WASHINGTON, April 17, 2008
Nearly 1 In 5 Vets Reports Mental Problems
Study: 300,000 U.S. Troops Suffering From Depression, PTSD; 320,000 Have Brain Injuries
-
(CBS/iStockphoto)
-
Play CBS Video Video PTSD Ignored By Military Brass Soldiers diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder can cost the U.S. military millions each. So top brass are finding other ways to deal with the illness. Kimberly Dozier reports.
-
Video Helping Troops Deal With PTSD Harry Smith talks with Dr. Glen Wurglitz, part of a team being deployed to Iraq to assist U.S. troops deal with mental health issues, including post-traumaic stress disorder.
-
Video Notebook: PTSD A new study found that 1 in 5 U.S. troops suffer from depression or post traumatic stress disorder from service in Iraq and Afghanistan. Randall Pinkston comments.
-
Interactive Military 101 Basic training to learn all about America's fighting force.
Only about half of them have sought treatment, says the study released Thursday by the Rand Corp.
A recently completed survey showed 18.5 percent - or 300,000 people - said they have symptoms of depression or PTSD, the researchers said. Nineteen percent - or 320,000 - suffered head injuries ranging from mild concussions to penetrating head wounds.
"There is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan," said Terri Tanielian, the project's co-leader and a researcher at the nonprofit Rand.
"Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for the nation," she said in a statement.
The 500-page study is the first large-scale, private assessment of its kind - including a survey of 1,965 service members across the country, from all branches of the armed forces and including those still in the military as well veterans who have left the services.
Its results appear consistent with a number of mental health reports from within the government, though the Defense Department has not released the number of people it has diagnosed or who are being treated for mental problems.
The Department of Veterans Affairs said this month that its records show about 120,000 who served in the two wars and are no longer in the military have been diagnosed with mental health problems. Of those, approximately 60,000 are suffering from PTSD, the VA said.
In December, CBS News correspondent Kimberly Dozier reported that veterans' advocates say symptoms of PTSD - from substance-abuse to rage to suicidal depression - are misdiagnosed or blamed on the troops themselves.
Veterans Affairs is responsible for care of service members after they have left the service, while the Defense Department covers active duty and reservist needs.
The lack of numbers from the Pentagon was one motivation for the Rand study, Tanielian said in an interview.
Fast Fact
The most prominent and detailed military study on mental health on the war that is released regularly to the public is the Army's survey of soldiers at the battlefield. Officials said last month that it's most recent one, done last fall, found 18.2 percent of soldiers suffered a mental health problem such as depression, anxiety or acute stress in 2007 compared with 20.5 percent the previous year.Only 53 percent of service members with PTSD or depression sought help over the past year, according to the study.
Other studies have variously estimated that 10 percent to 20 percent had symptoms of mental health problems
The Rand survey done from August through January, put the percentage of PTSD and depression at 18.5 percent and then calculated about 300,000 were suffering those problems at that time because Pentagon data shows over 1.6 million military personnel have deployed to the conflicts since the war in Afghanistan began in 2001.
Col. Loree Sutton, who heads a new Pentagon center on brain injury, welcomed the Rand study, saying it will add to the work defense officials are doing. That includes improving and expanding training, research and mental health staff.
She said officials have been working to add thousands more mental health professionals to help the uniformed psychiatrists, psychologists and others struggling to meet the wartime demands of troops and their families. Across the services, officials are trying to hire over 1,000 additional staff, companies providing health care by contract to the Pentagon have added over 3,000 in the last year and the U.S. Public Health Service has provided some 200, she said. The veterans department also has added some 3,800 professionals in the last couple of years, officials there said.
Rand researchers also found:
They gave various reasons for not getting help, including that they worried about the side effects of medication; believe family and friends could help them with the problem, or that they feared seeking care might damage their careers.
Rates of PTSD and major depression were highest among women and reservists.
The report is titled "Invisible Wounds of War: Psychological and Cognitive Injuries, Their Consequences, and Services to Assist Recovery." It was sponsored by a grant from the California Community Foundation and done by 25 researchers from Rand Health and the Rand National Security Research Division, which also has done does work under contracts with the Pentagon and other defense agencies as well as allied foreign governments and foundations.
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
More From Health
Add a Comment See all 121 Comments
- To Daine71 I don''t know if you will come back on here but if you do I would like to thank you and your family for the sacrifice you have made. It is not right that the same people be deployed time and time again. This President has terrible judgment, and makes nonsensical decisions. It''s him we''re criticizing and his policies not your husband or the other soldiers. And they should be treated like Kings and get all the assistance they need for the rest of their lives.
