OVER A DECADE OF, OF POST, UM, FROM 2015 TO 2025.
SO THE LAST POST GATHERED WERE IN DECEMBER OF 2025.
AND, UM, WE DID NOT LOOK AT 2019 TO 2015 BECAUSE THE POSTS WERE TOO SPARSE.
IT REALLY STARTED TO PICK UP IN THE PANDEMIC.
'CAUSE I GUESS THAT WAS PEOPLE'S MAIN SOCIAL OUTLET WAS GOING ON REDDIT AND TALKING TO ONE ANOTHER IN THAT WAY.
SO MOST THESE, ALL OF THESE ANALYSIS ARE FROM 2020 TO 2025.
AND THEY'RE QUARTERLY AGAIN, BECAUSE THERE'S SOME TIME PERIODS WHERE THERE'S MISSED NOT ENOUGH POST TO MAKE ANY, UM, UH, CONCLUSIONS FROM THOSE.
SO ON THE, ON THE LEFT, ON THE OR LEFT, YOU SEE SOME EMOTIONS, ANTICIPATION, ANGER, DISGUST, SADNESS, SURPRISE,
[00:30:01]
FEAR, TRUST, JOY.THOSE ARE EIGHT MAIN EMOTIONS THAT APPEAR IN THE, UH, CANADIAN NATIONAL RESOURCE.
UH, NRC, NATIONAL RESOURCE OF COUNCIL OF CANADA, UM, EMOTION DICTIONARY.
AND WHAT THAT DICTIONARY DOES, IT ASSIGNS CERTAIN, UH, NUMERICAL VALUES TO EMOTIONS.
AND SO, AND IT'S A WELL DOCUMENTED PEER REVIEWED DICTIONARY THAT'S USED, UH, QUITE OFTEN.
SO THE EMOTIONS ARE THE ROWS AND THE QUARTERS FROM 2020.
SO JANUARY, 2020, ALL THE WAY THROUGH DECEMBER, 2025 ARE THE COLUMNS.
AND YOU CAN SEE DIFFERENT COLORS THERE.
UM, THE DARK RED COLORS ARE DIFFERENCES ARE THOSE THAT HAVE THE MOST DIFFERENCE FROM BASELINE.
SO RED ACTUALLY IS POSITIVE MEANING, UH, A LOT OF TALK BLUE IS LESS, LESS TALK OR LESS MENTION OF THESE PARTICULAR TOPICS.
AND ALL OF THESE ARE MENTAL HEALTH TOPICS.
AND MENTAL HEALTH WAS OF COURSE ONE OF THE TOPICS THAT THESE POSTS KIND OF GATHERED INTO THAT WORDS FROM THE POST GATHERED INTO.
SO YOU CAN SEE, FOR EXAMPLE, IN 2020, THE, THAT LAST HALF OF 2020, WE HAVE FEAR AND TRUST SHOWING UP ABOUT THE SAME INTENSITY.
AND THESE ARE ALL, THESE ARE ALL CHANGES FROM BASELINE FOR THAT EMOTION.
SO AN INCREASE THE RED MEANS THAT THERE'S AN INCREASE IN TRUST OVER WHAT WAS BASELINE.
AND THE, THE FEAR ALSO AN INCREASE IN FEAR OVER BASELINE.
AND HOW DO I KNOW WHAT WORDS MEAN, FEAR AND WHAT WORDS MEAN TRUST? AGAIN, THOSE ARE ALL PART OF THIS DICTIONARY.
UM, SO THAT IS NOT MY DETERMINATION.
THAT WAS AN OUTSIDE DETERMINATION OF PEER REVIEWED OUTSIDE DETERMINATION.
SO THIS IS THE, I I THINK ONCE I EXPLAIN THIS ONE, THE OTHER ONES WILL BE MUCH EASIER FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND.
SO I WON'T GO INTO THIS DEPTH WHEN I, WHEN I GO THROUGH THE OTHER ONES.
UM, SO YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE'S A LOT OF FEAR AND TRUST SIMULTANEOUSLY AS WE GO THROUGH THE BORDERS.
AND THAT INDICATES TO ME, AND YOU CAN SEE SOME ANGER, ANTICIPATION AND DISCUSS SADNESS KIND OF PICKING UP THERE IN THE LAST HALF OF 2024.
UM, SO THE FACT THAT TRUST AND FEAR AND ALL THESE KIND OF NEGATIVE EMOTIONS APPEAR TOGETHER, ESPECIALLY TRUST WITH THESE, INDICATES TO ME THAT VETERANS ARE NOT GETTING OUT OF THE SYSTEM.
THEY'RE STILL TRYING TO BE IN THE SYSTEM.
THEY STILL HAVE SOME VAL, THEY SEE VALUE IN THE SYSTEM, BUT THEY ARE, UM, BUT THERE'S ALSO THESE OTHER EMOTIONS THAT ARE PART OF THAT AS WELL.
SO THEY'RE NOT COMPLETELY LEAVING, THEY'RE JUST TRYING TO, TO NAVIGATE AND TRY TO UNDERSTAND AND TRYING TO GET THEIR, THE HELP THAT THEY NEED.
UM, SO THOSE ARE, AND THIS IS ALL NORMALIZED PER POST.
SO THIS, THE, THE COLOR DOES NOT REFLECT THE NUMBER OF POSTS.
IT REFLECTS A PERCENTAGE OF THE NUMBER OF POSTS THAT DISPLAYS THESE EMOTIONS.
THAT'S FOR MENTAL HEALTH ITSELF.
AND YOU WILL SEE MULTIPLE, EXACT SAME OF THESE MAPS THROUGHOUT THE, UM, THE, UH, PRESENTATION ONTO, LET'S SEE, I THINK THE NEXT ONE'S ALSO ME.
LET'S TALK ABOUT TRANSITION NEXT SLIDE.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS BROUGHT OUT IN THE VIIF WAS THAT TRANSITION.
IT'S A MULTI-YEAR PROCESS, AND WE SEE THIS IN THE POST ON REDDIT AS WELL.
IT'S, UM, IT CAN UNFOLD ACROSS MULTIPLE YEARS, AND IT INVOLVES SOME OF THESE OTHER TOPICS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT.
IDENTITY, EMPLOYMENT, HOUSING, AND BENEFITS.
ALL OF THESE ARE INVOLVED IN TRANSITION, AND OF COURSE THERE ARE A LOT OF KEY STRESSORS TO THAT.
UM, AND LET'S JUST GO ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE TO TALK ABOUT, UM, THAT SOME OF THE STATISTICS THERE.
SO THIS WAS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT PRESENTATION OF THE DATA.
SO WHAT I DID HERE WAS A TRANSITION SCORE.
SO I TOOK WORDS THAT INDICATE TRANSITION, LIKE CHANGE, LOCATION.
SOME OF THE, SOME OF THESE WORDS THAT I ACTUALLY USED WERE CITIES, UM, HOUSTON, SAN ANTONIO, DALLAS, YOU KNOW, THESE WERE ALL SUPPOSED TO BE DALLAS VETERANS.
IF THEY'RE MENTIONING OTHER CITIES, MAYBE THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT RELOCATION.
SO SOME, AND THAT WORD RELOCATION.
UM, SO THERE WERE SEVERAL WORDS THAT WERE USED, AND I WENT THROUGH THE POST BY PORTER AND EXAMINED THE PROPORTION OF TIMES THAT THOSE WORDS WERE USED.
AND SO YOU CAN SEE THAT'S WHAT THIS GRAPH IS.
EACH DOT REPRESENTS, UM, A, A, A PROPORTION FOR THAT TIME IN THAT QUARTER, UM, WHERE, UH, WHERE YOU COULD SEE THE RELOCATION AND TRANSITION TYPE, UH, LANGUAGE USED.
THE GRAY BARS OR THE GRAY SHADING IS ACTUALLY A, UH, COMPETENCE BAND.
SO THE LARGER THE COMPETENCE SPAN, THE LESS PRECISE THE ESTIMATE.
AND YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE'S NOT A COMPETENCE BAND THERE FOR THE EARLY PART OF 2020, BUT THAT'S BECAUSE I THINK THOSE ARE ABOUT TWO OR THREE POSTS.
SO WE REALLY COULDN'T DO A WHOLE LOT OF COMP ON, UH, VARIABILITY THERE WITH THAT PARTICULAR GRAPHIC.
BUT YOU CAN SEE THAT THE, THAT THE TRANSITION, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S IMPORTANT ABOUT THIS IS THAT IT CONTINUES.
THERE'S PRETTY MUCH A STEADY TALK ABOUT TRANSITION FROM 2020
[00:35:01]
TO 2025, INDICATING THAT IT'S NOT JUST A ONE TIME THING.EVAN, OH, SORRY, I I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT.
DO, DID YOU HEAR ME EARLIER? OKAY.
