APA Welcomes New Study On Soldiers' Mental Health

Main Category: Mental Health
Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry
Article Date: 01 Mar 2006 - 12:00 PDT

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Today the American Psychiatric Association (APA) welcomed a first-of-its-kind study of returning soldiers' mental health. The U.S. Army-funded study, "Mental Health Problems, Use of Mental Health Services, and Attrition from Military Service after Returning from Deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan," was published in the March 1 edition of Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and was led by Charles W. Hoge, M.D., of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Washington, D.C.

APA President Steven S. Sharfstein, M.D., made the following statement:

The American Psychiatric Association is pleased that the U.S. military undertook this study. The study provides new and important information - information that is vital to more fully understanding the mental health burden of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The federal government - and, in particular, the military services and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) - must be proactive in assessing soldiers' and veterans' needs for mental health services, as well as in assessing the government's ability to provide those services.

All those who play a role in supporting America's returning military personnel must continue to educate soldiers about the realities of mental health problems and help reduce the stigma around reporting any symptoms and using services. Early intervention has been shown to lead to better treatment outcomes for patients. Also, we must be especially mindful of the needs of returning reservists, who may be less connected to services by virtue of being less connected to a military base itself.

Lastly, the APA joins the chair and ranking member of the House Veterans Committee, Reps. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.) and Lane Evans (D-Ill.) respectively, in urging Congress to significantly increase federal funding for health care for returning soldiers.

About the American Psychiatric Association:

The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society whose more than 36,000 physician members specialize in diagnosis, treatment, prevention and research of mental illnesses including substance use disorders. Visit the APA at http://www.psych.org and http://www.healthyminds.org.

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