Des Moines Vet Center
We refer to several groups in the community that specialize in treatment, including a residential program at the nearby VA Central Iowa Health Care Center at 3600 30th Street in Des Moines.
The demanding nature of military duties and prolonged absences with the uniqueness of combat service can create barriers in relationships. Our team of counselors can provide skills and tools to improve your relationships with others.
We offer couples counseling and a couples group session.
Family counseling is available, please call for more information.
Our Outreach Specialist works with different agencies to find referrals that fit the exact needs of the Veteran or service member.
If you or your organization would like to learn about working with Veterans and military culture and how you can help support the Veteran community, we can provide individual or education briefings. Give us a call for more information.
We offer a grief and loss group available to Veterans and service members for support.
We offer both individual and group sessions.
Individual sessions may include trauma-focused evidence-based therapies, such as:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
Group sessions often provide anger or stress management or combat supportive group therapy.
Like all of our counseling, individual sexual assault or harassment sessions are confidential in nature. We have counselors available based on your gender preference. We also offer a support group.
Individual and group sessions are available. We require a few individual sessions so that we can assess your needs before you join a group.
Care at our center includes:
- Evidence-based therapy techniques to help Veterans and service members
- Skills-based treatment to help deal with symptoms
We can assist with the transition from military to civilian life, including:
- How to get VA medical benefits and register for care
- Where to go to file claims request services
- Understanding your Veteran benefits
- Connecting with your County Veteran Service Officer (VSO) or to a VSO that works for a Veteran Service group in our community
Your safety is our priority. We can help connect you to the VA Central Iowa Health Care Center 24-hour emergency room if you’re in crisis.
We offer several different groups that can help develop camaraderie between Veterans and service members with similar backgrounds or experiences. We also can assist with the transition from military to civilian life. Some of the resources we can assist with include:
- How to get VA medical benefits and register for care
- Where to go to file claims request services
- Understanding your Veteran benefits
- Connecting with your County Veteran Service Officer (VSO) or connect you to a VSO that works for a Veteran Service group in our community.
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.