This study is significant because it is the first national study of VA non-mental health medical service utilization in veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The findings are important because in the population studied the soldiers who were found to have mental health issues used all types of non-mental health services than those with no diagnosis. Veterans diagnosed with PTSD had the greatest utilization in all service categories. One million of the service men and women who have returned from war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan have been diagnosed with the disorder. Prior research on this topic has revealed that returning war veterans are at a higher risk for developing mental disorders than any other group in the united states.
PTSD is the most common of these mental disorders. In addition, a recent study done by the Department of the Army shows that the rate for PTSD is going up at an extimetial rate among soldiers returning from war. Recognizing the seriousness of the disorders these men and women are developing, especially PTSD, and getting these veterans the health care they need has been a high profile topic for scientific studies on war linked mental disorders.
Methodology
This study was quantitative and consisted of two hundred and forty nine thousand veterans who were new to VA healthcare system. This study was conducted between october of 2001 and March of 2007. (Cohen, etal, 2009). This study focused on mental health disorder diagnoses associated with veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan, because of this they used a majority of the studies population who were new to VA health care. The study followed groups of veterans, those without mental disorders and those with mental disorders, including PTSD. Thirt...
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The studies strength came from the amount of time the researches had to perform the study. It holds many implications into the identification and treatment of PTSD and other disorders caused by war related trauma. Nurses and other doctors, who are established and in institutional training, besides those in the mental health services, need to become more aware of the PTSD symptoms so that soldiers who are returning from war can get proper treatment if they are turned away from the VA. All veterans deserve the right to be treated and this would be the best possible way to achieve it.
Works Cited
Cohen, B., Gima, K., Bertenthal, D., Kim, S., Marmar, C., Seal, K. (2009). Mental health diagnoses
and utilization of va non-mental health medical services among returning Iraq and Afghanistan
veterans. Society of General Internal Medicine
PBS’ Frontline film “The Wounded Platoon” reviews the effects the Iraq war has had on soldiers as they return home and transition back into civilian life, focusing particularly on the rise in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among American military members from Fort Carson Army base (Edge, 2010). Incidents of PTSD have risen dramatically in the military since the beginning of the Iraq war and military mental health policies and treatment procedures have adapted to manage this increase (Edge, 2010). In “The Wounded Platoon,” many military personnel discuss how PTSD, and other mental health struggles, have been inadequately treated (if at all) by military mental health services. Reasons and Perdue’s definition of a social problem allows us to see inadequate treatment of PTSD among returning United States military members as a social problem because it is a condition affecting a significant number of people in undesirable ways that can be remedied through collective action (Reasons & Perdue, 1981).
James was a Marine right out of his second tour of Iraq, during which he faced a bloody
The Vietnam War caused many U.S. soldiers to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, so when is the war over, is it really over? For soldiers with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD, the war may not ever be over. Doctors are on the peak of finding treatments for the ones affected by PTSD and how to prevent it from occurring or even helping them to recover from PTSD has major affects on Vietnam soldiers, their family members and today’s society.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), originally associated with combat, has always been around in some shape or form but it was not until 1980 that it was named Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and became an accredited diagnosis (Rothschild). The fact is PTSD is one of many names for an old problem; that war has always had a severe psychological impact on people in immediate and lasting ways. PTSD has a history that is as long and significant as the world’s war history - thousands of years. Although, the diagnosis has not been around for that long, different names and symptoms of PTSD always have been. Some physical symptoms include increased blood pressure, excessive heart rate, rapid breathing, muscle tension, nausea, diarrhea, problems with vision, speech, walking disorders, convulsive vomiting, cardiac palpitations, twitching or spasms, weakness and severe muscular cramps. The individual may also suffer from psychological symptoms, such as violent nightmares, flashbacks, melancholy, disturbed sleep or insomnia, loss of appetite, and anxieties when certain things remind them such as the anniversary date of the event (Peterson, 2009).
Bastien (2010) states that pharmacological treatments are being used to treat combat related PTSD in veterans, often in combination with other types of treatment such as psychiatric and psychological interventions to create a holistic approach. Three types of drugs are commonly prescribed for those suffering from combat related PTSD; benzodiazepines, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) and beta-blockers (Bastien, 2010). Using Pharmacological treatments in combination with other types of treatment results in minimizing and often eliminating PTSD symptoms. In most studies there was gender bias as most serving in the military tend to be male (Bastien, 2010). Because there is a stigma among male soldiers about seeking treatment for PTSD symptoms, many of those that are indeed affected have not been diagnosed (Bastien, 2010).
