Columbia, SC Vet Center
We work hand in hand with the local VA hospital to try our best to get you the appropriate care.
Learn about mental health services at VA Columbia South Carolina
We’re also in direct partnership with our local VAMC to make referrals in the event that your needs exceed what we can provide.
We work with several organizations to accomplish the mission of taking care of Veterans and service members:
If you’re having trouble adjusting to a difficult life change or someone close to you has passed away, we can offer counseling and other support, such as:
- Bereavement counseling for families who have lost a loved one while they were serving on active duty
- Grief counseling
- Contact information to the Veterans Benefits Administration and National Cemetery Administration regarding burial and survivor benefits
We offer individual counseling and host the following groups:
- Vietnam Veterans group
- Iraq/Afghanistan group
- Veterans Support Group
- Women’s Veteran Group (MST)
Specialty care includes:
- Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
We have a women’s group that meets twice a month on the first and second Monday.
All of our clinical staff are trained to provided MST treatment to eligible Veterans and service members.
We offer individual counseling and host the following groups:
- Vietnam Veterans group
- Iraq/Afghanistan group
- Veterans support group
- Women’s Veteran group (MST)
Specialty care includes:
- Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
We provide assistance to Fort Jackson and Shaw Air Force Base with the following:
- Returning service member care at Columbia VA
- Enrolling for VA health care benefits
- Filing disability claims
- Using VA home loans
- Employment and training opportunities
- Connecting to Veteran Service Organizations in your community
Connections to local community facilities are just a phone call away. Our staff is dedicated to helping Veterans and service members find the resources they need if we can't help immediately fulfill their needs.
We understand that the transition from military to civilian life can be a challenge. We offer a variety of ways to assist you in that process such as:
- How to get VA medical benefits and register for care
- Where to go to file claims and other forms
- Understanding your VA education benefits
Whole health is the practice of improving your overall health through personal work on your mind, body, spirit, and contentedness to the community and family. Our counselors can give the Veteran or service member a chance to reflect on what really matters to them and what they want their health for.
In addition, Veterans and service members will be encouraged to choose an area of life they want to enhance, and then develop a plan for carrying out their goals and actions with guidance and support from their counselor.
How we're different than a clinic (FAQs)
How we’re different than a clinic
What are Vet Centers?
Vet Centers are small, non-medical, counseling centers conveniently located in your community. They’re staffed by highly trained counselors and team members dedicated to seeing you through the challenges that come with managing life during and after the military.
Whether you come in for one-on-one counseling or to participate in a group session, at Vet Centers you can form social connections, try new things, and build a support system with people who understand you and want to help you succeed.
Who is eligible to receive services at Vet Centers?
Vet Center services are available to you at no cost, regardless of discharge character, and without you needing to be enrolled in VA health care or having a service-connected disability. If you’re a Veteran or service member, including members of the National Guard and Reserve, you can access our services if you:
- Served on active military duty in any combat theater or area of hostility
- Experienced military sexual trauma (regardless of gender or service era)
- Provided mortuary services or direct emergent medical care to treat the casualties of war while serving on active military duty
- Performed as a member of an unmanned aerial vehicle crew that provided direct support to operations in a combat theater or area of hostility
- Accessed care at a Vet Center prior to January 2, 2013, as a Vietnam-Era Veteran
- Served on active military duty in response to a national emergency or major disaster declared by the president, or under orders of the governor or chief executive of a state in response to a disaster or civil disorder in that state.
- Are a current or former member of the Coast Guard who participated in a drug interdiction operation, regardless of the location.
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Are a current member of the Reserve Components assigned to a military command in a drilling status, including active Reserves, who has a behavioral health condition or psychological trauma related to military service that adversely effects quality of life or adjustment to civilian life.
We encourage you to contact us, even if you’re unsure if you meet these criteria. If we can’t help you, we’ll find someone who will.
Our services are also available to family members when their participation would support the growth and goals of the Veteran or active-duty service member. If you consider them family, so do we. We also offer bereavement services to family members of Veterans who were receiving Vet Center services at the time of the Veteran’s death, and to the families of service members who died while serving on active duty.
Do I have to be enrolled in VA health care to access Vet Center services?
No. You don’t have to be enrolled in VA health care or have a service-connected disability.
What about my privacy?
Safe and confidential. Our records can’t be accessed by other VA offices, the DoD, military units, or other community networks and providers without your permission or unless required to avert a life-threatening situation. Here, you can be as open as you want—there’s absolutely no judgment.