CBS Report: "Suicides Seen Among Vets Treated By VA"

[vietnam_war_vet]

((Sadly, this report's information was not surprising to me....and probably not to many other veterans. Paraphrasing from memory a quote I once read on a veterans website/blog: "Delay and deny and deny and delay as more and more veterans unnecessarily die everyday." SSDD with the VA. -- Michael))


Suicides Seen Among Vets Treated By VA


WASHINGTON, March 20, 2008




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(CBS) There's new information about the risk of suicide for those who have served in the military. Last November, CBS News broke the story of the overwhelming number of veteran suicides nationwide. Now, Chief Investigative Correspondent Armen Keteyian has discovered veterans who get help from the VA are also at risk.

"When you go through war, you're going to change permanently and totally for the rest of your life," said veteran Harold Pendergrass.

Pendergrass knows firsthand the hidden wounds of war. He served two tours in Vietnam.

"I carried a suicide note in my pocket for years," he said.

At 57, the former Army soldier has tried to take his own life three times, constantly wrestling with thoughts of killing himself.

"I sat around numerous times with a .44 in my mouth," he said. "But for some reason, I just couldn't pull the trigger. I don't know why."

Now, CBS News has obtained never-before seen patient data from the Department of Veterans Affairs, detailing the growing number of suicide attempts among vets recently treated by the VA.

The data reveals a marked overall increase - from 462 attempts in 2000 to 790 in 2007.

"This is highly statistically significant," said Dr. Bruce Levin, head of the biostatistics department at Columbia University. Levin is one of three experts who analyzed the data for CBS News.

"I'd characterize it as something that deserves further attention," Levin said. "Overall the data suggests about a 44 percent increase and that is not due to chance."

Read the rest at: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/03/20/cbsnews_investigates/main3956210.shtml