UM, IN CONTRAST, BELONGING, CAMARADERIE AND MEANINGFUL SOCIAL CONNECTION WERE DESCRIBED AS PROTECTIVE FACTORS THAT SUPPORT LONG, LONG-TERM STABILITY.
UH, COMMUNITY WAS NOT, UH, FRAMED AT ALL AS A SUPPLEMENTAL SERVICE, BUT AS A STABILIZING CONDITION THAT STRENGTHENS ENGAGEMENT ACROSS MENTAL HEALTH, EMPLOYMENT, AND NAVIGATION SYSTEMS. SO PARTICIPANTS AT THE VIF, THEY HAD SOME REALLY GREAT IDEAS.
AND SOME OF THE APPROACHES THAT THEY SUGGESTED FOR STRENGTHENING SOCIAL CONNECTIONS WERE THINGS LIKE BUDDY CHECK SYSTEMS, INTEREST-BASED GROUPS, INTERGENERATIONAL VETERAN MEETUPS, CAREGIVER SUPPORT NETWORKS, PODCAST OR MEDIA PLATFORMS AND NEIGHBORHOOD-BASED GATHERINGS.
UM, THE VIIF TOPIC MODELING DONE BY DR. MCGEE ALIGNED WITH THOSE QUALITATIVE FINDINGS AND REINFORCE THAT COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL FACTORS, THAT CONNECTION WAS ESSENTIAL.
AND AGAIN, UM, UH, PROTECTIVE FACTORS FOR VETERAN WELLBEING.
HOWEVER, THE REDDIT TOPIC MODELING, UM, DID NOT SURFACE A STANDALONE.
IT WAS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT, A STRUCTURAL TOPIC WHILE WORDS SUCH AS COMMUNITY, RIGHT, AND HELP, UM, PEOPLE APPEARED ACROSS MULTIPLE TOPICS.
THEY DIDN'T CLUSTER INTO A COHESIVE THEME LIKE THEY DID AT BIIF.
UH, AND, AND, AND IT DIDN'T CENTER EXPLICITLY ON SOCIAL CONNECTION.
SO, UM, INSTEAD, UM, EXPRESSIONS OF CONNECTION IN THE REDDIT WERE, UM, EMBEDDED WITHIN OTHER DISCUSSIONS FRAMED MORE SO AS LIKE INFORMAL ADVICE AND ENCOURAGEMENT OR SHARED EXPERIENCES, RATHER THAN A EXPLICIT CALL FOR COMMUNITY BUILDING INTERVENTIONS.
AND THIS SUGGESTS THEN THAT THE REDDIT KIND OF FUNCTIONS AS A FORM OF COMMUNITY IN PRACTICE, UM, EVEN IF THE USERS DON'T EXPLICITLY LABEL IT AS SUCH.
SO THE IN INSIGHT FOR THE COMMUNITY IS THAT, UM, IS HERE WITH THESE, UM, SPATIAL DISTRIBUTIONS THAT ARE KIND OF HIGHLIGHTING THESE PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS AND WHERE THERE COULD POTENTIALLY BE, UM, OBVIOUS, UH, UM, COMMUNITY CONNECTION OPPORTUNITY.
SO THAT THE NEXT SLIDE, AND THAT'S FOR YOU, DR.
SO THIS IS A REALLY INTERESTING SLIDE.
THIS SHOWS THE, UM, THE STARS, YOU SEE THE STAR POINTS, THOSE ARE, UH, RESOURCES, COMMUNITY RESOURCES THAT VETERANS AT THE VIFF IDENTIFIED THEMSELVES.
UM, SPECIFIC RESOURCES THAT WERE OF GREAT IMPORTANCE, GREAT ENOUGH IMPORTANCE THAT THEY WERE IDENTIFIED IN THE EVENT.
AND THEN THE OTHER DOTS, THE PURPLE DOTS ARE OTHER COMMUNITY RESOURCES, WHETHER THEY'RE CITY RESOURCES, FEDERAL RESOURCES ARE NONPROFITS THAT ARE ALSO SCATTERED AROUND THE CITY SO THAT YOU CAN, YOU CAN SEE IN SOME WAYS THE SPREAD IS PRETTY BROAD THAT THE VETERANS IDENTIFIED IN RESOURCES THROUGHOUT THE CITY RATHER THAN JUST ONE OR TWO OF THEM.
UM, BUT THEN THERE WERE OF COURSE, ADDITIONAL RESOURCES THAT WEREN'T IDENTIFIED.
THIS MAP IS HELPFUL ALSO 'CAUSE IT SHOWS THE DIFFERENT COUNCIL DISTRICTS.
YOU CAN SEE WHICH OF THE SPECIFIC RESOURCES THAT VETERANS FOUND MOST IMPORTANT IN YOUR SPECIFIC COUNCIL DISTRICT AREA.
AND JUST TO REAL QUICK BEFORE YOU GO THERE, JUST THAT OPPORTUNITY INSIGHT HERE IS THAT LIKE STRENGTHENING THESE SOCIAL CONNECTIONS, YOU KNOW, FOR THAT PARTICULAR ONE WOULD REINFORCE THE, UM, THE, THE STRENGTH, UH, STRENGTHEN THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE EXISTING SYSTEMS AND, UM, RATHER THAN, UM, RATHER THAN COMPETING WITH 'EM, RIGHT? BY HAVING THAT POTENTIAL INTERVENTION AND STRENGTHENING THAT INTERVENTION.
SO, UM, SO FOR THE INTEREST OF TIME, I THINK I'M GOING TO SLIGHTLY CONNECT THESE NEXT TWO.
SO WE ARE LOOKING AT EMPLOYMENT HERE AND HOUSING AS THE NEXT THEME, AND BOTH EMPLOYMENT AND HOUSING ARE REALLY INTERRELATED.
CAN YOU GO BACK ONE? WE CAN JUST LEAVE THE, THE, THE WORDS UP HERE.
UM, IN BOTH CASES, UH, WE DISCOVERED THAT, UM, THE ISSUE OF EMPLOYMENT IS HIGHLY TIED TO THE, IN, IN EACH OF THE, THE WAYS THAT WHEN THEY WERE STUDIED THROUGH THE MAPS, THROUGH THE,
[00:40:01]
UM, SOCIAL MEDIA POSTING AND THROUGH THE VIF, WE DISCOVERED THAT EMPLOYMENT WAS TIED QUITE FREQUENTLY TO HOUSING.AND IT WAS ALSO TIED QUITE FREQUENTLY TO SPECIFIC, UM, VETERAN EVENTS SUCH AS DISCHARGE TIMING PATHWAYS TO GET SPECIFIC EMPLOYMENTS, UM, COORDINATION.
SO THE STABILITY OF EMPLOYMENT WAS LESS ABOUT THE VETERANS NOT BEING, UM, ELIGIBLE FOR THE JOBS THEMSELVES AS IT WAS ABOUT THE KIND OF LINKAGE.
SO AGAIN, WE ARE BACK TO THIS THEME ABOUT LINKAGE THAT CAME THROUGH IN ALL OF THEM.
UM, THERE ARE PAIRS OF MAPS THROUGHOUT THE STUDY THAT TAKE EACH OF THESE THEMES AND SHOW THESE, THESE TWO, UM, CONTRASTING WAYS OF LOOKING AT THE DATA.
THE ONE ON THE LEFT IS THE RESOURCE LOCATIONS.
SO THESE ARE ALL THE RESOURCES THAT ARE RELATED TO EMPLOYMENT AND WHERE THEY ARE IN THE CITY.
AND AGAIN, YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE ONES THAT THE VETERANS RECOGNIZED WITH THE STARS AND THE ONES WITH THE POINTS THAT WERE, ARE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES THAT WERE NOT NECESSARILY MENTIONED.
ON THE RIGHT IS, UM, A STUDY OF HOW THE VETERANS LOOKED AT EACH OF THESE RESOURCES.
SO THE POSITIVE, NEUTRAL AND NEGATIVE COLORS, THE POSITIVE IS PINK, AND THE NEGATIVE IS THE DARKER PURPLE.
UM, SORRY, THE NEGATIVE IS THE BLUE.
IS, IS A WAY FOR US TO TRY AND UNDERSTAND IF THERE WERE SPECIFIC AREAS OF THE CITY WHERE VETERANS FELT THEY WERE REALLY NOT BEING SUPPORTED.
I THINK THE ANSWER IS BROADLY THAT THERE ISN'T A SPECIFIC AREA OF THE CITY WHERE THEY'RE NOT SUPPORTED.
