There’s a statistic on veteran suicide that is repeated often: VA officials say an average of 22 veterans commit suicide every day. But what is not widely known about that statistic is that a majority of veterans committing suicide are older and did not serve in combat.
For our series Off the Base, WUSF reporter Bobbie O’Brien talked with Dr. Larry Schonfeld, a professor in the Department of Mental Health Law and Policy at the University of South Florida’s Florida Mental Health Institute.
Schonfeld is a psychologist who specializes in research on veterans and aging and knows it can be difficult to gather data on veteran suicide.
“I think we’re still trying to understand what the statistics mean and where they’re coming from,” Schonfeld said. “I don’t know what they’ve done as to age distribution but in the general population and the veteran population the older white male becomes the higher risk population for committing suicide.”
But he said just because they’re not the majority, suicide among younger veterans is a growing concern.
“We’ have younger people committing suicide and this country has got to do something for those who have served our country so well,” Schonfeld said.
He said it’s important to find the reasons behind veteran suicide so effective treatment and prevention programs can be developed. Yet, Schonfeld said he and other researchers in academia are challenged to find Post 9-11 veterans willing to participate in research studies.
What is certain, according to Schonfeld and others, the need for mental health services by Post 9-11 veterans will only grow over the coming decades.
“I think that’s absolutely certain that the wave,” Schonfeld said. “Because of the age of the population, if they don’t get the help now, we’re going to be seeing it later. It’s in a sense a time bomb in itself.”
- USF Veteran Study
- USF Wounded Warrior Caregiver Study
- 2012 VA Executive Summary Suicide Data Report
- VA New Report on Suicide Data issued February 2013
- 5 Myths About Military Suicide - Washington Post
Information on VA Suicide Prevention including warning signs and links to resources are on the Crisis Line website. If you need immediate help as a veteran, a family member or friend, call 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1 to talk to someone.
