PIERRE — Over the past decade, mental health issues for veterans have become increasingly prominent. But George Summerside believes more needs to be done.

“We want to bring increased awareness about all the services and all the programs that are available to our returning veterans and their families,” said Summerside, acting director of the state division of veterans affairs.

“The resources that are being put into this kind of care have really improved since 9/11 and especially in the last three to four years. There’s far better access for valuable and important programs and services than there were in the Vietnam era and the Korean War and World War II.”

David Montgomery | Capital Journal Keith Ham (left) watches Red Cross representative Russ Korzeniewski give a presentation Monday at a mental health summit organized by the state Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. Advertisement

Summerside was one of about 70 people from across the state who participated in a mental health summit organized by the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs Tuesday and Wednesday. Participants from state agencies, the military and community organizations learned about the mental health care needs of veterans and their families and ways those needs can be met.

“I think it was a great summit,” said Steve Hardin, deputy secretary for the department. “It’s just a great opportunity for professional care providers to share information and identify resources that will benefit not just veterans but their families.”

Many more resources are available today for veterans and military families, but those eligible may be unaware of those services or unwilling to take advantage of them, summit participants said.

“Family members and service members are now able to get support anywhere they feel comfortable seeking it, versus what was traditionally mandated by the Department of Defense,” said Eli Carr, South Dakota community support coordinator for the Department of the Army’s Army One Source program.

“They’re able to stay in their hometown and talk to people they’re more comfortable with versus traveling out of state.”

Participants said they want to break down stigmas about getting mental health care.

“It was once a common perception that having a mental illness was due to some sort of personal weakness,” Harding said. “That’s not it. We’ve got a long way to go to overcome lots of misconceptions and fears and possibly biases people may have about mental health.”

“We need to understand that it’s all right to make that phone call. It’s all right to reach out for help,” Summerside said. “Removing that stigma is getting better, but it’s something we need to work on.”

One relatively new program participants learned about is the Inter-Service Family Assistance Committee, designed to provide comprehensive support to military members and their families.

“We’re really looking forward to getting that up and going,” Harding said.

Carr said this week’s summit was just a beginning.

“It should definitely be the start for communities and whomever to begin looking at the resources they have available, and seeing how they can support their local veterans and servicemembers and families,” she said. “We need to start looking bigger.”