THAT THE POSITIVE POINTS, THE PINK ONES ARE PRETTY SCATTERED AND THAT THE NEGATIVE ONES ARE SCATTERED AS WELL, SO THAT PEOPLE, SOME PEOPLE WOULD SPEAK WELL AND SOME BADLY ABOUT MAYBE EVEN THE SAME LOCATION, UM, WHICH REALLY MEANS THAT A LOT OF THE ISSUES ARE NOT SPECIFIC FAILURES OF A PARTICULAR, UM, RESOURCE, BUT RATHER THE INTERCONNECTIONS BETWEEN THEM.
UM, SIMILARLY WHEN WE GET TO HOUSING, WE CAN SEE THAT THE HOUSING CHALLENGES ARE CLOSELY CONNECTED TO THE ISSUE OF EMPLOYMENT, BEING ABLE TO LIVE CLOSE TO WHERE YOU WORK, AND OF COURSE, TO THE ISSUE OF ACCESS, HOW, HOW MUCH YOUR HOUSING WAS IN AN AREA WHERE YOU WERE ABLE TO GET ACCESS TO THE OTHER RESOURCES.
WE DISCOVERED THAT HOUSING BECOMES KEY, NOT NECESSARILY JUST FOR ITSELF, BUT FOR THE FACT THAT THE INSTABILITY OF HOUSING TRIGGERS THE EMOTIONAL RESPONSES.
THE, UM, THE, THE, THE, THOSE HEAT MAP GRAPHS, UM, UNDER THE HOUSING THEME, UM, ARE REALLY STRONG BECAUSE THEY, THE EMOTIONAL RESPONSES RELATED TO HOUSING ARE VERY STRONG AND STRONGLY RELATED TO THE OTHER ISSUES THAT WERE DISCOVERED.
UM, HOUSING, JUST LIKE EMPLOYMENT HAS A CONSISTENCY CONCERN THROUGHOUT THE YEARS OF THE STUDY.
AND AGAIN, UM, I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH IT THIS TIME, BUT YOU CAN SEE SIMILARLY THAT IN THE STUDY WE HAVE THESE MAPS SHOWING WHERE THE HOUSING RESOURCES ARE DISTRIBUTED AROUND THE CITY, AND AGAIN, THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE POINTS OF VIEW OF THE VETERANS ABOUT EACH OF THOSE PARTICULAR RESOURCES.
SO HEALTHCARE ACCESS IS, IS ME.
AND, UM, THIS IS A BIG ONE AS WELL AS WE'VE SEEN.
IT'S, IT'S ONE OF THOSE ONES THAT CAN BE VERY CONFUSING, UM, FOR NAVIGATING THE SYSTEM.
UM, SO THE BARRIERS ARE INCLUDING REFERRAL BREAKDOWNS, THE COMPLEXITY OF THE SYSTEM, AND AGAIN, THIS NOTION OF A CULTURAL MISMATCH BETWEEN PROVIDERS AND VETERANS.
SO LET'S GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
WHAT, WHAT WAS INTERESTING ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC? SO IN THE VIIF HEALTHCARE WAS PRESENTED AS ONE OF THE BROAD TOPICS IN THE, UH, REDDIT DATA.
IT SPLIT INTO TWO WHERE ONE HEALTHCARE TOPIC WAS ABOUT MEDICAL CLAIMS NAVIGATION, AND THE OTHER ONE WAS ABOUT HEALTHCARE ACCESS.
SO I HAVE TWO HEAT MAPS, LIKE I DESCRIBED EARLIER.
THE SAME EIGHT EMOTIONS ARE ON THE ROWS AND THE SAME YEARS ARE REPRESENTED ACROSS THE COLUMNS.
BUT YOU CAN SEE THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF DIFFERENCE IN THE SCALES.
AND YOU CAN SEE THAT HEALTHCARE ACCESS HAS MORE INTENSE CHANGE IN EMOTION, PARTICULARLY IN SADNESS, FEAR, AND TRUST THAN DOES, UM, CLAIMS. AND INTERESTING ABOUT CLAIMS IS THAT CLAIMS TENDS TO AT LEAST STARTING IN ABOUT LATE 2023, EARLY 2024, YOU SEE THIS KIND OF THE RED STARTS TO COME IN THERE AROUND FEAR AND TRUST AND SADNESS.
AND IT PRETTY MUCH STAYS AT THAT SAME LEVEL.
IT DOESN'T REALLY CHANGE, BUT AT HEALTHCARE THERE'S A KIND OF A SPIKE AT THE SAME TIME PERIOD, EARLY 2024, MAYBE THAT'S MID 2024, AND THEN IT GOES DOWN.
SO, UM, THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON THERE.
I WASN'T, I DID NOT HAVE TIME TO DIG INTO THE POST ABOUT WHAT EXACTLY IS GOING ON THERE, BUT THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF A DIFFERENCE THAT
[00:45:01]
VETERANS FEEL IN EMOTIONS WHEN, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CLAIMS VERSUS ACCESS.SO ACCESS TENDS TO BE A SHARP TRIGGER OF EMOTION AND CLAIMS TENDS TO BE SOMETHING THAT'S MORE CHRONIC.
THAT'S THE WAY, THAT'S THE WAY THAT I INTERPRET THAT, THAT IT GOES ON FOR A LITTLE BIT LONGER THAN SAY, UM, ACTUAL ACCESS.
SO, UM, LET'S GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
SO WITH, UM, FAM, UH, UH, THEME AID IS LIKE FAMILY SHOULDERING, SHOULDER HIDDEN LABOR, BASICALLY WITHOUT RECOGNITION AND SUPPORT.
AND SOME OF THE THINGS THAT COME UP HAVE TO DO WITH MARRIAGE STRAIN AND MARRIAGE MANAGEMENT THAT CREATE SYSTEM INSTABILITY AND CHILDCARE BARRIERS, OF COURSE, UM, LACK OF CAREGIVER SPECIFIC NAVIGATION, PARTICULARLY IF THE PERSON THAT THEY'RE CARING FOR DOESN'T HAVE THE CAPACITY TO BE ABLE TO DO SO.
UM, FAMILY MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS WERE BROUGHT UP FREQUENTLY.
UM, AND THEN ABSENCE OF CENTRALIZED VISIBLE RES RESOURCE SPACE DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR FAMILIES.
UM, I'M SURE YOU'RE SEEING SOME THEMES WE HERE TOGETHER, BUT ACROSS, UM, ALL OF THE METHODS HERE, FAMILIES OPERATE, UM, YOU KNOW, AS A STABILIZING INFRASTRUCTURE WITHIN THE VETERAN ECOSYSTEM.
AND, UH, THEY MITIGATE ADMINISTRATIVE STRAIN, UH, BUFFER EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, AND SUSTAINED CONTINUITY BETWEEN, UH, UM, DURING THESE PERIODS OF TRANSITION.
SO, HOWEVER, BECAUSE THIS LABOR IS INFORMAL AND DIFFUSED, IT REMAINS STRUCTURALLY INVISIBLE.
SO THAT BECOMES LIKE AN OPPORTUNITY RIGHT, TO, TO STRENGTHEN THAT SYSTEM.
SO DESIGNING SYSTEMS THAT EXPLICITLY MIGHT, UM, ACCOUNT FOR CAREGIVER ROLES, UM, THROUGH INCLUSION AND TRAINING AND DEDICATED RESOURCE PATHWAYS MAY, UM, REDUCE DOWNSTREAM INSTABILITY AND STRENGTHEN THOSE LONG-TERM OUTCOMES THAT YOU MIGHT BE LOOKING FOR.
AND I'LL TALK ABOUT LEGAL CHALLENGES.
SO LEGAL AND JUSTICE ISSUES, THIS IS INTERESTING.
THEY'RE INTERWOVEN, OF COURSE, WITH MENTAL HEALTH, HOUSING AND ELIGIBILITY AND SOME OF THE STRUCTURAL PATTERNS THAT WERE IDENTIFIED HAD TO DO WITH, YOU KNOW, VETERAN COURTS.
AND SOME OF THE PROGRAMS WERE DESCRIBED AS, UM, CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE AND EFFECTIVE.
YET THEY WERE CONSTRAINED IN SCALE AND ELIGIBILITY.
UH, ANOTHER THING MIGHT BE VETERANS FREQUENTLY REPORTED NOT KNOWING TO SEEK LEGAL SUPPORT OR ASSUME THAT RESOURCES WERE AFF UNAFFORDABLE, RIGHT? SO, UM, IT WAS INTERESTING 'CAUSE WHEN WE LOOKED AT LIKE THESE LEGAL DIMENSIONS OF THE VIIF IN PARTICULAR, LIKE A TERM LIKE BENEFITS NAVIGATION AND ACCESS BARRIERS, UM, LIKE THE EMBEDDED LEGAL OR JUSTICE DIMENSION MIGHT BE THAT, UM, THERE'S PROCEDURAL COMPLEXITY, REGULATORY ELIGIBILITY THRESHOLDS AND BUREAUCRATIC ADJUDICATION TYPE OF ISSUES.
