FORT HARRISON, Mont. (AP) — The eight-bed psychiatric wing for military veterans with severe cases of post-traumatic stress disorder has opened at the VA Montana hospital west of Helena more than a year after the $7 million hospital was completed.
VA Montana Interim Director Steve Young says two veterans were admitted to the hospital at Fort Harrison this month after the Department of Veterans Affairs hired one psychiatrist and figured out other staffing options. The hospital is still searching for two psychiatrists.
Young told The Billings Gazette (http://bit.ly/RPihul ) he expected the workload to be light when the wing opened.
Matt Kuntz is executive director of the Montana chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. He says the unit's opening allows veterans to begin their recovery closer to home with the support of family and friends.
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Information from: Billings Gazette, http://www.billingsgazette.com
