Independent consultants will spend time with the families of veterans who have committed suicide, as part of a plan to overhaul the veterans claims system.
Veterans' Affairs Minister Andrew Gee says consultancy company McKinsey will be brought on to find ways to reduce the waiting times for processing claims.
As part of the process, consultants will need to spend time with relatives of veterans who committed suicide after returning home from conflict.
Mr Gee said changes were needed to the system before a royal commission into veteran suicides completed its work.
"I have directed McKinsey to hold meetings with families of veterans who have suffered the tragic and devastating loss of a loved one, so that those rebuilding the system have a first-hand understand of the impact of veteran suicide," he said.
"Our veterans have served our nation with courage and distinction and we must give them the best possible care and support. They deserve nothing less."
The minister stressed the consultancy work would not be another systems review.
McKinsey is set to hand down their plan in December.
It's expected recommendations will be provided with goals that can be met after either three, six, 12, 18 or 24 months.
Mr Gee said while almost $100 million was provided in the most recent federal budget for new claims processing officers to deal with the backlog, more work was needed.
"I don't want to see these officers dropped into an inefficient system, tangling themselves up in red tape," he said.
"If that budget boost is to have maximum effect, we need to make sure that the fundamentals of the claims processing system are right."
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