Army Recruiter Suicides were Random and Unrelated?
Four Army recruiters in the Houston, TX office committed suicide in the past three years. The Army has concluded its internal review of this situation and says: none had PTSD and these deaths were tragic but random, no single cause bound them together…such as their military experiences?
Color me skeptical.
The odds of four soldiers in one unit committing suicide, at a rate of about one per year, is…not even close to this situation (I hope– anyone out there got hard numbers?). One possible cause cited was “command climate”. Drumming up new recruits, esp. meeting quotas, during the Iraq War has been no picnic for recruiters.
The story gets worse. One of the suicides, Andersson, shot himself a day after getting married and his new wife found him in his truck (he’d called her just before shooting himself). She killed herself the next day. (What a horror story for both families). Seems that he did indeed have some serious depression, if not PTSD. And yet, soldiers seeking mental health services post-combat either are discouraged (to put it mildly) or can’t get services. The Army recommends further study. How about just putting more money and staff into direct services for vets and soldiers returning from active duty?
The story from the Army:
Army completes recruiter suicide investigation
Jan 21; By Catherine Abbott
The U.S. Army concluded a two and a half month investigation into the suicides of four Soldiers assigned to the Houston Recruiting Battalion.
…four suicides…occurred between January 2005 and September 2008.
“Each of these deaths is an absolute tragedy and our sympathies and prayers go out to their families and friends, as well as their fellow brothers and sisters with whom they served so honorably,” said Freakley. “Every leader, every Soldier, at every level of our Army, must help our institution reduce the stigma associated with seeking mental health care and raise the level of awareness of suicide risk factors. Neither our nation nor our Army can accept another needless loss of life.”
The investigation concluded that there was no single cause for these deaths. Relevant factors included the command climate, stress, personal matters, and medical problems. None were diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
As a result of the findings, Secretary of the Army directed a USAREC command-wide “stand down” day focused on leadership training, suicide prevention / resiliency training and recruiter wellness. Additionally, the Commanding General of Army Accessions Command has requested that the Army’s Inspector General lead an external assessment of the command climate across the U.S. Army Recruiting Command (USAREC), to which the Houston Recruiting Battalion belongs.
The Army is also reviewing recruiter screening and selection processes, the provisions of care for Soldiers who need mental health care, Army-wide suicide prevention training, and access to care and peer support networks for geographically dispersed Soldiers. It will review the current policy that allows Soldiers to waive their mandatory 90 days of stabilization after returning from deployment to ensure any personal or professional concerns are addressed prior to the recently redeployed Soldier moving into new and different work environments.
