Military aware of unit problems: document
Canadian military leaders knew years ago that a unit charged with caring for injured soldiers was in deep trouble yet continued to insist all was well, according to newly released documents.
The Joint Personnel Support Unit has been plagued with ongoing problems. Brig-Gen. Shane Brennan, who was brought in April 20 to overhaul the unit, suddenly announced last week he is leaving the military.
No explanation was given but the unit, which provides support to those who are physically and mentally injured, has had three commanders in the last year.
JPSU is an umbrella unit for 24 Integrated Personnel Support Centres across Canada and was created to offer programs to support and enable mentally and physically injured troops to resume their military careers or more to make a gradual transition into the civilian world with sellable skills. Critics praise the concept, but they have continually raised concerns that ill and injured military personnel aren’t getting the attention they need because of the staff shortages and excessive workloads facing staff.
Documents obtained under the Access to Information law show military leadership was aware as far back as February 2014 that the JPSU was in dire straits, with a growing number of injured soldiers needing help and not enough staff to serve them.
An email from the unit’s deputy commanding officer, Lt. Col. Michel Cecyre, noted that a report for the senior leadership showed the need for JPSU services was significantly increasing and that the bulk of cases were extraordinarily challenging. Yet JPSU was at the lowest priority level for the Canadian Forces. Cecyre recommended that the priority level for the unit be immediately increased and new staff hired, yet little was done.
Despite the severity of the problems, the Canadian Forces continued to put a positive spin on JPSU. A week after the Cecyre email was sent to senior staff, military officers were telling journalists that there were more than enough staff and military personnel were receiving a top level of care.
“The document shows that the problems have been well known for a long time,” said Barry Westholm, a retired sergeant major who resigned from his position in the JPSU to protest the poor state of affairs in the unit. Westholm obtained various JPSU documents using the Access to Information law.
What’s more, although exact figures are not known there have been several suicides among soldiers posted to JPSU.