Report: Mentally ill troops forced into combat

[heyholetsgogrant]

Report: Mentally ill troops forced into combat

Military not following own rules on deployment, paper says

Saturday, May 13, 2006; Posted: 10:05 p.m. EDT (02:05 GMT)

HARTFORD, Connecticut (AP) -- U.S. military troops with severe psychological problems have been sent to Iraq or kept in combat, even when superiors have been aware of signs of mental illness, a newspaper reported in its Sunday editions.

The Hartford Courant, citing records obtained under the federal Freedom of Information Act and more than 100 interviews of families and military personnel, reported numerous cases in which the military failed to follow its own regulations in screening, treating and evacuating mentally unfit troops from Iraq.

In 1997, Congress ordered the military to assess the mental health of all deploying troops. The newspaper, citing Pentagon statistics, said fewer than 1 in 300 service members were referred to a mental health professional before shipping out for Iraq as of October 2005.

Twenty-two U.S. troops committed suicide in Iraq last year. That number accounts for nearly one in five of all noncombat deaths and was the highest suicide rate since the war started, the newspaper said.

The paper reported that some service members who committed suicide in 2004 or 2005 were kept on duty despite clear signs of mental distress, sometimes after being prescribed antidepressants with little or no mental health counseling or monitoring. Those findings conflict with regulations adopted last year by the Army that caution against the use of antidepressants for "extended deployments."

Although Defense Department standards for enlistment disqualify recruits who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, the military also is redeploying service members to Iraq who fit that criteria, the newspaper said.

"I can't imagine something more irresponsible than putting a soldier suffering from stress on (antidepressants), when you know these drugs can cause people to become suicidal and homicidal," said Vera Sharav, president of the Alliance for Human Research Protection, a New York-based advocacy group. "You're creating chemically activated time bombs."

Commanders, not medical professionals, have final say over whether a troubled soldier is retained in a war zone. Col. Elspeth Ritchie, the Army's top mental health expert, and other military officials said they believe most commanders are alert to mental health problems and are open to referring troubled soldiers for treatment.

Ritchie acknowledged that some deployment practices, such as sending service members diagnosed with post-traumatic stress syndrome back into combat, have been driven in part by a troop shortage.

"The challenge for us ... is that the Army has a mission to fight. And, as you know, recruiting has been a challenge," she said. "And so we have to weigh the needs of the Army, the needs of the mission, with the soldiers' personal needs."

Ritchie insisted the military works hard to prevent suicides, but it is a challenge because every soldier has access to a weapon.

"I'm concerned that people who are symptomatic are being sent back. That has not happened before in our country," said Arthur S. Blank Jr., a Yale-trained psychiatrist who helped get post-traumatic stress disorder recognized as a diagnosis after the Vietnam War.

Maj. Andrew Efaw, a judge advocate general officer in the Army Reserves who handled trial defenses for soldiers in northern Iraq last year, said commanders don't want to send mentally ill soldiers into combat.

"But on the other hand, [the com mender] doesn't want to send a message to his troops that if you act up, he's willing to send you home," Efaw said.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/05/13/military.suicides.ap/index.html

[Thiebear]

Some blame the drug Lariam and others say how many people committed suicide in Washington D.C. 2004?

Suicide rates are expressed as the number of suicides per 100,000 individuals per year. By that measure, the Army suicide rate in Iraq dropped from 18 per 100,000 in 2003 to 7.9 in 2004.

For the Army as a whole, the number of suicides fell from 77 in 2003 to 58 in 2004, dropping the suicide rate from 12.8 per 100,000 in 2003 to 9.5 in 2004

*** Every soldier has several weapons at all times... and lives a hard life so we don't have to.... A 36hr day for them is not quite the same as for us*****

[Prosperity]

Some blame the drug Lariam and others say how many people committed suicide in Washington D.C. 2004?

Suicide rates are expressed as the number of suicides per 100,000 individuals per year. By that measure, the Army suicide rate in Iraq dropped from 18 per 100,000 in 2003 to 7.9 in 2004.

