Ombudsmen provide vital link between command and families

By Diana Berardocco
OSAGWIMRMD Public Affairs

WASHINGTON, May 8, 2001 (DeploymentLINK) -- The Department of Defense has acknowledged for some time now that in order to preserve a strong military, the needs of military families must be supported. The equation is simple - healthy families equal mission readiness.

Over the years, military family support services have empowered families to meet the challenges of separations due to deployments, new assignments and other disruptions associated with the military lifestyle. Deployments, in particular, often increase family stress due to the uncertainty and the inability to communicate with the deployed member.

While all the services work hard to provide communication lifelines for those deployed members and their families, the Navy's Family Ombudsman Program embodies a long and successful tradition of maintaining the well-being and morale of sea service families when servicemembers are away from home.

"Many Navy families have been helped by the dedication of the spouses who serve as ombudsmen," said David Tuma, the ombudsman-at-large and chairman of the Naval Services FamilyLine. "In addition to being a continuing source of strength to the families, they contribute to the readiness of our Navy by ensuring our sailors know their families have another resource to turn to that will help them when they are deployed and by allowing them to focus more readily on the important work they do for our country."

In 1970, then Chief of Naval Operations, the late Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, Jr., recognizing the issues and concerns unique to Navy families, established the Navy Family Ombudsman Program which gave Navy spouses an opportunity to present complaints, viewpoints and suggestions directly to commanding officers. This volunteer program is designed to provide better communication between Navy families and Navy officials.

Zumwalt's message authorized local wives' organizations to select Navy spouses to act as the liaison between the command and families. Today, the commanding officer screens, selects and appoints spouses of the command's active duty or Reserve members who voluntarily serve as the official liaison between the command and its families.

While the role of the ombudsman has grown and developed over the past 30 years, one of the ombudsman's primary functions is that of communicator. Keeping family members informed regarding command policies and ship schedule changes and the command informed about family needs and concerns is a major part of the job.

"Keeping an accurate flow of information going is really important," said Suzett Phillips, who served as ombudsman for the amphibious dock landing ship USS Oak Hill (LSD 51) from May 1999 until October 2000.

"When the ship is deployed, it's really busy. There were days when I received as many as 60 messages a day. A lot of what you do is rumor control," she said.

Ombudsmen play a critical role in helping the individual naval command fulfill its responsibilities for the welfare of its families. They are problem solvers who are available and ready to aid families when there is a crisis or an emergency. Serving as advocates, the ombudsmen use their knowledge of the chain-of-command to access the appropriate command-level for intervention and requests when needed. Responsibilities include ensuring families are advised of services and support groups; interacting with organizations such as Family Service Centers, chaplain's office, medical treatment facilities, the Navy-Marine Relief Society, the American Red Cross and legal assistance offices to obtain assistance for Navy family members when necessary.

"You are always on call. You have to give of yourself and care about the ship, the command and the families. When you have a family that is in crisis, your phone number is the one they call," said Phillips.

The ship's commanding officer determines the ombudsmen program's priorities, the roles and the relationships of those involved in it, and the level of support it receives.

"The program was designed to belong to the commanding officer of the command," explained Rocky Whray, Navy Family Ombudsman Program Manager. "He or she has ownership."

Once appointed, the ombudsman and the commanding officer meet to determine how often the commanding officer wants to be briefed, the issues that merit immediate notification, the frequency of newsletters to be sent to families, the type of information that needs to be passed on to the executive officer and the command master chief and other activities that promote family welfare and morale.

Because ombudsmen often become involved in families' personal matters, they are bound by a strict code of confidentiality. Trust is one of the most important elements of the role.

"Ombudsmen can't be effective without first laying the foundation of trust," said Tuma. "They must know the boundaries of what they can and cannot do. If you have that, then you will be able to meet the commitments that you've made."

Underscoring the importance of maturity in performing the role, Phillips said.

"You treat the families with respect. They need to know you are there for them and only them. That's how you build trust," said Phillips.

She added that, confidentiality restrictions require gaining the permission of the individuals involved in most situations prior to informing the command of their concerns.

Unlike the earlier days of the program, ombudsmen benefit from a program organizational structure that provides logistic support from command and fleet and family support centers.

First and foremost, the command furnishes direct support by overseeing the program's administrative activities, the publication of a newsletter, and determining how the ombudsman will be reimbursed for certain things like mileage and supplies. In an era of technology-enhanced communications, command support can be readily accessed when the ship is deployed.

"I use e-mail a lot to carry out my duties," said Phillips. "When I've written an e-mail at midnight, after checking messages earlier in the evening, the command's response has been posted the first thing the next morning."

The traditional Family CARELINE is another tool the ombudsman uses to relay information to families and obtain feedback on a daily basis. Each ship established a toll-free phone number that carries messages from the commanding officer, the executive officer, the command master chief and the ombudsman. The messages are updated regularly with news from the ship.

