Faced with a rising number of suicides, Army sponsors prevention workshops
By Sean E. Cobb,
Kaiserslautern bureau
Sean E. Cobb / Stars and Stripes
Army Sgt. Ichel Salifu of the 2nd Aviation Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment, 3rd Infantry
Division, at Camp Comanche, Bosnia and Herzegovina, goes over suicide statistics during an
Applied Suicide Intervention workshop at the Landstuhl, Germany, Regional Medical Center
on Thursday. The Army is holding the workshops to combat an increase in suicides among
Army active-duty and Reserve soldiers. |
LANDSTUHL, Germany — The Army never wants to lose troops.
Even more worrisome is when soldiers take their own lives.
To combat a growing concern and a recent increase in suicides among
Army soldiers, the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine is
beginning a new series of workshops on suicide prevention.
In 1997, 58 reservists and active-duty soldiers took their own lives.
In 1999, that number grew by 15, to 73 soldiers committing suicide, causing leaders’
concern to grow as well, officials from the center said.
The Army lost 837 soldiers to suicide in the 1990s, said Army
Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Gregory Black, a project leader for the suicide prevention program at
the center at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Md.
“This is almost a battalion size, so the Army knew it needed to
do something about it,” Black said. “But the bottom line is we want to decrease
suicidal behavior.
Black |
“These are more than just numbers,” Black added.
“Suicide is a personal and individual act, and we can’t predict that.”
So the Army is conducting two workshops — “Applied Suicide
Intervention Skills Training” — in Wurzburg beginning Tuesday. Two workshops
were conducted at the Landstuhl hospital.
“What we are wanting to do is address suicide prevention and
intervention in the European theater,” said Army Chaplain (Col.) David McLean, the
European Regional Medical Command chaplain at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center.
“We want to be able to understand the stressors soldiers and their families may be
facing in Europe.”
The workshops focus on intervention techniques, which are taught
through four basic modules: attitudes, knowledge, intervention and resources. The workshop
includes role-playing, suicide scenarios and group interaction.
Mitvalsky |
“We want people to be able to recognize indicators of risk so
they can help,” Black said. “This way they can make informed referrals to
counselors.”
The workshop is geared toward people who will most likely come in
contact with a suicidal person, Black said.
Chaplains and their assistants, psychologists and their technicians,
nurses, social workers, school counselors, health educators and command administrative
personnel are the primary audience for this workshop series.
“I think this program is right on target,” McLean said.
“It addresses leadership, peer and community levels. This is something we need to do
together and prevent suicidal tendencies.”
Laura Mitvalsky, a Center for Health Promotion and Preventive
Medicine in Europe health promotion and wellness chief, participated in the Landstuhl
workshop and said the program is filling a need.
McLean |
“In Europe, we are getting a good handle on prevention
programs,” she said. “This workshop will help us complete that loop.”
Even though the need for the program was driven by the increase in
Army suicides, it’s important to realize that suicide has the potential to destroy
many lives and must be addressed, McLean said.
“Are we doing this because suicides are going up?” McLean
asked. “No. We care about our people and even one suicide is too many.”
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