Imagine living in despair after coming back home, dismayed from a war that got no appreciation. Robert Kroger once said in his quote, “The brave men and women, who serve their country and as a result, live constantly with the war inside them, exist in a world of chaos. But the turmoil they experience isn’t who they are, the PTSD invades their minds and bodies.” Eleven percent of Vietnam Veterans still suffer with symptoms of the terrifying disorder of PTSD (Handwerk). Vietnam Veterans struggle with the physiological effects of PTSD after war, which leads to despair and many deaths.
Seal, Karen H., Daniel Bertenthal, Christian R. Miner, Saunak Sen, and Charles Marmar. "Bringing the War Back Home: Mental Health Disorders Among 103 788 US Veterans Returning From Iraq and Afghanistan Seen at Department of Veterans Affairs Facilities." Archives of Internal Medicine 167.5 (2007): 476-82. Print.
U.S. Public Health Service.(1999). The Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health. Retrieved June 5, 2000, from http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/home.html. Veroff,J.,Douvan,E.,& Kulka,R.A.(1981).
Hundreds of thousands of United States veterans are not able to leave the horrors of war on the battlefield (“Forever at War: Veterans Everyday Battles with PTSD” 1). Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is the reason why these courageous military service members cannot live a normal life when they are discharged. One out of every five military service members on combat tours—about 300,000 so far—return home with symptoms of PTSD or major depression. According to the Rand Study, almost half of these cases go untreated because of the disgrace that the military and civil society attach to mental disorders (McGirk 1). The general population of the world has to admit that they have had a nightmare before. Imagine not being able to sleep one wink because every time you close your eyes you are forced to relive memories from the past that you are trying to bury deep. This is what happens to the unfortunate men and women who are struggling with PTSD. Veterans that are struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder deserve the help they need.
Seal, K. H., Bertenthal, D., Miner, C. R., Sen, S., & Marmar, C. (2007). Bringing the War Back Home: Mental Health Disorders Among 103 788 US Veterans Returning From Iraq and Afghanistan Seen at Department of Veterans Affairs Facilities. Archives of Internal Medicine, 167(5), 476-482. doi: 10.1001/archinte.167.5.476
In order to help current and future veterans there needs to be a change within the staffing, funding, and overall urgency towards mentally ill veterans. Though many people assume that veterans are well taken care of after war, evidence of mental health disorders and large numbers of suicide suggest otherwise, therefore the VA program should be reformed. Mental illness is no stranger to veterans of the U.S military, as far back as World War II there have been reports of mental disease among veterans. The most common mental illness among veterans is P.T.S.D (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), the severity of this illness usually increase due to a traumatic brain injury. Lifeline for Vets states that
Our soldiers not only risked life and limb for our country while serving in the Vietnam War, but they continue to suffer immensely. Americans as well as Vietnamese troops and civilians suffered great losses when it comes to casualties. Witnessing first-hand the pain and death of strangers and allies, isn’t something one is likely to forget. Post-Traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been one of the many repercussions of witnessing these gruesome events (Mental Health America). Veterans, their families, and the government have come together in combat in attempts to address the detrimental effects of PTSD.
Kahn, Ada P., and Jan Fawcett. The Encyclopedia of Mental Health. 2nd ed. New York: Facts On File, 2001.
Kendell, R. and Jablensky, A. (2003), Distinguishing between the validity and utility of psychiatric diagnoses, American Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 160, No. 1, pp. 4-12.
Mental illness is the condition that significantly impede with an individual’s emotional, cognitive or social abilities (Savy and Sawyer, 2009). According to (Savy and Sawyer, 2009) neurological, metabolic, genetic and psychological causes are contributing factors for various types of mental illness like depression, schizophrenia, substance abuse and progression of condition. An elaborate system known as DSM-IV-TR gives a classification system that acts to separate mental illness into diagnostic categories based on the description of symptoms of illness (Savy and Sawyer, 2009). The exact primarily causes of mental illness are complicated, however, it seems to occur in a psychologically and biologically prone individual, in the trigger of environmental and social stress (Elder, Evans and Nizette, 2007).