Some Vets have called Shayma R. Salman, a social worker for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) an “angel” for the way she has helped them find housing and turn their lives around.
Salman, who works with veterans from Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam at a rescue mission in Panama City, Florida, represents the U.S. Department of Hous- ing and Urban Development’s Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program.
There are multiple variables when dealing with the homeless, Salman told the Panama City News Herald.
“As a clinical social worker, my job is to do an in-depth psycho-social assessment and establish trust with the veterans,” said Salman.
“I would say that 100 percent of my veterans have some sort of mental disorder. A lot of them have substance abuse, as well.”
Salman told the newspaper that many returning veterans have difficulty navigating VA bureaucracy to find the help they need.
“My job is to lift those barriers for the veterans and, more specifically, the homeless veterans, she said. The VA has come a long way since the Vietnam era, when little was done to help homeless veterans, she added, vowing to end homelessness for those who have served.
“A lot of these veterans have endured trauma through their military service. We are not going to leave them when they have fallen.”
