Appreciate our woman veterans

Across the country, unprecedented numbers of woman veterans are returning home from conflicts overseas. They return, too often, to communities which downplay their roles “over there” and to institutions ill-equipped to help.

A recent Associated Press series, which examined the unique challenges of woman veterans in readjusting to civilian life, concluded that while in many ways, readjustment is similar to their male counterparts, women veterans can have fewer resources and less support.

We're glad to see the Iowa City Veterans Administration Medical Center has been making changes to better support female veterans, and we hope that everyone understands the critical role women play in today's military. Supporting our troops in ways large and small - interpersonally and institutionally - isn't just important for morale: it's the right thing to do.

More than 230,000 female troops have served so far in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. At least 120 have died. Hundreds more have been wounded.

In the U.S., female troops are barred from assignments that primarily involve direct ground combat. But in action in Iraq and Afghanistan, where there are no clear battle lines, female troops serving as military police, pilots, drivers and gunners on convoys routinely are in harm's way.

Too few civilians understand the critical and life-threatening work women troops perform. Maybe that's why female veterans report that gestures of appreciation from the folks back home can be few and far between.

Instead, they find their roles are minimized or overlooked. Wear a Marines' cap or shirt, and people will assume you're supporting an enlisted male relative or friend - even in the VA system.

Those negative experiences can make it less likely for female veterans to seek help. Female veterans are more likely than their male peers to get divorced. They are more likely to be a single parent. They make up an increasingly large population of the country's homeless vets.

Appropriately, the Iowa City VA Medical Center is aggressively reaching out to female veterans.

Kara Sedore's job as women's health program manager includes community outreach and helping the center understand female veterans' concerns, acting public affairs officer Jason Clements told us this week.

The Iowa City facility has worked to take female veterans' needs into account in other ways, too. The women's health clinic provides comprehensive primary care and coordinates specialty care services for female veterans. By February 2010, the first phase of remodeling the hospital's inpatient wards should be complete - allowing for greater privacy.

Good to see.

We have an obligation to respect and support all our country's veterans.