For the Army as a whole, the number of suicides fell from 77 in 2003 to 58 in 2004, dropping the suicide rate from 12.8 per 100,000 in 2003 to 9.5 in 2004

*** Every soldier has several weapons at all times... and lives a hard life so we don't have to.... A 36hr day for them is not quite the same as for us*****

How exactly are your 36 hour days?

[Slateman]

How exactly are your 36 hour days?

Filled with about 18 hours of sleep and no one shoots at me unless I ask for it in Southeast

[Thiebear]

How exactly are your 36 hour days?

never had a 36 hour day yet huh...

[chomerics]

Suicide rates are expressed as the number of suicides per 100,000 individuals per year. By that measure, the Army suicide rate in Iraq dropped from 18 per 100,000 in 2003 to 7.9 in 2004.

link??? I found a lot different number from you.

In 2005, a total of 83 soldiers committed suicide, compared with 67 in 2004, and 60 in 2003

You didn't list an article, so I can only assume your poll was done before the 2004 year was completed and all the numbers were tallied.

This was from 05, not 04 BTW

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12428185/

BTW, I believe these statistics only cover ACTIVE Army in Iraq, not people who return home, which is also why your number is higher for 03. If statistics were followed for reservists who returned home, that number would of course be much higher, thus skewing the statistice upward, .

[Prosperity]

never had a 36 hour day yet huh...

Heh, I guess it's a real thing. Shows how much I know.

[dreamingwolf]

is there anybody that a psycologist is willing to say isnt mentaly ill?

[Teller]

http://www.post-gazette.com/headlines/20011013fortdix1013p2.asp

"CHESTERFIELD, N.J. -- A military police reservist shot and wounded two soldiers at Fort Dix, N.J., then fled the base and shot two police officers before police killed him, authorities said yesterday."

This was the unit I was attached to after 9-11. The night before this incident, this guy was "sleep-walking" up and down the middle of our barracks babbling something about, "I have the hammer of the gods."

We got him back into his bunk without waking him up, thank God. He was about 6-4, 250 and ripped...and you could just tell he was the kind of guy who'd rip your head off if he snapped.

Anyway, two of our guys reported it to our CO the next day, a 5-3, 130 pound female butter bar Lt. She let him know she was starting an investigation, and he withdrew into a frightening shell.

I saw him in the chow hall later that day, and said, "Look man, if you need somebody to talk to, just let me know." His response was, "Get the **** away from me, I don't even know you."

The next day, we were drawing weapons from the armory when he came over to me and said, "Hey, I'm sorry about yesterday. Thanks for being there," and shook my hand. The incident in this story took place about an hour later.

The only semi-humours part of this story is that our CO was conducting an inspection of Sgt. Janeszko's personal effects right before this incident happened. He locked her in his locker before going on his rampage. She hadn't taken anyone with her to conduct the inspection, and we didn't find her until well after it was over. :doh:

Keep in mind, this incident was state-side during a VERY low stress operation as part of Noble Eagle. I can only imagine how much combat would exacerbate such problems.

[jpillian]

is there anybody that a psycologist is willing to say isnt mentaly ill?

Better yet, is there any soldier who has seen combat who would not be diagnosed with psychological trauma.

NO ONE emerges from combat unscathed. Even if you are lucky enough to leave physically intact, you are bound to have experiences that produce psychological trauma.

Not to totally discount the article either -- I'm sure that this could be a problem. In a perfect world, commanders would always be able to clearly evaluate all scenarios properly and make the optimal decision. Unfortunately, neither the world, nor the commanders, nor the situations are perfect -- and as a result, neither are the decisions.

In the end, the mission is always more important than the man, and that is the lense through which all of these "soldier care" issues must be viewed.

[Mr. S]

I heard from a friend, who had looked into this before, that the army rejects a substangial percentage of recruits who have been on ritalin in the past year (I think over 25%). I guess that is because they are/were mentally unstable?

Agree with dreamingwolf, I know at least add/adhd is overdosed, so ritalin use is widespread. I guess going by suicide rates, yeh, it makes a point. However, I wonder if the percentage is that high, the military as a whole would be much larger if they at least took out this ritalin deal.

[Midnight Judges]

I have heard some alarming stats about how a low percentage of our men and women with PTSD are being treated. I've seen it first hand, this war is taking it's toll.