Battle Buddies – A Combat PTSD Support Group is the civilian outgrowth of the West LA VA’s POST Program that was eliminated in September, 2018. Founded 22 years ago by a Purple Heart Vietnam veteran and administered by his co-director, both of them Licensed Clinical Social Workers, the PTSD Outpatient Support Team (POST) served thousands of veterans, most of them with combat experience, from every conflict since WWII, with 40 group therapy sessions every week.
The program was an unparalleled success, 16000 patient encounters every year, 1 veteran suicide in 22 years and a hospitalization rate of less than 1%, until the WLA VA Administration unexpectedly eliminated POST and put almost 1000 patients out of business, telling them to find alternative PTSD treatment from the existing WLA mental health staff.
A small group of men from the Tuesday evening group remained committed to one another and to the work they had done together and went off of the VA campus with their volunteer facilitator to conduct their own therapy sessions. Battle Buddies – A Combat PTSD Support Group was born.