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As U.S. Forces Leave Iraq, UB Experts Can Discuss What the Future Holds for Returning Veterans

With U.S. forces leaving Iraq, experts from the University at Buffalo are available to discuss the challenges veterans face upon returning home. From job hunting in a weak economy to living with traumatic brain injury or PTSD, readjusting to life in the civilian world can be difficult.

 

DAY-TO-DAY LIVING

Employment
Holly Justice
Career Counselor
University at Buffalo Career Services
716-645-4640
hjustice@buffalo.edu
 
Justice can discuss how veterans can translate their military experience into resumes that catch the attention of civilian companies. While veterans completing enlistments come home with valuable skills, finding work can be difficult if employers don’t understand how responsibilities in Iraq and Afghanistan apply to civilian jobs, she says.
View a Q&A with Justice on veterans seeking employment: http://ubfacultyexperts.buffalo.edu/tip/145

Creating a comfortable environment at home
Danise Levine (availability may be limited)
Assistant Director
University at Buffalo Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access (IDeA Center)
716-645-4655
chsu22@buffalo.edu
 
Levine can discuss how families can improve their homes to provide comfortable living for returning veterans. Through the Wounded Warrior Home Project at Fort Belvoir, Va., she helped design two demonstration houses that address challenges that wounded veterans might face. Exterior lights provide security and comfort for soldiers with PTSD, for instance, while wider doorways make it easier for soldiers with limb amputations to get around.
Read a story on Levine’s work with veterans: http://www.buffalo.edu/ubreporter/2011_11_17/wounded_warriors
 

LIVING WITH INJURIES

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
John Violanti
Professor of Social and Preventive Medicine
University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
716-829-5367
violanti@buffalo.edu
 
Violanti can discuss the causes and symptoms of PTSD, as well as how social support from family and friends can help ameliorate the effects of the disorder. Violanti is a military veteran and a former member of the New York State Police. He studies the effect of stress in persons working in dangerous professions, such as police, firefighting and military occupations.
 
Tinnitus (The perception of sound without any acoustic stimulus)
Richard Salvi
Director of the UB Center for Hearing and Deafness, and Professor of Communicative Disorders and Sciences, otolaryngology and neurology
University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and College of Arts and Sciences
salvi@buffalo.edu
 
Salvi can discuss causes and symptoms of tinnitus, as well as advances in treatment. He organized a conference this summer that brought together the world’s leading experts on the disorder. Tinnitus, sometimes called a ringing in the ears, is the perception of sound in the absence of a corresponding external stimulus.
 
As many as half of combat soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan return home with tinnitus, making it a huge and expensive problem for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Salvi says. He has also done work on noise-induced hearing loss, a frequent cause of tinnitus.
Read a story about the tinnitus conference Salvi organized: http://www.buffalo.edu/news/12768
Read about tinnitus and Salvi’s work in the New Yorker: http://bit.ly/vhWoNM
 
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
Kerry Donnelly
Clinical Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Counseling, School and Educational Psychology
University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and Graduate School of Education
&
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Veterans Affairs (VA) Western New York Health Care System
716-645-2484
kzd@buffalo.edu
 
Donnelly can discuss the long-term challenges and effects of TBI, a “signature injury” of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At several Upstate New York VA medical centers, she is leading a four-year study following veterans with TBI, which can lead to deficits in memory, attention and decision-making. Veterans who have mild TBI may be overlooked by the health care system, especially when they have more obvious, visible injuries, Donnelly says.
Read a story about Donnelly’s study on TBI: http://www.buffalo.edu/news/9884
Related Topics:

economy, employment, hearing, Iraq, PTSD, tinnitus, traumatic brain injury, universal design, Veterans

Veterans and dependents eligible for education benefits

EXPERT CONTACT :

Stephen N. Wallace, PhD

Director, Veterans Affairs

University at Buffalo

716-645-2271

swallace@buffalo.edu

 

Stephen Wallace is available to discuss trends and specifics of educational benefits for military veterans, as well as spouses and dependents of those veterans. Through his work at UB's Office of Veteran Affairs, Wallace is closely involved in helping individuals secure their entitled benefits to continue their education as well as general observations about who is applying, and what kinds of study and careers they want to pursue.

The office offers a one-stop service for anyone applying for VA educational benefits," says Wallace. "Students may qualify for VA educational benefits under a number of 'GI Bills' passed by Congress."

Related Topics:

education, Iraq, military, Veterans

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