Blumenthal, Murphy meet with VA, mental health officials in West Haven on vet suicides

Sept. 27--WEST HAVEN -- Connecticut has one of the lowest rates of veterans committing suicide in the nation, "but any number above zero is unacceptable," said U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., joined by U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and a host of VA officials Friday at a roundtable on the subject.

But for reasons we don't yet know, "there is a problem with suicide in our military" that goes beyond just veterans, said Blumenthal, a member of both the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Committee on Veterans Affairs.

How big a problem?

The suicide rate among present and former members of the military "is twice as high" as the rate among people who have never served in the military, he said.

And veterans "are twice as likely to take their lives" compared to "non-vets of the same age," Blumenthal said. "Quite frankly, this nation needs to do better."

The VA has reported that an average of 22 veterans take their lives each day.

Murphy said in interviews both before and after the roundtable that one thing that must change is that the VA must move from doing mental health assessments only when someone enters and leaves the military to perhaps doing them annually.

The two senators were joined at the roundtable, held at the Veterans Administration Connecticut Healthcare System'sErrera Community Care Center at Route 1 and Front Avenue, in conjunction with Suicide Prevention Month, by Gerald Culliton, director of the VA Connecticut.

Also joining them were Dr. Ismene Petrakis, who heads VA Connecticut's mental health service line; Dr. Lou Trevisan, director of VA Connecticut's Psychiatry service; Errera Director Dr. Laurie Harkness; and the suicide prevention coordinators for the VA's West Haven and Newington facilities, Mark Lawless and LaTonya Harts.

Others around the table included Carol Sanders, a social worker in the Mental Health service line; Tim Marshall, clinical manager at the state Department of Children & Families; Andrea Duarte of the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services; and Major J. Alvarado, director of the Connecticut Army National Guard Medical Detachment's Behavioral Health Team.

Among the things that they talked about was the "The Power of 1" campaign, an effort coordinated by the VA and the Department of Defense to highlight the notion that "just one person, one conversation, or one act" can save the life of a veteran.

Blumenthal said that in the course of meeting with veterans over the years, "I've talked to some of the men and women who have tried to take their lives," both in Connecticut and at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland and the experience has been "heartening."

"As severe as the visible wounds are," the "invisible wounds" are just as damaging, Blumenthal said. "Post traumatic stress is one of the great medical challenges of our time."

Harts said that veterans "who engage with the VA have a lower rate of suicide than those that don't."

"So if you connect with the system, you are less likely" to commit suicide, said Murphy.

Part of the problem at Errera, however, is that by time veterans find their way to the center, they often have lost the contact and support of their families and loved ones, said Harkness.

Cullitan said dealing with suicide is very difficult and the VA, sadly, can't reach everybody. But it's important "to get the word out that there is help," both within the VA and beyond it, he said.

Murphy said it's the senators' job to make sure those providing treatment have the resources they need, although Blumenthal said that "more than resources" is necessary, and awareness is also an important tool.

Have questions, feedback or ideas about our news coverage? Connect directly with the editors of the New Haven Register at AskTheRegister.com.

___

(c)2014 the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.)

Visit the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) at www.nhregister.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services