- Reply to this comment
- This consequence of Bush''s war will, in the end, prove to be the most long-lasting, expensive, devastating and heartbreaking aspect of this war. And, unfortunately for the American, military and civilian, the administration still fails to recognize that it is a direct consequence of their "fly by the seat of your pants" stategy..
Should anyone really listen to Bush? What he says is to protect the American people has proven to further endanger our lives. What he says will protect and improve our economy has forced us into a recession, and possibly, a depression. What he contends furthers our influence in the world has isolated us and downgraded our reputation throughout the globe. Can anyone doubt that he has a serious judgement problem, both with his own judgement and with his ability to choose capable advisors. He continues to play Russian Roulette with America''s young soldiers. - Reply to this comment
- Also to someone that posted that the soldiers volunteered for this is wrong. They enlisted in the military but to be deployed every other year is just to much. There is a point when to much is just to much. When our National Guard has to be brought in to fight a full war then something is really wrong. My husband has been deployed for a year after 9/11 and then for all the hurricanes and now he''s in Iraq. It''s not right. I can understand "homeland" security but fighting a war just because we don''t have enough military to do it just proves our president didn''t think things thru and look at where it has got us. And now our government can''t even take care of our soldiers.
- Reply to this comment
- I think it''s awful how people on this blog have talked so uncaring of our military. They should all be taken care of and treated like kings. I also think another reason for these problems is that Bush has over extended our military so much that they have lowered their standards of the people they allow into the military.
- Reply to this comment
- As an Israeli I want to thank all the American''s who are fighting this war for us. We couldn''t have done it ourselves. PTSD SchmPTSD. As long as it is good for Israel. I hate to see so many Americans fighting among themselves, but hey... it works for us. Have a nice day.
- Reply to this comment
- It is another fallacy that has been perpetrated that people who oppose the war do not support the troops. I not only support the troops I have the highest regard and respect for the soldier in the field.I believe that those serving in Afghanistan and Iraq are deserving of all honor and respect. I thank them for their service and the sacrifices they make for our nation. But when I think about those sacrifices I know this. 1. They should be made based on solid facts and evidence. 2. They should not be made over a commander-in-chief''s personal belief system. 3. They should not be made over a political party''s platform. 4. They should not be made for financial gain or oil. 5. They should not be a tool for American corporate interests. The sacrifices those troops make should be for clear and powerful reasons. The waters of the Iraq war are muddy. The price our people are paying is too high.
- Reply to this comment
Don''t worry vets. Bush is sending you a shiny new "support our troops" bumper sticker in the mail courtesy of the RNC. Thanks for voting Republican America!- Reply to this comment
- In the days that I served, we didn''t have the ability to use the internet. I can only imagine what todays soldier must feel, thousands of mile from home and reading some of the trash posted about them, their commander in chief, and the mission they have been charged to carry out, how depressing it must all be. We are able to dicuss these things with no fear of retribution, because of those who have answered the call past , present and future. Think about that.
- Reply to this comment
- WOW, looks like they are taking after the Commander in Chief.
- Reply to this comment
- To show you''''re support instead of whinning about the war, please come to www.theoandavirus.com.
Support the troops, and stop being human scum.
Well, gailcummings, it''s hard to have a rational exchange with an angry six year old.....go sit in the corner until you can apologize....something this administration also needs to do. - Reply to this comment
- Somehow I think Gailcummings that the human scum are those who send others to war based on lies but don''t go themselves. The human scum are those who continue to support someone who did such a thing. This is a serious matter. I worked with veterans from a previous war. I saw them coming in from the streets drug addicted and homeless. War is literally he--! I saw a grown man hiding under his bed because detoxing he saw lions attacking. War is not to be taken lightly, engaged in for a whim or a wrongful reason. Don''t call people scum who would prefer not to create a situation for our military personnel which causes them psychiatric problems without overwhelmingly important and legitimate reasons. What a fool you are.
- Reply to this comment
- First and foremost - my comment is not one to minimize the seriousness of what today''s soldiers are experiencing. I too am a vet (USAF) of the first Gulf War.
Instead my comment is one meant to remind you that there are others who need this help just as much, and for countless vets - it''s just too late! I''m talking about the vets of previous wars - ALL previous wars! This is NOT new! It''s just more known, more accepted, and the people are more informed than before. This is BY FAR not **new**.