AND THEN THE POLICY IMPLICATIONS COULD BE SOMETHING LIKE THIS, SIMPLIFYING INTAKE PATHWAYS CO-LOCATE LEGAL AID WITHIN VETERANS AND SERVICE HUBS THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT QUITE A BIT ALREADY.
ANOTHER EXAMPLE MIGHT BE, AND THIS IS A BIG ONE, AND KIND OF FORESHADOWING WHAT'S GONNA BE COMING IN, UH, SOON, IS ABOUT DATA SHARING GOVERNANCE AND FORMAL AGREEMENTS, WHICH IS A BIG FEASIBILITY ISSUE, BUT IT'S WORTH TALKING ABOUT FOR SURE.
BUT THE EMBEDDED LEGAL OR JUSTICE DIMENSION IS, YOU KNOW, LEGAL AGREEMENTS, INTERAGENCY DATA COMPLIANCE AND PRIVACY CONSTRAINTS ARE, YOU KNOW, COMPLICATED, RIGHT? AND THAT THE POLICY IMPLICATION MIGHT BE TO DEVELOP STANDARDIZED INTERAGENCY MOUS TO THE EXTENT THAT YOU CAN WITHIN LOCUS AND CONTROL, OF COURSE, TO REDUCE FRAGMENTATION AND IMPROVE THE COORDINATED CARE.
UM, SO IT WAS INTERESTING, THERE'S A CONTRAST WITH THE REDDIT TOPIC MODELING.
UM, THE AS LEGAL THEMES DID NOT, UM, SURFACE AS DISTINCT, UH, THEMES IN, IN, IN THE REDDIT, UM, ANALYSIS TERMS SUCH AS COURT LEGAL APPEAL, INCARCERATION, THEY JUST, IT, IT, THESE DIDN'T CLUSTER TOGETHER AS YOU DESCRIBE HOW THE METHOD WORKS.
BUT, UM, SO THERE WAS A LITTLE BIT OF A DIVERGENCE BETWEEN THE VII FINDINGS AND THE RETIC TOPIC STRUCTURE.
UM, WHICH BASICALLY GIVES US AN INSIGHT, LIKE THE METHOD METHODOLOGICAL INSIGHT IS THAT JUSTICE RELATED BARRIERS ARE MORE VISIBLE AND STRUCTURED, FACILITATED CONVERSATIONS THAN IN OPEN PURE FORMS. SO MULTI METHOD ANALYSIS, THEREFORE IT KIND OF BECOMES ESSENTIAL TO BE ABLE TO DIG INTO WHAT THE ISSUES ARE, RIGHT? IF YOU'RE JUST LOOKING AT ONE VERSUS THE OTHER, THEN YOU MIGHT MISS THE, MISS THE BOAT BASICALLY FOR THAT PARTICULAR OUTCOME.
SO AS FAR AS LEGAL, UM, ISSUES, UM, THEY OFTENTIMES, YOU KNOW, ULTIMATELY WE SEE THAT
[00:50:01]
THE DATA TELLS US, UM, TELLING US THAT MULTIPLE VULNERABILITIES MIGHT CONVERGE AT ONCE.SO FOR INSTANCE, MENTAL HEALTH STRAIN, HOUSING INSTABILITY, EMPLOYMENT DISRUPTION, AND IN ELIGIBILITY, UM, BARRIERS, THESE CAN INTERSECT IN WAYS THAT INCREASE THE LIKELIHOOD OF LEGAL INVOLVEMENT.
OKAY, THIS, IT MAKES SENSE OF COURSE, BUT STRENGTHENING LIKE AS FAR AN ACTION, RIGHT? STRENGTHENING THE EARLY INTERVENTION AND CROSS SYSTEM COORDINATION, PARTICULARLY AROUND THESE MENTAL HEALTH CARE, DISCHARGE STATUS, GUIDANCE, ELIGIBILITY, NAVIGATION, ET CETERA, PROACTIVE REFERRAL PATHWAYS MAY REDO REDUCE THE CONDITIONS FOR WHICH LEGAL IN INVOLVEMENT BECOMES NECESSARY.
SO IN SHORT, MS RAINEY LEGAL STABILIZATION STABILIZATION IS LESS ABOUT COURTROOM INTERVENTION AND MORE ABOUT REINFORCING THESE UPSTREAM COORDINATION ACROSS THESE INTERCONNECTED SYSTEMS, SO PREVENTATIVE RATHER THAN REACTIVE.
SO, UM, LAST HERE IS SYSTEMS FRAGMENTATION, AND I'M GONNA KICK IT OFF.
SO, UM, JUST REAL QUICK, SOME OF THE STRUCTURAL, UM, UH, PATTERN IDENTIFIED IS, UM, ABSENCE OF SHARED DATA STANDARDS, UM, INCONSISTENT COORDINATION AND REFERRAL PRACTICES, SOME THINGS LIKE, UM, ORGAN FINDING, FINDING STRUCTURES THAT INCENTIVIZE COMPETITION AND MIXED MESSAGING TO VETERANS.
I'M GONNA PASS IT OFF TO DR. MCGEE TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE, ONE OF THESE, UM, IMAGES HEREIN.
SO THIS IS, UH, THIS IS AN, I DEVELOPED SOMETHING CALLED THE FRAGMENTATION INDEX.
AND THE FRAGMENTATION INDEX WAS VERY MUCH LIKE THE OTHER, UM, THE TRANSITION SCORE THAT YOU SAW.
THE, IT'S THE SAME IDEA WHERE I'M TAKING WORDS THAT ARE RELATED TO FRAGMENTED SERVICES.
UM, AND, UH, LIKE THE RUNAROUND, UM, REFERRAL, THOSE KINDS OF WORDS, MEANING PEOPLE WERE SHIFTED AROUND THE SYSTEM AND DEVELOPING AN INDEX TO INDICATE WHAT TOPICS THOSE TEND TO ASSOCIATE WITH.
SO HOW DO YOU READ THIS? YOU CAN SEE THAT THE HEALTHCARE HANDOFFS TENDS TO HAVE THE HIGHEST FRAGMENTATION ACTS OF INDEX, AND THAT MEANS THAT IT'S THE WORST OFFENDER IN SOME WAY.
THAT'S WHERE THOSE TERMS SHOW UP THE MOST.
SO YOU CAN ALSO SEE, IF YOU WERE TO DIVIDE 3.86, IT'S ROUGHLY FOUR BY LOCAL HOUSING AND LOCAL SUPPORT, THAT'S ABOUT ONE.
YOU'D SEE THAT THIS IS ABOUT FOUR TIMES SAY AS AS DIFFICULT THE HAIR, HEALTHCARE AND OUT CONDOS IN TERMS OF FRAGMENTATION THAN HOUSING.
SO THERE'S KIND OF A BIG DIFFERENCE HERE.
AND THESE ARE THE THREE MAIN OFFENDERS, IF YOU WILL, THE HEALTHCARE HANDOFFS, THE MEDICAL CLAIMS AND EVIDENCE AND EDUCATION BENEFITS.
GETTING THOSE THINGS PUT TOGETHER, UM, WOULD GO A LONG WAY, I THINK, INTO HELPING VETERANS NAVIGATE SYSTEM.
AND I THINK THAT'S THE MESSAGE FROM THIS PARTICULAR SLIDE.
LET'S GO ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
AND I BELIEVE THAT'S, SO THAT IS ME.
SO, UM, I GUESS THIS IS REALLY WHERE, WHERE DOES THIS ALL LIKE LEAD UP TO, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, SO WE GET, YOU KNOW, WE WERE RUNNING ALL OF THESE ANALYSIS AND WE'RE USING THESE DIFFERENT METHODS, THESE THEMES ARISE, AND THEN PART OF OUR PROMISE TO YOU IS TO PUT 'EM INTO SOME RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, REALIZING THAT SOME THINGS ARE EASIER TO DO AND SOME THINGS ARE REALLY HARD TO DO.
WHAT WE, UH, DECIDED TO DO IS FRAME THEM, UM, UH, BY IMPACT AND FEASIBILITY.
SO, UM, AND, AND KNOW THAT THIS IS, AGAIN, INFORMED BY THE CONVERGENCE OF ALL THESE METHODS AND, UM, ALL OF THESE THINGS IN MIND.
SO IT'S JUST KIND OF THE SUMMATION OR THE CULMINATION OF THESE THINGS.
SO FIRST, UM, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
UM, THE, THE, AS FAR AS IMPACT, OH, OH, NEXT SLIDE AS WELL.
I, I THINK I THEY HIGH, HIGH FEASIBILITY NEAR TERM IMPACT.
SO THESE, UM, THESE ARE REALLY THESE THINGS THAT YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO RIGHT AWAY WITHOUT HUGE STRUCTURAL OVERHAUL.
