“Have you ever spent time in the typical government clinic? It’s usually drab, with plastic chairs; cinderblock walls; basic linoleum; and unforgiving steel. And these aren’t prisons, mind you, they’re supposed to be places of healing for America’s heroes,” he said. “How much harder is it to overcome PTSD or depression when you are perpetually surrounded by that kind of depressing environment?”

Dr. Stephen Goldberg, of Howard County, MD, can speak with full confidence about the status of health care facilities around the country. When he walked away from corporate America in 2015, he left his position as Chief Clinical Officer for Correct Care Solutions which had more than tripled in top line revenue during his time with the company.

Upon his departure from the firm, Dr. Goldberg relinquished responsibility for more than 250,000 patients, in 39 states, with a clinical staff of over 10,000. He traded it all for a far more sobering set of numbers: 1.8 million veterans suffering from substance abuse; 300,000 enduring post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression; and an average of 20 committing suicide every day.

Today, as the Founder and President of Veteran Health Services, a new 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in the Baltimore-Washington corridor, Dr. Goldberg is endeavoring to provide uncompromised mental and behavioral health care to America’s vets and their families.

A board certified psychiatrist, Dr. Goldberg’s history of treating our country’s military population dates back more than 20 years to his medical school and residency training, when he tallied clinical rotations at Veterans Administration hospitals in Colorado, Wyoming, and Maryland. There, he began to witness, firsthand, the struggles faced by America’s service men and women.

“Even then, learning of the adversity that so many of these heroes were faced with on a daily – or even a moment-to-moment - basis was staggering to me,” Dr. Goldberg said. “One would think that in the ensuing years, given clinical and technological advances and a propensity for immediate global awareness that things would have gotten better – they haven’t.”

When he founded Correctional Mental Health Services, LLC, in 2002, Dr. Goldberg developed a revolutionary approach to managing a correctional facility’s mentally ill populations, with a specialized focus on incarcerated veterans. When that startup was eventually purchased by Conmed Healthcare Management – which, in turn, would later be purchased by Correct Care Solutions – he mentored under CEO, and veteran, Dr. Richard Turner. Dr. Turner’s intrinsic sensitivity and respect to veteran’s issues fostered in him a longstanding desire to identify the special needs of this unique population, and to make strides to address them.

With the launch of Veteran Health Services’ nationwide “Give 5 Drive,” Dr. Goldberg is hoping to do just that. A social media and crowdfunding initiative, the Give 5 Drive seeks to elicit $5 donations from millions of supporters with the assurance that 100 percent of all proceeds will be used to fund its development, launch, and clinical operations, while laying the foundation for future Veteran Health Services locations, and that its executives will never receive performance bonuses.

“Veteran Health Services’ overarching goal is to offer mental and behavioral health, substance abuse, and trauma-related care to veterans and their families, no matter what their level of service connection may be, or whether a third party determines if their struggles are ‘medically necessary,’” said Dr. Goldberg. Care, he said, will be provided by clinicians with at least 80 hours of specialized training in military culture and veteran issues, in addition to their base licensing credentials. Funds raised by the Give 5 Drive will help make the organization’s first clinic a contemporary, well-appointed, and amply-lit environment that sends a clear message to veterans that the American public has not forgotten them.

“Our veterans deserve a place where they can feel proud, again, and we’re going to deliver that, with America’s help,” Dr. Goldberg said.

Such comments are poignant in the light of recent discussion surrounding the VA, including wasteful spending on art, and the Commission on Care’s July 6 report that called for urgent reform entity-wide. The fact that Veteran Health Services’ is still in its infancy, and is requesting the public’s support to enter a critical production phase, is not lost on Dr. Goldberg.

“For a number of reasons, the American public has understandably grown suspicious of misappropriation and promises that weren’t kept,” he said. “But Veteran Health Services has a plan that puts America’s heroes first, and I hope that others will join me in setting it in motion. On a personal note, in my 20 years working in the public and private sector, I have never started a task without seeing it through to a successful completion. And I don’t intend to start now.”

Veteran Health Services’ first clinic is planned for the Baltimore/Washington D.C. corridor and donors have the opportunity to vote for the next location from a list of 5 sites that include Norfolk, VA, Charlotte, NC, San Diego, CA, Seattle, WA and Jacksonville, FL.

Veteran Health Services anticipates opening doors for service in the first quarter of 2017.

For more information, visit www.veteranhealthservices.org.