ptsd Us Army Commanders Alarmed By Rash Of Suicides At Fort Hood

[allan]

9. US Army Commanders Alarmed By Rash Of Suicides At Fort Hood. The New York Times (9/30, A23, McKinley, 1.01M) reports, “Four veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan died this week from what appeared to be self-inflicted gunshot wounds at Fort Hood in central Texas, raising the toll of soldiers who died here at their own hands to a record level and alarming Army commanders.” The “largest base in the United States, Fort Hood and the surrounding communities have suffered high rates of crime, domestic violence, suicide and various mental illnesses as wave after wave of soldiers have been deployed abroad over nine years of continual warfare, often serving more than one tour.” The Times notes that “advocates for soldiers who have suffered mental breakdowns said” Army suicide-prevention programs are not effective.

Analysis Suggests Vets’ Mental Health Problems Are Growing. The Fayetteville (NC) Observer (9/30, Calhoun, 56K) reports that after it “spent months examining the handling of mental health issues created by nine years of war,” its “reporting shows that the Army, Fort Bragg, the veterans health system and the civilian community are doing more than ever before to address the problems that soldiers and their families face. But the problem is growing; more soldiers are suffering” from post-traumatic stress-disorder (PTSD). According to the Observer, “evidence suggests that addressing PTSD in a military community requires a broad approach that includes” a “stronger commitment from the military to fight the stigma attached to seeking mental health treatment.”

Illinois VA, Marion VAMC Expanding Mental Health Services. The WSIL-TV Carterville, IL (9/30, Stensland) website, which also takes note of the recent Fort Hood suicides, reports, “The Illinois Department of Veterans” Affairs has created three” programs – “Vet Healthcare, Illinois Warrior Assistance Program (IWAP), and Reintegration Seminars” – that specifically target “troops who show signs of combat stress.” Hospitals run by the US VA are “also expanding their mental health services. The Marion VA Medical Center is building an addition to its mental health center” and has “stepped up the amount of help veterans can get at VA field offices across the region.”

Dorn VA Hospital Hosts Suicide Awareness Program. The WLTX-TV Columbia, SC (9/29, Sharp, Eleazer) website noted that on Tuesday, the “Dorn Veterans Administration Hospital hosted a program to bring awareness” to the problem of suicide among US veterans. Meanwhile, veteran Gary Anderson is “volunteering with the hospital to make ‘bottles of hope’, small containers filled with a solution to blow bubbles. The bottles will be sent to military personnel serving in Iraq to let them know someone cares here at home.”

Gates Cautions About Growing Disconnect Between Military And Country As A Whole. The AP (9/30, Flaherty) reports that in a Wednesday speech at Duke University, “Defense Secretary Robert Gates said…that most Americans have grown too detached from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and see military service as ‘something for other people to do.’” The Secretary “said this disconnect has imposed a heavy burden on a small segment of society and wildly driven up the costs of maintaining an all-volunteer force.”

AFP (9/30, De Luce) notes that Gates “said most Americans were untouched by the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan and few had relatives or friends in the armed forces, as less than one percent of the population was serving in uniform.” AFP adds that “although Gates lauded the all-volunteer force, launched in the 1970s, as a ‘remarkable success,’ he said there was a potential gap emerging between the military and civilian society.”

The New York Times (9/30, A28, Bumiller, 1.01M) reports, “Gates said that although veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan were embraced when they came home, ‘for most Americans the wars remain an abstraction – a distant and unpleasant series of news items that do not affect them personally.’” Gates “called for the return of R.O.T.C. to elite campuses across the country…and for the academically gifted to consider military service.”

http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/09/30/top-10-veterans-stories-in-today%e2%80%99s-news-68/

[john999]

These vets are going to be left slowly twisting in the wind when these wars wind down and that will be soon I think. Nobody cares about Iraq and Afghanistan now. They just care about their own job and bills. When the war is forgotten the warrior is forgotten.