OKAY, SO, UM, SOME THINGS LIKE STANDARDIZING REFERRAL AND WARM HANDOFF PRACTICES.
SO WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS? GET FRAGMENTATION APPEARS AT THESE MOST ACUTE POINTS WHERE THERE'S TRANSFER BETWEEN PROVIDERS, AGENCY AND BENEFIT SYSTEMS, AND SOME OF THE IDEAS THAT MIGHT, YOU KNOW, JUST TO GET EVERYBODY THINKING ABOUT WHAT COULD POSSIBLY HAPPENING, MAYBE THERE COULD BE A SHARED REFERRAL TEMPLATE, TEMPLATES ACROSS VETERAN SERVING, SERVING ORGANIZATIONS.
MAYBE THERE'S CLOSED LOOP REFERRAL TRACKING, UM, CONFIRMATION PROTOCOLS, YOU KNOW, REFERRALS, RECEIVED APPOINTMENT SCHEDULES, ET CETERA, AND AGREED UPON RESPONSE TIME BENCHMARKS.
ANOTHER, UM, THEME THAT COMES OUT OF THIS IS DEVELOP A UNIFIED VETERAN RESOURCE VISIBILITY
[00:55:01]
VISIBILITY PLATFORM.AND, UM, UH, COMMISSIONER ORTEGA, REMEMBER IT WAS CALLED THE HUB.
THAT IS WHAT PEOPLE TALKED ABOUT IT, IT'S THE HUB CONCEPT IS WHAT WE'RE, WE'RE POINTING OUT HERE.
SO, AND AS WE RECALL THAT THE PARTICIPATORY MAPPING THAT DR.
ZAGA WAS SHARING, THERE HAS MANY EXISTING RESOURCES, BUT WHAT WE REALIZE IS THAT THEY'RE NOT RECOGNIZED CLEARLY OR UNDERSTOOD AS AVAILABLE BY ALL VETERANS.
SO IF HAVING ONE PLACE TO START, YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO HAVE A CENTRALIZED DIGITAL AND OR PHYSICAL ENTRY POINTS.
UM, SHARED REG, UM, A SHARED DIRECTORY, UM, CLEAR ELIGIBILITY FILTERS AS FAR AS DISCHARGE TYPE AND, UM, GEOGRAPHY, GEN, GENDER, ET CETERA.
UM, INTEGRATION WITH MUNICIPAL NAVIGATION SYSTEMS, ET CETERA.
AND THEN THE THIRD, UM, FOR THIS HIGH VISIBILITY, NEAR TERMS THAT WE COULD DO FAST, UH, PROVIDE SURGE NAVIGATION DURING FEDERAL CLAIMS EXPANSION.
SO THIS HAS TO DO AT THIS TIME WHERE THERE'S ME MEASURABLE SPIKES AND STRESS RELATED EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCES.
SO, UM, MAYBE IT IS TEMPORARY NAVIGATION TEAMS HAVING A BETTER SENSE WHEN, UM, KNOWN CLAIMS AND THESE EMOTIONS ARE SURGING AND THAT THERE'S PEER LED MORE TIMELY PEER LED INFORMATIONAL SESSIONS AND COORDINATING MESSAGING, KIND OF A PR THING BETWEEN THE, A LOCAL PARTNERS, THE CITY, ET CETERA.
AND THEN, UM, MONITORING, UM, KIND OF THIS BACKLOG RESPONSE TIME.
DO YOU WANT ME TO GO TO THE NEXT
AND WE HAVE THREE WITH THIS AS WELL.
AND THAT IS TO EXPAND MILITARY CULTURAL COMPETENCY ACROSS THE SYSTEM.
SO, YOU KNOW, THE HEALTH, AND THESE REALLY COME FROM THESE HEALTHCARE AND JUSTICE FINDINGS THAT INDICATE THAT VETERANS OFTEN PERCEIVE THESE GAPS IS, UM, IN TRAUMA INFORMED AND SERVICE INFORMED UNDERSTANDING.
SO BASICALLY WHAT THIS MIGHT LOOK LIKE IS CROSS TRAINING FOR HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS, JUSTICE ACTORS AND CASE MANAGERS, TRAUMA INFORMED INTAKE STANDARDS, GENDER SPECIFIC VETERAN HEALTH TRAINING AND DIVERSION AWARENESS, EDUCATION AND JUSTICE SETTINGS, FOR INSTANCE, A SECOND ONE, AGAIN, IN THAT MID RANGE, BUT STILL QUITE DOABLE.
UM, DESIGNED TRANSITION AS A MULTI-STAGE PROCESS.
SO MAYBE THERE'S AN, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT CAME UP A LOT IN THE BIF SOME OF YOU MIGHT REMEMBER VOLUNTARY, SIX, 12 AND 24 MONTH CHECK-INS, RELOCATION SENSITIVE RESOURCE PACKAGES, EARLY CLAIM CYCLE EDUCATION, AND MAYBE LIGHT TOUCH DIGITAL FOLLOW UP.
SO AT THE, I KNOW, WELCOME HOSPITALITY AT HIGH LEVELS.
AND THEN THE LAST WOULD BE, UM, STRENGTHENING THE BACKBONE GOVERNMENT NEEDS ACROSS THE COALITIONS.
UM, MULTI THE FINDINGS KIND OF DESCRIBE MULTIPLE COALITIONS, BUT LIMITED SHARED ACCOUNTABILITY AND DATA ALIGNMENT AND UNIFIED DIRECTION.
SO I GUESS BASICALLY THEY INFO WAS ALIGNED AND TALKING TO EACH OTHER IS WHAT PEOPLE WERE KIND OF LOOKING FOR.
SO, UM, I'LL PASS THIS NOW ON TO DR. MCGEE TO TALK ABOUT THE LONGER STRUCTURAL, UM, INVESTMENTS THAT ACTUALLY BE IN PLACE.
SO THESE ARE LONG TERM MEANING THEY'RE GONNA TAKE SOME TIME AND OR MONEY TO, UH, DEVELOP.
AND THIS IS THIS IDEA OF INTEROPERABLE DATA SYSTEMS WHERE DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS CAN ACCESS MAYBE THE SAME DATABASE OR VERY SIMILAR DATABASES.
SO THAT WOULD MAKE IT EASIER TO TRACK INDIVIDUALS AS THEY GO THROUGH THE SYSTEM.
ALSO COORDINATED SUPPORT AT DISCHARGE.
SO DISCHARGE IS A, IS ONE OF THOSE POINTS WHERE YOU ACTUALLY HAVE ACCESS TO THE VETERAN VERY, VERY, UH, UH, IN A PERSONAL WAY.
AND SO, UM, TO BE ABLE TO, AT THAT POINT, MEET THE VETERAN WHERE THAT PERSON NEEDS IT AND TRY TO COORDINATE SUPPORT AT THAT POINT.
SO, UM, SO I, WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT DIS OR TRANSITION AS A MULTI-STAGE THING, BUT OF COURSE, DISCHARGE IS KIND OF A ONE TIME THING.
SO THAT'S A TIME WHEN YOU REALLY DO HAVE MORE ACCESS TO THE INDIVIDUALS.
UM, SO FINAL TAKEAWAY, AND WE'VE SAID THIS MULTIPLE TIMES THROUGH THIS, OUR, OUR CHALLENGES ARE SYSTEMIC, THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY INDIVIDUAL, AND IT'S GONNA REQUIRE COORDINATION ACROSS SYSTEMS. IT'S GONNA REQUIRE SOME NAVIGATION INFRASTRUCTURE, SOME RELATIONAL SUPPORTS, AND SOME STRUCTURAL INVESTMENT ON THE PART OF THE CITY TO MAKE THE VETERAN EXPERIENCE IN THE CITY OF DALLAS
[01:00:02]
A MODEL FOR THE REST OF BIG CITIES IN OUR COUNTRY.SO, UM, AND THAT IS ALL THAT WE HAVE.
WE ARE WILLING TO TAKE YOUR QUESTIONS AT THIS POINT IF WE HAVE TIME FOR THAT.
I KNOW WE ARE RIGHT AT ONE O'CLOCK.
UH, BEFORE WE HAVE QUESTIONS, UH, ANYBODY NEEDS TO TAKE A BREAK FOR THE RESTROOM AND
IF ANYBODY, UH, WOULD LIKE A SANDWICH.
IF NOT, THEN THE FLOOR IS OPEN FOR QUESTIONS THERE.
GREEN LIGHT, MY NAME, I'M A PUBLIC SPEAKER TODAY.
I'M NOT ON THE COMMISSION ANYMORE, AND HAPPY TO WELCOME JOE, MY REPLACEMENT THAT I ASKED FOR.
I, I DID NOT LIVE IN THE DISTRICT, SO THAT'S THE REASON I ASKED FOR IT TO BE REPLACED.
