Challenges of Diverting Veterans to Trauma Informed Care: The Heterogeneity of Intercept 2

Summary: The challenges of diverting veterans from the criminal justice system and into appropriate trauma informed mental health and substance abuse services at Intercept 2 of the Sequential Intercept Model (initial detention and initial first appearance court hearing) are discussed. Six challenges are considered, including identification of veterans and determining veteran status; navigating complex partnerships among stakeholders in the community and within the VA that are essential for a successful program, particularly in terms of a mutual understanding of the functions, resources, and philosophies of each in order to allow for cross-system collaboration; difficulties in defining and operationalizing jail diversion; the timing and logistics of diversion; and screening for trauma-related disorders in a sensitive and client-centered manner within the confines of the criminal justice system. A brief overview of the funding, policy, and program landscape related to diversion of veterans is related to the challenges of diversion generally, and specific to intercept 2, with examples from Florida's SAMHSA-funded Jail Diversion Trauma Recovery initiative.