The Alarming Prevalence of Veteran Suicide
VA prioritizes prevention
of veteran suicide
VA prioritizes prevention
of veteran suicide
Veteran suicide isn’t Professor Annabel Prins’ primary area of expertise, but it has been connected to PTSD and depression, and she calls its prevalence alarming. She also notes that no studies have yet found a correlation between suicide and experience of combat.
“Veteran suicide is of great concern to the VA,” Prins says. “And it’s important to recognize that deployment to war zones does not appear to be related to veteran suicide. Research has come out suggesting that there is something about veteran status, and especially veterans re-integrating into civilian roles, that can be challenging, but that is not related to combat exposure.”
Veteran suicide has long been an issue of concern for the VA. The most recent Department of Veterans Affairs statistics show that 20 veterans per day die by suicide. In 2010, according to the VA, veterans accounted for 22 percent of all U.S. deaths from suicide and 9.7 percent of the population.
U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin has called veteran suicide “a national public health crisis” and has labeled it his top clinical priority. In May, Shulkin announced “Getting to Zero” an initiative aimed at ending veteran suicide, which has been linked to PTSD and depression. The program aims to guide veterans to 24/7 emergency care through its emergency departments and the VA’s Veterans Crisis Line.
Veteran suicide has been linked to PTSD and depression
Among the measures the VA is undertaking are an expansion of the Veteran Crisis Line, which provides immediate access to mental health crisis intervention and support; the use of predictive analytics to determine which veterans may be at highest risk of suicide so that providers can intervene early; bolstering mental health services for women by focusing on training and hiring Designated Women’s Health Providers at every site where women access the VA; and deploying mobile apps to support veterans and their families with tools to help them manage emotional and behavioral concerns.