UM, AS A A FORMER COMMISSIONER THOUGH, I WANNA TAKE ABOUT TWO MINUTES TO COMPLIMENT SMU ON WHAT THEY DID AND ALSO GIVE A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY AND ENCOURAGE YOU AS THE NEW COMMISSIONERS, ALL COMMISSIONERS TO TAKE SOME POSITIVE ACTION IN TERMS OF THIS REPORT.
AS YOU REMEMBER, IT TOOK US ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF, UH, ON THE COMMISSION TO FIGURE OUT THAT WE NEEDED TO GET AN ASSESSMENT LIKE THIS.
UH, MOST OF US KNEW THESE PROBLEMS WERE THERE, BUT IT WAS ALL ANECDOTAL.
IT WAS ALL PERSONAL, WHATEVER.
AND, UH, SOMEHOW WE ALL CAME UP WITH THE IDEA OF A WELL, UH, WELLNESS ASSESSMENT.
WE WORK WITH THE CITY AND SOME OF YOU TO WRITE.
THE RFP CAME UP WITH A WONDERFUL, UH, GOALS FOR THE RFP AND FOR THE REPORT ITSELF.
AND REALISTICALLY, WHAT THEY TOLD US IS WHAT WE KNEW.
YOU HAVE THE FACTS TO GO TO THE CITY COUNCIL AND ASK FOR SOME SPECIFIC STEPS, AND IT'LL BE, UH, YOU HAVE A MEETING, I THINK IN, UH, APRIL, WHERE YOU CAN PUT TOGETHER A, WHAT I WOULD CALL A COVER LETTER TO SAY TO THE CITY, CITY COUNCIL, THIS IS WHAT WE WANT OUT OF THIS REPORT.
UH, QUITE HONESTLY, NO ONE IN THE CITY COUNCIL IS GONNA READ ALL OF THOSE PAGES.
SO IT'S UP TO YOU GUYS TO, UH, WRITE SOMETHING THAT THEY WILL ACT ON.
AND I ENCOURAGE YOU TO, UM, FOCUS ON THE NAVIGATION ISSUE AND TO FOCUS ON MENTAL HEALTH, UH, AS A HEALTHCARE LAWYER, UH, HAVE REPRESENTED MENTALLY ILL WITH VETERANS THAT I KNOW THE PROBLEMS THAT ARE THERE.
UH, SO IF YOU PRIORITIZE, I THINK YOU CAN GET THE CITY COUNCIL TO TAKE SOME ACTION.
AND SOME OF THE PRIORITIES OUGHT TO BE SOMETHING THAT AS THEY POINT OUT, FEASIBLE, NOT TOO EXPENSIVE.
'CAUSE WE ALL KNOW THAT THE CITY OF DALLAS HAS BUDGET PROBLEMS, BUT THERE ARE SOME THINGS IN HERE THAT WE, THAT THE CITY COUNCIL CAN DO, CAN AUTHORIZE, BUT YOU NEED TO BE CAREFUL HOW YOU ASK FOR IT.
AND YOU NEED TO BE SURE VERY SPECIFICALLY WHAT YOU ASK FOR.
AND I THINK THE CITY STAFF, UH, HAS BEEN REALLY GOOD AT HELP, HELPING US, HELPING YOU FIGURE OUT WHAT TO ASK FOR.
UH, AND IF WE GET A BUDGET THAT'S, UH, PROPER AND AFFORDABLE AND HAS SOME CONCRETE STEPS, LIKE A NAVIGATION HUB, THAT'S, THAT WAS WHAT WE ALL KNEW WAS GONNA BE THE PROBLEM, BUT NOW WE HAVE FACTS TO BACK IT UP.
AND I HOPE, UH, OVER THE NEXT MONTH OR SO, THAT, UH, YOU WILL, UH, TAKE, TAKE SOME CONCRETE STEPS TO SYNTHESIZE WHAT YOU'VE BEEN HEARING TODAY, AND I'LL PUT IT INTO ACTION ITEMS THAT THE CITY COUNCIL WILL ACTUALLY TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.
AND I ENCOURAGE EACH OF YOU TO ACTUALLY THEN LOBBY YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBER, BECAUSE THAT'S THE IMPORTANT THING.
IF YOU WANT SOMETHING IN A BUDGET ITEM, AND I THINK THE BUDGET'S COME OUT IN SEPTEMBER, THEY DO IT OVER THE SUMMER, YOU HAVE TO LOBBY THE COUNCIL TO GET THAT BUDGET LIGHT ITEM.
AND I'M HAPPY TO HELP YOU IN THE FUTURE TOO.
ANY, UH, ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR I HAVE A QUESTION.
UM, FIRST OFF, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
I KNOW THIS HAS BEEN A YEAR IN THE WORKS, AND I JUST APPRECIATE, UH, DR. MCGEE FOR EVERYTHING YOU'VE DONE TO PRODUCE SUPPORT.
WE'VE BEEN ANXIOUSLY WAITING FOR THIS REPORT, AND I'M GLAD IT'S FINALLY HERE.
UM, BUT I DO WANNA, UH, ASK A SPECIFIC QUESTION.
UH, DURING YOUR RESEARCH, DID YOU FIND, UH, THE VETERANS THAT ARE LOCATED HERE IN DALLAS, DO YOU KNOW, DO YOU KNOW IF MOST OF 'EM CAME FROM WITHIN THE STATE OR DO YOU HAVE A, A NUMBER WHERE YOU COULD, UH, FIND IF VETERANS CAME FROM THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, OR WERE THERE A LOT OF THEM FROM THE BASE IN FORT WORTH OR, UM, THE ONE IN FORT HOOD? UM, ARE YOU ABLE TO GIVE ANY KIND OF NUMBERS ON THAT? SO WHEN YOU SAY WHERE VETERANS CAME FROM, DO YOU MEAN WHERE THEY GREW UP? WHERE THEY WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL, WHERE LIKE NO, YEAH, LOCATION WISE.
WHEN THEY HAD TO, WHEN THEY WERE IN TRANSITION FROM MILITARY TO CIVILIAN
[01:05:01]
LIFE, WHERE DID THEY COME FROM? UH, BEFORE THEY CAME TO DALLAS.BEFORE THEY CAME TO DALLAS? YES.
AS IN TERMS OF SERVICES, LIKE WHICH, WHICH BRANCH OF THE SERVICE THEY WERE IN? YEAH.
OR OR LIKE WHICH BASE? WHICH BASE? IF THEY WERE COMING FROM WITHIN THE STATE OR THEY'RE COMING FROM DIFFERENT STATES THAT I DON'T KNOW SPECIFICALLY.
WHERE WERE THEY DISCHARGE FROM? WHERE WERE THEY DISCHARGED FROM? YEAH.
I, I DON'T THINK WE HAVE THAT INFORMATION, PARTICULARLY NOT WITH THE REDDIT SOCIAL MEDIA DATA, BECAUSE WE WERE VERY CAREFUL AND ONE OF THE THINGS OUR IRB WANTED ESPECIALLY NOT TO DO, IS TO DIG TOO DEEP IN TO SEE WHERE, YOU KNOW, IF WE COULD LOCATE EXACTLY WHICH INDIVIDUALS WERE POSTING WHAT, 'CAUSE WE DIDN'T WANT THAT.
UM, WELL, THAT'S NOT SOMETHING YOU SHOULD DO.
UM, SO WE COULDN'T REALLY GET THAT GRANULAR ON THE, THE SOCIAL MEDIA DATA.
MAYBE THERE'S SOME INFORMATION IN THERE, BUT I DIDN'T LOOK FOR IT.
UM, AS FAR AS THE V-I-I-F-I BELIEVE WE HAVE SOME STATISTICS ON THAT.
IS IT IN HERE WHERE WE HAVE AT LEAST THE BRANCHES OF THE SERVICE THAT INDIVIDUALS CAME FROM? BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT WE TOOK INFORMATION ON EXACTLY THEIR DISCHARGE POINT.
THE REASON WHY, THE REASON WHY I ASKED IS 'CAUSE I BELIEVE THE COMMISSION SHOULD BE PROACTIVE IN CAPTURING THESE VETERANS THAT ARE TRANSITIONING TO DALLAS BEFORE THEY, YOU KNOW, MAKE THAT MOVE.
UM, I REALLY BELIEVE THAT WE, WE SHOULD, YOU KNOW, NOT WAIT FOR THEM TO ALREADY BE HERE, BUT TO ANTICIPATE THEM COMING HERE.
UM, AND ACTUALLY CAPTURE THEM.
UM, BUT THAT'S WHY I ASK, UM, IF THEY'RE ALREADY COMING FROM DIFFERENT STATES OR IF THEY'RE ALREADY HERE IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.
IT'S AN, IT'S AN EXCELLENT QUESTION, AND I THINK IT, UM, AS YOU THINK ABOUT EVEN THIS HUB OR STANDARDIZED PROCEDURES, THESE MIGHT, THESE ARE GREAT QUESTIONS.