To prepare the ombudsman for the demands of the position, ombudsman coordinators - located at approximately 57 fleet and family support centers worldwide-schedule 40-hour training workshops where certified trainers present standardized and consistent information from a basic manual as well as other key resources necessary to efficiently execute program responsibilities.

"It is absolutely essential to the program that the ombudsman receive their professional training as soon as possible. Maintaining the Ombudsman Code of Ethics and confidentiality is one of the more important things we talk about," said Whray.

Organizations such as fleet and family support centers - formally called family support centers - and ombudsmen assemblies also offer guidance and arrange additional training on specialized topics. Each serves as a clearinghouse for materials and new information on resources, referrals and policies. Additionally, the ombudsman assembly forwards ideas and innovations to the Ombudsman Quality Management Board, whose membership includes the Bureau of Navy Personnel Ombudsman Program Manager, a chaplain advisor, the two Navy-wide ombudsman-at-large, ombudsmen representatives, two fleet/force master chiefs and at least one commanding officer and any others who may be appointed. The board meets annually to review how the program is being implemented worldwide and to recommend changes.

"An ombudsman web site, under development by Navy Personnel Command, is one of the suggestions that came out of our last meeting," said Whray, noting that it will be launched in May 2001. "We will include training news, contact information, program updates and links to other web sites that will assist ombudsmen perform their duties."

The Naval Services FamilyLine, another all-volunteer organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of sea service families, publishes the "Ombudsman Journal" quarterly to provide informative articles to those who are serving as command ombudsmen. The non-profit organization enjoys a close association with the ombudsman program and reinforces efforts to ensure it is properly supported.

"The chairman of the Naval Services FamilyLine and the spouse of the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy are appointed by the Chief of Naval Operations to serve as the two Navy-wide Ombudsman-at-large," said Tuma, who served as commanding officer of the decommissioned ballistic missile submarine USS Stonewall Jackson from 1980 to 1984, has been a Navy spouse for more than 10 years, and was appointed chairman of FamilyLine and Ombudsman-at-Large in April 2000.

"The Naval Reserve Force also has a Navy Reserve Ombudsman-at-large. We meet quarterly as part of the Ombudsman Advisory Committee to identify program improvements," continued Tuma.

While not within the official chain of command, the involvement of the spouse of the commanding officer can be a valuable asset to the ombudsman. During training, ombudsmen are encouraged to reach out and establish a strong working relationship with the commanding officer's spouse in order to benefit by her experience and knowledge of the Navy and its support programs.

"The commanding officer's wife is one of the resources available to the Ombudsman while coordinating the program," said Dr. Joan Lingen, wife of Cmdr. Jonathan C. Bess, the former commanding officer of USS Oak Hill. "The wives' participation varies from command to command. However, you are expected to be involved to whatever degree you think your talents and personality will have a positive effect on the ship's morale and the family's morale."

Lingen reinforced the sentiment that maturity is a key quality required to handle the demands of the ombudsman position. She believes families must feel the ombudsman is someone they can talk to who will be discreet with information, and, who will speak with some degree of authority because of access to the command.

Lingen observed first-hand how the ombudsman's problem-solving skills are called into action when she was overseas and was involved in meeting the needs of command families.

"The issues that can come up can be mind-boggling. Often there were very young spouses who had very limited experience with the Navy and were overseas for the first time in their lives," recalled Lingen.

Issues ranged from navigating the medical system to catastrophes associated with passport and financial problems, she said.

In his role as program manager, Whray receives feedback from ombudsmen who think that deploying sailors do not prepare themselves or their families well enough for deployment. Therefore, these crises arise. He said, in order to better serve family members, the Navy has organized a working group to examine the manner in which critical information is deployed to family members at different stages of a sailors life.

Whray views the role of the ombudsman as having a wide-reaching impact that affects mission readiness.

"Sailors don't make career decisions sitting in the career counseling office, they do it at the kitchen table with their wives, children and even their parents. When the ombudsman helps family members have a successful tour, they create an atmosphere that is conducive to reenlisting, and retention impacts readiness," he said, emphasizing that if you do not have sufficient numbers of qualified people you will not have force readiness.

Those who volunteer to become an ombudsman take on an enormous job. Setting aside time to serve unselfishly, they are the daily manifestation of the Navy's tradition of "taking care of its own."

"At the heart of the successful program every sailor leans upon today are the wonderfully big-hearted spouses who serve as ombudsmen only for the love of helping people," wrote James Herdt, the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy in a 30th birthday address published in the "Ombudsman Journal."

"It is this common virtue of love for others that has served as the single uniting and catalytic ingredient shared by those who have served in the past, those who currently serve, and those who serve in the future that has ensured the success of today's program and will ensure its success into the future," said Herdt.