Thursday, August 16, 2007

Suicide rate highest in 26 years for Army personnel

The AP obtained a report I just ran across at Huffington that is to be released on Thursday that describes the suicide rate within the Army as being

"at the highest rate in 26 years, and more than a quarter did so while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a new military report.
Last year, "Iraq was the most common deployment location for both (suicides) and attempts," the report said."

The numbers may not be considered significant by some; I consider them significant and certainly indicative of a desperate measure taken to get OUT of untenable situation.

"In addition, there was a significant relationship between suicide attempts and number of days deployed" in Iraq, Afghanistan or nearby countries where troops are participating in the war effort, it said. The same pattern seemed to hold true for those who not only attempted, but succeeded in killing themselves.

There also "was limited evidence to support the view that multiple ... deployments are a risk factor for suicide behaviors," it said."

There's more at Huffington.com

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