LIKE WHAT, WHAT WILL YOU WANT TO KNOW MOVING FORWARD? WHAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO INFORM, YOU KNOW, YOUR DECISION MAKING AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE, THE COMMUNITY USING SERVICES AND THAT, UM, IT, IT, IF THERE WAS A STANDARDIZATION OF AN INTAKE, INTAKE QUESTIONS, THEN THAT DATA WILL CONTINUE TO BE MORE ROBUST FOR YOU.
BUT WE DIDN'T LOOK FOR THAT FOR SURE.
I, I'M NOT EVEN SURE WHERE WE COULD FIND IT, BUT, UM, I, I, THIS, I, THIS RECOMMENDATION TO STANDARDIZE THESE INTAKE QUESTIONS, PROCESSES, I THINK, I THINK THIS WOULD BE A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION TO PUT IN THAT PROBABLY AMONG OTHER QUESTIONS THAT COULD, UH, CONTINUE TO INFORM, UH, YOU ALL ABOUT WHO'S HERE.
ONE THING I THINK YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO KNOW, OR TO MAYBE NOT WITHOUT TOO MUCH TROUBLE FIGURING OUT, IS WHAT, WHO OF YOUR POPULATION THAT GREW UP IN DALLAS IS IN THE SERVICE.
SO, AND LIKELY THOSE PEOPLE WILL COME BACK TO DALLAS.
ESPECIALLY IF THEIR FAMILY'S STILL HERE.
SO THAT MIGHT GIVE YOU SORT OF A, A BALLPARK FIGURE OF HOW MANY INDIVIDUALS YOU MIGHT BE TALKING ABOUT IN THE FUTURE.
SO IF, YOU KNOW, IF SOMEBODY IS GONNA BE IN THE SERVICE FOR FOUR YEARS, YOU CAN SAY, OKAY, FOUR YEARS, WE EXPECT 400 PEOPLE TO COME THROUGH THE SYSTEM.
SO THAT, THAT MIGHT HELP AT LEAST.
'CAUSE PEOPLE DO TEND TO RETURN TO WHERE THEY GREW UP, ESPECIALLY IN FAMILIES STILL HERE.
SOUNDS LIKE MORE COORDINATION WE NEED TO DO AS A COMMISSION THEN
UM, MY NEXT QUESTION I DO HAVE IS WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THIS HUB, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BENEFITS OR DISADVANTAGES OF HAVING A HUB THAT'S A PHYSICAL LOCATION VERSUS A VIRTUAL LOCATION? SURE.
I, YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY I, I THINK BOTH OF THOSE OPTIONS WERE DISCUSSED AND, UM, AND I OKAY.
UM, I, I, I, I, I DON'T KNOW, I THINK THEY SHOULD BE HAPPENING TOGETHER.
UM, I THINK THAT STRENGTH, THE, THE HUB WILL BECOME STRONGER IF YOU HAVE BOTH.
AND IN THE VII, AH, THAT WAS DISCUSSED QUITE A BIT.
UM, WE COULD HAVE PHYSICAL SPACES, BUT HOW WE ARE, YOU KNOW, LIKE THINGS LIKE AS SIMPLE AS A WEBSITE THAT IS REALLY WELL DESIGNED AND EASILY NAVIGATED, UM, THOSE WERE PART OF THE DISCUSSIONS.
AND SO, UM, I THINK THAT THE CON OF HAVING ONLY ONE WOULD BE THAT PEOPLE CONNECT IN BOTH IN THE DIGITAL WORLD AND, YOU KNOW, VIA INTERNET AND THE DIGITAL WORLD, AND THEY DO IT IN PERSON AND THE PRO WOULD, UH, BE ONLY IF YOU HAD THE, BOTH, BOTH OF THEM TOGETHER.
I THINK, UH, DISTRICT SEVEN, SORRY I WAS
SO BASED ON THAT, UM, I, I THINK BOTH, BOTH IS, IS SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA BE BENEFICIAL, UM, BASED ON USER FRIENDLY.
I THINK HAVING A PHYSICAL PRESENCE, SOMETHING BRICK AND MORTAR WITH SOMEBODY FULLY STAFFED, START SMALL AND THEN KIND OF JUST SCALE BASED ON THE DEMAND FROM THE
[01:10:01]
VETERANS.UH, WHAT, WHAT YOU MENTIONED ABOUT THE FORECASTING BASED ON WHO'S, WHO'S HERE, WHO'S COMING FROM WHERE, UM, IT WAS THIS OBJECTIVE QUESTION IN THE BEGINNING, IT WAS KIND OF DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND, BUT I, I DO, WE DO UNDERSTAND THAT BECAUSE I GUESS MOST OF US ARE TRANSPLANTS.
ME BEING ONE OF 'EM, I DIDN'T GROW UP IN DFW, I'M FROM SOUTH TEXAS ORIGINALLY, AND I LEFT THE SERVICE IN NORFOLK, VIRGINIA AND THEN WENT BACK TO SOUTH TEXAS TO GET MY MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DEGREE.
SO I COME FROM ALL OVER THE PLACE.
SO THAT WOULD BE PART OF IT, YOU KNOW, THE INTAKE FORM PART OF IT, BIO OF WHERE YOU COME FROM, WHERE YOU'RE FROM, YOU KNOW, AS SIMPLE AS IT IS JUST FOR STATISTICS.
SOMETHING I THINK, I THINK IT'S, IT'S WORK IN PROGRESS.
I THINK THERE'S A COUPLE PHASES.
COULD I, UM, JUST, YOU KNOW, AND ABOUT THIS, IF, IF YOU THINK ABOUT THESE, UM, THEMES AS LAYERS TOO, NOT JUST ONE BY THEMSELVES.
SO WHEN YOU, IF YOU CONSIDERED A HUB, REMEMBER THAT SOCIAL CONNECTION AND BELONGING, I MEAN, THINGS LIKE WARM HANDOFFS ARE REALLY CRITICAL AND THAT REQUIRES PHYSICAL, PHYSICAL PRESENCE.
SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THESE AND YOU START INTERNALIZING THESE THEMES, UH, I WOULD RECOMMEND SEPARATELY, BUT THINKING OF HOW THEY, UH, REINFORCE ONE ANOTHER AND HOW PARTS OF THEM CAN STRENGTHEN, UM, EACH OTHER.
JUST REAL QUICK ON THE, THE CONVERSATION, BUT COMMISSIONER COLE, UM, IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT HOW TO, HOW TO FACILITATE THE HUB, EVENTUALLY PHYSICAL, IT GOES RIGHT BACK TO NUMBER ONE THING, WHICH IS NAVIGATION.
OKAY? SO AS AN EXAMPLE, THERE'S A WAY TO DO THAT AND IT'S, IT'S, IT'S NOT COMPLICATED, BUT IT'S INVOLVED, IT'S INTENSE.
FOR INSTANCE, UH, FIRST RESPONDERS WHEN THEY COME ACROSS SOMEBODY WHO'S HOMELESS AND CAN'T FIGURE OUT WHERE TO GO, BUT OBVIOUSLY NOT GONNA HAVE NECESSARILY THE ADVANTAGE OF BEING ABLE TO ACCESS SOMETHING DIGITAL, BUT IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THE POLICE OFFICER OR THE FIREFIGHTER DOESN'T HAND THEM A DARK TICKET THAT SAYS, GO TO ANY DARK BUS, GO TO ANY DARK, AND IT WILL TAKE YOU TO THE HUB.
OKAY, NOW YOU'RE PHYSICALLY THERE, NOW YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO
AND SAME THING WHEN THEY LEAVE THE HUB, THEY GO LOOK, GO BACK, SUPPOSED TO GO BACK OUT WORKING THE WORK.
UM, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT IT REAL QUICK ON WHERE DOES THE VETERANS COME FROM? SO ALL THE SERVICES WE KNOW HAVE, UH, REINTEGRATION TOOLS BECAUSE YOU'RE LEAVING, RIGHT? YOU HAVE TO GO TO CLASS, YOU GOTTA FILL ALL THAT PAPERWORK.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THEY ASK YOU IS, WHERE ARE YOU GOING? YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, I I I THOUGHT BEING A SERVICE, I PROCESSED OUT, GOSH, HOW MANY 14 DO I HAVE? I PROCESSED OUT SEVEN DIFFERENT TIMES BEFORE I EVER RETIRED.
AND SO YEAH, I HAD TO FILL OUT ALL THOSE FORMS OR YOU'RE GOING BACK, I'M GOING BACK TO DALLAS.
SO IF WE REACH OUT TO THOSE FOLKS AS A EXAMPLE, WE CAN FIND OUT WHERE, WHERE THEY'RE GOING.
'CAUSE ALL OF THAT'S IN THEIR DATA AS FAR.
