Suicide and Oregon Soldiers

The suicide rate of Oregon soldiers is staggering; it is much more common for soldiers to die from suicide than in combat. Not only is there a high rate for those serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, but veterans of all ages rank high in suicide rates. In 2005 alone, only 19 Oregon soldiers died in combat, but 153 Oregon veterans from various wars committed suicide. Unfortunately, physicians, therapists and veterans are not surprised at all.

The statistics show that nearly one in three suicides in Oregon is a veteran, and the rate of suicide for Oregon male veterans is more than double that of male non-veterans suicides, according to the Oregon Department of Human Services Center for Health Statistics. They report than 22 out of 100,000 non-veteran males commit suicide each year, but 46 out of 100,000 Oregon veterans commit suicide.

The numbers speak for themselves: In 2005 alone, twenty-one Oregon veterans under the age of 45 committed suicide. Unfortunately, these numbers are only for Oregon and do not even begin to represent the severity of combat trauma and veteran suicide rates nationally. It is estimated that out of the veterans under Veteran Affairs treatment, 12,000 attempt suicides yearly, while nearly 6,000 succeed.

On a more updated note, in July 2008 it was reported by Veterans Affairs that 250 calls a day came in to their suicide hotline, and since July 2007 there have been more than 22,000 calls to the hotline. From Oregon alone there have been more 860 calls to the VA suicide hotline. It appears that there is a suicide epidemic.

To address and better understand this issue, the Rand Corporation, a non-profit research organization, did a study on post-traumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD, in relation to veterans. Many believe that PTSD is a predecessor to suicide in veterans and soldiers, and many doctors have seen a huge increase in the number of veterans with the disorder. The study found that while there were over 300,000 veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or depression (one in five veterans), only half of those actually sought help for their medical conditions and due to this number, only one in four received care. The study found that the major risks for developing PTSD were long deployment times, combat trauma and the death of a friend killed in action. Nearly half of those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan had a friend die in combat.

Unfortunately, even though many who join the reserve and National Guard think they will not end up in combat, many do – and they seem to be at a higher suicide rate than those who are in active-duty forces. In Oregon alone, nearly a third of those who have died in combat have been in the reserve or National Guard.

Currently, Veterans Affairs are unsure of how to help this epidemic and how to reduce these numbers.




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