Stress, Suicide and Homicide: How Do We Help Our Veterans Cope?

[unhappycamper]

Stress, Suicide and Homicide: How Do We Help Our Veterans Cope?
Luis Carlos Montalván and Winthrop R. Adkins
Posted: November 13, 2009 04:37 PM

In the aftermath of the tragedy at Fort Hood last week, too many people are focusing on the religious affiliation of the alleged perpetrator, rather than on a more important and pressing issue: the lack of adequate psychosocial care for women and men in uniform. It matters not that the individual who will be charged with these heinous crimes had not been in combat; his long-term and very intimate association with the combat wounds of others clearly seem to have left him seriously damaged.

So why do these dangerous public examples of mental problems of servicemen keep happening, and why are we not doing more about it? Why do so many veterans and their families complain they are not getting the help they need with psychological problems?

Our military and Veterans' Administration facilities are swamped with massive numbers of veterans with physical injuries and serious mental health problems. As with all previous wars, it takes time to gear up after hostilities begin to provide requisite veteran services. It also takes public support to fund those services, and insist on excellence in their delivery.

There's been plenty of time, and lots of lip service paid to "supporting the troops," but the sad reality is that service members and veterans are not receiving the care they need.

In today's Veterans Administration health care system, there are not enough trained psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals to treat over 300,000 veterans already diagnosed with PTSD. Additionally, there are many other physically disabled personnel beset by psychological trauma who need care, not to mention the many veterans having real difficulty readjusting to civilian life.


Rest of article at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/luis-carlos-montalvan/stress-suicide-homicide-h_b_357408.html

[Mari333]

1. end wars forever.

and spend as much money on resources to help them as we spent sending money to bail out wall street.