U.S. Soldiers Experience Increased Rates Of
Depression, PTSD On Third, Fourth Tours In Iraq, Study Finds
March 10, 2008
About 15% to 20% of U.S. soldiers in Iraq have signs of depression or
post-traumatic stress disorder, and about 30% of soldiers on their third or
fourth tours have experienced emotional illnesses, according to a study released
on Thursday by the Army, USA
Today reports (Zoroya, USA Today, 3/7). The survey
included anonymous responses collected from 2,295 soldiers in Iraq in October
and November 2007 (Spiegel, Los
Angeles Times, 3/7). Mental health teams from the Army
Surgeon General's Office conducted the survey (USA Today, 3/7).
According to the survey, 27.2% of sergeants who led soldiers into combat in Iraq
experienced mental health problems during their third or fourth tours, compared
with 18.5% during their second tours and 11.9% during their first tours (Los
Angeles Times, 3/7). The one-year breaks that soldiers have between
successive 12- to 15-month tours in Iraq do not provide adequate time for
recovery, the study found. In addition, symptoms of some mental illnesses can
become more intense as soldiers prepare to return to Iraq, according to the
study. The report also found that the mental health issues for troops in
Afghanistan have equaled those for soldiers in Iraq (USA Today,
3/7).
Lead researcher Lt. Col. Paul Bliese of the Walter
Reed Army Institute of Research said, "We see this multiple-deployment
effect for the mental health problems, (and) we see a similar pattern for
morale" (Cheddekel/Kauffman, Hartford
Courant, 3/7). He said, "Soldiers are not resetting entirely
before they get back into theater," adding, "They're not having the
opportunity to completely recover from the previous deployment when they go back
into theater for the second or third deployment" (Los Angeles Times,
3/7).
The study also found that soldiers are more willing to seek mental health care
than they were last year, although access to treatment in remote parts of Iraq
is limited. Maj. Gen. Gale Pollock, a deputy surgeon general, said the Army has
sought to provide more counselors in remote areas of Iraq and has considered
deployment of civilian mental health professionals into combat areas (USA
Today, 3/7).
Reaction
According to the Times, the study likely will "increase calls
by senior Army leaders to cut the length of combat tours and increase the time
soldiers have between deployments" (Los Angeles Times, 3/7).
Col. Elspeth Ritchie, psychiatry consultant to the Army surgeon general, said,
"We are working through the details about how we can place motivated,
experienced psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers with our troops
downrange," adding, "We think that they will be a definite addition to
our uniformed providers" (Hartford Courant, 3/7).
Senate Armed Services Subcommittee
on Personnel Chair Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) said, "Mental health problems
are just one of the cascading costs we're seeing after a five-year war,"
adding, "Psychological wounds affect families, both emotionally and
financially, just as much as physical wounds" (USA Today,
3/7).
NPR's "All
Things Considered" on Thursday reported on the study. The segment
includes comments from Ritchie, Pollock and Bliese (Raz, "All Things
Considered," NPR, 3/6). Audio of the segment is available online.
Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org.
You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives,
or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy.
The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free
service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family FoundationŠ 2005 Advisory Board Company
and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
Medical News Today: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com
Back to News