Support Veterans and Children of Military Families Through Virtual Simulation

In anticipation of Veterans Day on November 11th, we celebrate and honor America’s veterans for their willingness to serve and the sacrifices they have made for our country. As we reflect on this day, we must consider and appreciate the challenges faced by veterans, student veterans, and military-connected youth.

In order to drive sustainable changes in behavior that support help-seeking, resilience, peer support, and stigma reduction, we’ve outlined our products for faculty, staff and students that work with veterans and students of military families.

Continue reading to learn more about our products that improve military cultural competency.

Helping Military-Connected Youth PK-12 Schools

There are about 1.2 million children enrolled in schools who have a parent or caregiver serving in the United States Armed Forces. Three quarters of those military-connected youth are 4-18 years old. In a recent survey taken in 2020 by the Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC), it was found that military families and school professionals are struggling to keep children of U.S. service members on track academically due to frequent transitions to new schools during their K-12 years. They also found that 97% of school professionals reported that military-connected students experience more stress and challenges than their civilian peers and only 41% of military families felt that schools met their student’s needs. Other social-emotional concerns were identified in this survey, including:

• Making friends in new schools
• Difficulties feeling accepted and fitting in
• Finding ways to build self-confidence
• Dealing with the deployment of a parent or caregiver

In a recent report of The Military Teen Experience Survey, it was concluded that the mental well-being scores military teens are a concern and have been for two consecutive years. In 2022, less than 10% of the military teens surveyed indicated a high level of mental well-being and 28% reported low mental well-being.

In an effort to train and educate on the topic of military cultural competency, Kognito has developed a product that builds understanding and appreciation of the challenges faced by military-connected youth. Transitions: Supporting Military Children is an interactive role-play simulation for educators and school staff that prepares learners to lead real-life conversations with any youth that is struggling to adjust socially. The goal is to create a safe and supportive environment for military youth while practicing motivational interviewing skills to help them feel welcome, connected, and understood.

Learn more about Transitions: Supporting Military Children here.

Supporting Veterans in Colleges and Universities

Veterans and military service members enter the classroom with valuable life and leadership experience. Although this is true, veterans transitioning to student life represent unique challenges. Some of these challenges include post-traumatic stress (PTSD), substance use, depression, and thoughts of suicide.

In 2020, 80% of student veterans pursuing higher education degrees or credentials were full-time students. In a Kognito survey conducted from 2012 to 2017, it was revealed by higher education faculty and staff members that:

• 70.07% do not feel adequately prepared to recognize when a student veteran is exhibiting signs of distress including depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide
• 75.06% do not feel adequately prepared to approach student veterans to discuss their concerns
• 95.62% said that it is part of the role of faculty, staff and administration to help create a supportive environment for the veteran student population and to connect student veterans experiencing psychological distress with mental health services

Read more results from this survey here.

A vast majority of faculty and staff report not having the skills, knowledge, and self-confidence to create a supportive environment for student veterans and connect them with support when experiencing psychological distress. Kognito offers two interactive role-play simulations, for both faculty and students, to help build an understanding and appreciation for the challenges faced by student veterans and prepare learners to lead real-life conversations with students struggling to adjust to college and civilian life.

Learn more about our product for faculty and staff, Veterans on Campus for Faculty & Staff, and product for students, Together Strong.

Veterans in Healthcare Settings

Not only should the mental well-being of veterans, service members, and military-connected youth be considered in academic settings, but military cultural competency should be applied in healthcare settings as well.

SBI with a Military Veteran (included as part of SBI with Adults) prepares healthcare providers to screen veterans and service members for alcohol misuse, conduct brief interventions using evidence-based motivational interviewing techniques, and refer these patients for further treatment when necessary.

For more information on SBI with a Military Veteran, contact sales today.

Experience a Personalized Interactive Demo

Want to experience the power of virtual human simulation? Contact sales today for more product information or request an interactive demo.