I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS.
UM, BASICALLY, OBVIOUSLY THAT CAME FROM THE DATA THAT YOU GATHERED, BUT DID YOU LOOK AT ANY BEST PRACTICES AT OTHER CITIES AND LOCATIONS? UM, I DID NOT SPECIFICALLY LOOK FOR BEST PRACTICES IN OTHER CITIES.
I THINK THAT IS SOMETHING THAT THE COMMISSION MAYBE SHOULD DO OR COULD DO.
UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DO WANT, WE'RE HOPING THAT DALLAS CAN BECOME THE MODEL FOR BEST PRACTICES, UM, IN TIME.
HI, SO MS. HOUSTON, UM, I RESTRICT BY REST MESS ME,
UM, SO I WILL SAY THIS, DOES ANYONE KNOW ABOUT THE, UM, COMBINED ARMED PROTECTING VETERANS NETWORK? OKAY, SO I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY A PLATFORM THAT YOU COULD USE BECAUSE ALL IT DOES, IT TAKES YOU AND KNOW YOU PUT IN YOUR ZIP CODE, IT TELLS YOU WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR, YOU CLICK SAYING, I'M A HOMELESS VETERAN.
IT DIRECTS YOU DIRECTLY TO THAT, UM, TO RESOURCES WITHIN YOUR ZIP CODE.
UM, A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT.
AND SO I THINK THE FIRST STEP IS PROBABLY, UM, HAVE THEM COME IN AND WE COULD PROBABLY USE THEIR HUB TO MAKE SURE, YOU KNOW, THINGS ARE TAKEN CARE OF AND THEY TRAVEL ALL AROUND THE STATE OF TEXAS TO ENSURE THAT SERVICES ARE, YOU KNOW, RENDERED TO ALL THOSE VETERANS.
I MEAN, WE DON'T HAVE TO SPEND MONEY, BUT WE CAN DEFINITELY USE THEIR, UM, PLATFORM AS A WAY TO CONNECT WITH OTHER VETERANS.
UM, AS ALSO AS ME, I JUST
I HAVE A LIST OF THAT INFORMATION TOO, IF I COULD PROVIDE THAT.
UM, BUT WE DO HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT STATES THAT ARE COMING HERE BECAUSE THEY HEAR ABOUT WHAT TEXAS HAS TO OFFER.
[01:15:01]
UM, AND I WAS A NATIONAL RECRUITER TOO FOR VETERANS, SO WE ARE THE FOCAL POINT.I THINK THE SECOND BEHIND US IS ATLANTA.
UM, BUT WE ARE THE NUMBER ONE AREA THAT EVERYBODY WANTS TO GO TO.
SO US BUILDING THIS WILL BE BENEFICIAL AND THEN OTHER PEOPLE CAN KNOW, AN, AN ENORMOUS CELEBRATION IS THE, ARE THE AMOUNT OF RESOURCES HERE.
I MEAN, IT REALLY IS QUITE AMAZING.
IT'S JUST REALLY, UM, REMARKABLE AND SO JUST HAVE A LOT OF STRENGTH TO, TO BUILD ON.
UM, I I, I THINK THIS IDEA, I LOVE YOUR IDEA OF, OKAY, LET'S, INSTEAD OF BUILDING SOMETHING UP, SCRATCH, LET'S LOOK AT SOMETHING THAT ALREADY EXISTS AND SEE IF WE CAN PUT IT IN PLACE UNTIL AND SEE IF IT WORKS FOR YOU.
BUT YEAH, JUST AS WE WERE, BECAUSE OF COURSE I RECOMMEND, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE GO THROUGH THE DATA, WE'LL SEE A LOT OF GAPS THAT WE'VE DESCRIBED.
THIS IS A GAP, THIS IS A PROBLEM.
AND SO, UM, MAKE SURE THAT AS YOU READ THIS REPORT, YOU KNOW, THAT THOSE ARE PROBABLY MORE ABOUT LEVELS OF FRUSTRATION, ABOUT NOT ABLE TO GET TO WHAT YOU ALREADY HAVE THAT'S HERE IN, YOU KNOW, AND YOU HAVE A LOT OF IT.
SO, UH, YEAH, JUST WANTED TO TO POINT THAT OUT BECAUSE, UH, IT WAS REALLY QUITE REMARKABLE.
WE, WE FELT REALLY PROUD TO BE IN THE CITY OF DALLAS WITH SO MANY GREAT THINGS GOING ON AS WE WERE SURFACING THESE POTENTIAL, THESE NEEDS AND THESE POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR Y'ALL.
AND, AND TO GO BACK ON TO THAT PARTICULAR THING, UM, I THINK THAT IF, IF, IF OUR GOAL, AND I THINK IT'S OUR GOAL IS THAT DALLAS BECOMES, AND, AND THE UNIVERSITY DOUBT, WE BECOME THE, THE EXPERTS AT SOME POINT FOR THE BEST PRACTICES BEFORE, AND WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THAT SOMEPLACE OUT.
NOW, COMBINED ARMS IS PRIMARILY A TEXAS THING.
AND SO ONE OF THOSE THINGS, IF WE, IF WE DRAW THEM INTO THE HUB, WE DRAW THEM INTO THE HUB.
SO IF THEIR DATABASE AND THE WAY THEY DO BUSINESS, THEN THAT'S GONNA WORK GREAT HERE.
IT'S NOT GONNA WORK OVER IN ATLANTA, IT'S NOT GONNA WORK IN GEORGIA.
SO WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO FIGURE OUT HOW, WHATEVER OUR TEMPLATE IS FOR SUCCESS.
BUT THE CITY OF DALLAS WILL PUT TOGETHER, IT'S GONNA WORK IN SAN ANTONIO, IT'S GONNA WORK IN AUSTIN, IT'S GONNA WORK IN HOUSTON, THE LARGER POPULATION OF VETERANS ANYWAY, IT'S GONNA WORK IN EL PASO, WHICH HAS A, THAT'S A TOTALLY DIFFERENT BALL OF WAX, BUT A LOT OF VETERANS.
UM, BUT WHEN WE, WHEN SOMEBODY SHOWS UP LIKE ST.
LOUIS AND SAYS, HOW ARE YOU MAKING THIS WORK SO WELL, WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT SO IT'S TRANSPARENT.
THAT'S WHAT FINAL ALWAYS WE COME UP WITH TO BE ABLE TO TRANSFER AND INSIDE YOU CAN PUT IT IN PLACE AND THE STRUCTURE HOW TO DO IT.
THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT I THINK THAT SAU HAS PROVIDED US, THE FRAMEWORK FOR BEING ABLE TO EXPLAIN IT TO OUR OWN CITY, MAKE IT WORK WITHIN OUR CITY, AND THEN BE ABLE TO LET OUR CITY TELL EVERYBODY ELSE WORKS.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YEAH, COMMISSIONER, HUNTER, UM, SOMEWHERE IN YOUR, OR NEAR THE RECOMMENDATIONS SECTION, YOU SAID ALL ARE NOT ADDITIVE SOLUTIONS, BUT ALIGNED STRATEGIES.
I TOOK THAT TO MEAN IT'S NOT GONNA COST ANY MONEY.
IS THAT WRONG OR NO? I THINK WHAT, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? WHAT WE'RE USING THAT TO MEAN IS JUST EXACTLY WHAT DR.
EGER WAS TALKING ABOUT EARLIER, IS THAT IT'S NOT ONE THING ON TOP OF ANOTHER.
IT'S MORE LIKE THESE THINGS CONVERGE TOGETHER.
SO IF YOU DO MANAGE TO CREATE A HUB, THAT WAS THE EXAMPLE SHE USED.
THAT'S A PHYSICAL PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN GO.
THEN YOU'RE NOT ONLY ATTACKING OR OH, THAT'S THE WRONG WORD, I GUESS, BUT YOU'RE NOT ONLY HELPING, HELPING OR MAYBE THAT IS A GOOD WORD.
YOU'RE NOT ONLY HELPING, UH, INDIVIDUALS NAVIGATE THE SYSTEM, BUT YOU MIGHT ALSO BE HELPING THEM FIND COMMUNITY.
SO MULTIPLE THINGS CAN HAPPEN SIMULTANEOUSLY.
SO I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE MEANT BY NOT ADDITIVE AND ALIGNED.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS? WELL, WE THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
WE'VE ENJOYED THIS RELATIONSHIP.
UH, HAVING SAID THAT, YOU LADIES ARE DISMISSED.
DO I HAVE, UH, A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE MINUTES FROM OUR FEBRUARY MEETING? I SO MAKE A
[01:20:01]
MOTION.DO I HAVE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS THAT ANY COMMISSIONERS WOULD LIKE TO MAKE AT THIS TIME? IF NOT, I DECLARE THIS DIRECTOR MOTION.