By Marco Margaritoff
Since 2008, more than 60,000 #U.S. #veterans have taken their own lives, with more than half of those deaths via firearms
U.S. Department of Defense/Senior Airman Donald Hudson Veterans pay their respects at a #VeteransDay ceremony in Japan in 2017. 6,139 #veterans killed themselves that year.
When #soldiers return home from war, they may feel that the worst is over. They made it back alive and are now free from the fear of dying in combat.
The reality, however, is much more complicated and alarming: More U.S. veterans have committed #suicide between 2008 and 2017 than the number of U.S. #soldiers that died during the entire #VietnamWar. According to the defense news site Military.com, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) shared these alarming rates in a September 2019 report.
The U.S. suffered around 58,000 fatalities over the course of the #VietnamWar, which lasted from 1955 to 1975. This number has now been eclipsed by the more than 60,000 U.S. #veteran #suicides in a recent span of just 10 years.
More than 6,000 #veterans committed #suicide every year during that timeframe, despite the fact that the total number of #veterans declined by 18 percent.
This statistic serves as a stark reminder that #soldiers need #mentalhealth treatment just as much as medical care for their physical injuries.A 2017 FOX Business segment on the increasing rates of #suicide among #veterans.
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
The VA’s 2019 National #Veteran SuicidePrevention Annual Report also revealed that more than half of these #veterans committed #suicide via firearm. #Female #veterans used guns 43.2 percent of the time, while #male #veterans did so 70.7 percent of the time.
The rate of #veteran #suicide continues to increase with each and every passing year. In the worst year on record, 6,139 #veterans killed themselves in 2017. This marks an increase of two percent from the previous year — and a total increase of six percent since 2008.
Shockingly, almost 70 percent of #veterans who killed themselves did not receive healthcare services from the VA in the lead-up to their #suicides.
The report also found an unnerving number of #suicides among former National Guard and Reserve members. These #veterans were never “activated,” as the military describes it, and thus have no access to VA services. Within this group, there were 919 #suicides in 2017 — a rate of 2.5 suicides per day. In total, around 12.4 percent of all #military #suicides in 2017 came from this group.
2017 was also the first year that the #suicide rate for #veterans reached 1.5 times the rate for non-veteran adults in the U.S.CBS Evening News on the #veteran #suicides on VA properties.
While the VA’s report didn’t account for how effective its #mentalhealth programs have been, #veterans are clearly in need of better care.
The VA statement accompanying their report underlined just how complex of an epidemic this really is. Officials in charge explained that the department is simply incapable of addressing the issue and that it needs help from the private sector to properly tackle it.
“We cannot do this alone,” said Dr. Richard Stone, the Executive in Charge of the #VeteransHealthAdministration. “We call on our community partners to join us in this effort.”
“VA is working to prevent #suicide among all #veterans, whether they are enrolled in VA health care or not,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie.
“That’s why the department has adopted a comprehensive public health approach to #suicideprevention, using bundled strategies that cut across various sectors — faith communities, employers, schools and health care organizations, for example — to reach veterans where they live and thrive.”A CNN segment probing the inefficiency of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
However, the Government Accountability Office reported in December 2018 that the VA left almost $5 million of its #suicideprevention outreach budget unused. #Socialmedia posts, public service announcements, billboards, and advertisements all declined in 2017 and 2018 — though this trend began to increase in 2019.
Psychologist and leader of the National Center for #Veterans Studies, Craig Bryan, explained that organizing thorough study of #veteran #suicide statistics could make budget allocations to tackle the issue more effective.
“The benefit of separating out subgroups is that it can help us identify higher-risk subgroups of the whole, which may be able to help us determine where and how to best focus resources,” he said.
According to the Federal Register, President Trump signed an Executive Order in March 2019 to do just that.
Order 13861, or the “President’s Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of #Suicide” (PREVENTS) created a task force led by Wilkie to help consolidate federal funds and make #suicideprevention more effective. The task force will offer research grants to state and local governments as well as collaborate with the private sector to address this issue.
“#Veteran #suicide requires an all-hands on-deck approach to preserve the lives of our #Veterans who have served our country,” said Wilkie. “This is a call to action.”
James Donaldson is a Washington State University graduate (’79). After an outstanding basketball career with WSU, he went on to play professional basketball in the NBA with the Seattle Supersonics, San Diego/L.A. Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, and Utah Jazz. He also played for several teams in the European Leagues in Spain, Italy, and Greece, and he toured with The Harlem Globetrotters to wrap up his career. James was an NBA All-Star in 1988 while playing center for the Dallas Mavericks. In 2006, James was inducted into the Pac-10 Sports Hall of Fame and also the Washington State University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2010, James was elected as a board member for the NBA Retired Players Association.
James frequently conducts speaking engagements (motivational, inspirational, educational) for organizations, schools, and youth groups.
In 2010, James was the recipient of the NBA Legends of Basketball ABC Award, awarded for outstanding contributions in Athletics–Business–Community.
He believes in being a role model for success and professionalism to the scores of young people to whom he devotes so much of his time. He currently serves on several boards and committees and is a member of many organizations.
James believes in developing relationships that create a “Win-Win” environment for everyone involved, and in being the best he can be!
For more information about James Donaldson or to request he speak at your event, contact him at:
www.StandingAboveTheCrowd.com
[email protected]
1-800-745-3161 (voicemail & fax)
James Donaldson is the author of “Standing Above The Crowd” and “Celebrating Your Gift of Life” and founder of the Your Gift of Life Foundation which focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention, especially pertaining to our school aged children and men.
If you’re interested in having James come and speak to your group of young adults, business entrepreneurs, aspiring political and community leaders, and athletic teams, please contact him at [email protected] and or leave a personal message for him at 1-800-745-3161. Keep up with him and read about how he is reaching out and making a difference in the lives of so many around the world at www.yourgiftoflife.org