Please allow me also remind you that one DOES NOT NEED TO SEE **COMBAT** to experience something that is traumatic enough to cause/trigger PTSD! EVERYONE who is active duty is effected by this war in some way. The home bases/ports support those in the battlefield - there is a very distinct ripple that we all felt (they all feel) when there is any conflict going on. YES - those in the battlefield will need preferential treatment - but PLEASE do not forget that this does effect EVERYONE. And it effects the way all bases/ports operate so that potential rises force wide (all FIVE branches)!
I AM extremely glad to see you bringing awareness, but do not forget those that came before us that led the way and made their own sacrifices for us, before us!
AND PLEASE do not feed the ignorance that one needs to have seen *combat* to have PTSD. That is a gross misconception, and one that usually goes untouched. - Reply to this comment
- I stated once today that in the late 1980''s funds to veterans were cut by the Reagan Administration. They can allocate funds to wage war, but not to care for the wounded warriors they create. Caring for the veterans has always been a cause of the Democrats. Something else I learned from military personnel is that the vast majority of higher ranking military officers (majors, colonels, generals, admirals) are registered Republicans primarily because Republican presidents tend to put more funds towards military operations while Democratic Presidents put more towards veterans benefits. Wesley Clark was an exception as a high-ranking Democratic party military officer. The military would never have opposed Bush on the Iraq War. If you think about it we saw an endless procession of generals on Television before the invasion of Iraq. Its something to think about the next time a president tries to sell us a war. The military''s opinion might not be so objective. If that''s the case I really do grieve for the harm done our fine soldiers in Iraq.
- Reply to this comment
- FRESNO, Calif. %u2014 Forced to leave the combat zone after his two brothers died in the Iraq war, Army Spc. Jason Hubbard faced another battle once he returned home: The military cut off his family''''s health care, stopped his G.I. educational subsidies and wanted him to repay his sign-up bonus."
Why of course, you sheeple who sign up with the military have no clue what they are doing to you- you are JUST a number and a warm body to the Govt to use as it see fit and discard, all this LOYALTY to the military is totally misplaced. - Reply to this comment
- America never took care of a vet in need, just look around and youll see them in the gutters.
Our vets fought invain they fought for the Central Bank not the people they have been fooled along with the american people to be a patriot and fight unknown to them for the corporations like JP Morgon sachs investment. Rockafellers, bilderbirgs,
warburg, Chase bank and many others. When you wake up to the real story then and only then will you see who our goverment panders to, The constitution does''nt exsist in there eyes cause if it did matter you would''nt be serving money, It would be serving you as it was meant to by the fore farthers. Wake up to Dr Paul and then you will know the sad truth. - Reply to this comment
- This has got to be the most INCOMPETENT Administraion in our history. How can you possibably continue to have an Military like we want and treat them this way. Having served in Combat I can personally tell you that what these people are being asked to do is near to impossible, that''s why they are coming home mental cases. Sieg Heil Bush
- Reply to this comment
- Taking care of the troops - Bush and Cheney style:
FRESNO, Calif. %u2014 Forced to leave the combat zone after his two brothers died in the Iraq war, Army Spc. Jason Hubbard faced another battle once he returned home: The military cut off his family''s health care, stopped his G.I. educational subsidies and wanted him to repay his sign-up bonus.
Read the whole story here:
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/news/234736.php - Reply to this comment
- lastdance,gateway went to the George Patton school on dealing with PTSD,slap them and call them a coward,work''s everytime doesn''t it?
- Reply to this comment
- Anyone going into combat has to have an effect whenthey come back. Doesn''t matter how normal you are or if you have problems before, it will effect you. My daughter is just back from Iraq. I will be there to see her thru this and m,ake sure she gets any help she may need for readjustment. Already been there myself.
- Reply to this comment
- A non-profit mental health agency in the Denver metro area is offering state of the art therapeutic services. The agency is called Lost and Found Inc., and the holistic mental health outreach to military/veterans and their families is called Operation Restoration. Visit www.lostandfoundinc.org and go to other services to find out more. Our mission is to support troops/returning troops and veterans, and their families, focusing on PTSD, TBI, anxiety, addictions, and other stressors as well as the family issues pre-during and post deployments. We know what we''re doing, and have a great compassion for these brave Americans. I am a Marine Mom -- my son just returned from his first tour in Iraq. Linda L. Olson, Development Manager, Lost and Found Inc., LindaOlson@lnfinc.org
- Reply to this comment
The road ahead in Afghanistan, and the crucial decision Obama faces.
