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DEMOCRATIC PRESS RELEASE
September 16, 2008
-------------------------
House Veterans’ Affairs Health
Subcommittee Assesses Suicide Prevention Efforts at the VA
Michaud holds oversight hearing of the VA
Suicide Hotline
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
On Tuesday, September 16, 2008, the House Veterans’ Affairs Health
Subcommittee, led by Chairman Michael H. Michaud, (D-ME), conducted an
oversight hearing to examine the effectiveness of the VA Suicide
Prevention Hotline. In July 2007, the VA collaborated with the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to launch the
Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline. The hotline is a toll-free number
(1-800-273-TALK) and is manned 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“Over the past year, this committee has held many hearings examining
suicide among veterans and the VA’s strategy for suicide prevention,” said
Chairman Michaud. “While I commend the VA for implementing a suicide
prevention hotline, I would like to hear how the hotline fits in with the
VA’s overall strategy to combat suicide. Furthermore, I would like to
investigate issues regarding the hotline’s efficacy and staffing.”
According to VA statistics, as of August 2008, the hotline had served
32,854 veterans, family members or friends of veterans and “led to 5,980
referrals to Suicide Prevention Coordinators for follow-up for the
problems that led to the call, and 1,628 rescues, calls to police or
ambulances for immediate responses for those judged to be at imminent
risk.”
Thomas Berger of the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) testified at the
hearing: “These call data seem impressive, and the VA is to be
congratulated in this endeavor because one veteran ‘rescued’ from suicide
is worth the effort, but real questions remain.”
Many of the panel members offered cautious praise regarding the success of
the hotline. Among the issues raised by panel members were the metrics
used by the VA to evaluate the hotline, follow-up for care for veterans,
and adopting the use of veterans as peer counselors on the hotline.
The National Suicide Prevention Coordinator at the VA, Janet E. Kemp,
acknowledged these concerns by saying, “As VA’s Suicide Prevention Program
continues to evolve, we will also continue to develop our evaluation
measures. One of the Program’s future goals is to develop valid and
reliable outcomes measures based on real-time monitoring for veteran
suicides in the community to support a rapid response to any identified
trends.”
 Addressing
the issue related to follow-up care, Ms. Kemp detailed the critical role
suicide prevention coordinators play after veterans have been referred
from the hotline. They “maintain listings of veterans receiving care
within the facility who have attempted suicide and others at high
risk…They are charged with ensuring veterans identified as high risk
receive enhanced monitoring and care, regardless of whether the
information about risk comes from the Hotline, from the community, or from
providers within the facility.”
Ms. Kemp also indicated that VA is planning to launch a pilot call center
manned by combat veterans on December 1, 2008. She concluded by saying,
“VA’s Suicide Prevention Hotline is an important step forward and is a
component of a comprehensive program for suicide prevention. It reflects
VA’s overall mission of providing high quality mental health services to
America’s veterans.”
“Veterans and their families need to know that suicide is preventable and
help is available,” said Bob Filner (D-CA), Chairman of the House
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. “Unfortunately, tens of thousands of
veterans are leaving the military without the benefit of an adequate
mental health consultation or a thorough medical diagnosis. Mandatory
medical evaluations by competent medical personnel are vital to the health
of our troops and veterans so they can access the appropriate support
services. We need to continue vigilant outreach to all veterans so we can
reach the people that need the help.”
Witnesses:
Panel 1
Katherine Power, M.Ed., Director, Center for Mental Health Services,
Substances and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services
Panel 2
Thomas J. Berger, Ph.D., Senior Analyst for Veterans’ Benefits and Mental
Health Issues, Vietnam Veterans of America
M. David Rudd, Ph.D., ABPP, Professor and Chair of the Department of
Psychology, Texas Tech University, American Psychological Association
Tyrone Ballesteros, Office Manager, National Veterans Foundation
Reese Butler, Founder, Kristin Brooks Hope Center
Ian A. Shaffer, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, MHN
Panel 3
Janet E. Kemp, R.N., Ph.D., National Suicide Prevention Coordinator, U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs
Accompanied by
Kerry L. Knox, MS, Ph.D., Director, Canandaigua Center of Excellence for
Suicide Prevention, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Antonette Zeiss, Ph.D., Deputy Chief Consultant, Office of Mental Health
Services, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
The opening statements of all the witnesses and an audio recording of the
hearing are available on the Committee website at
http://veterans.house.gov/hearings/hearing.aspx?newsid=300.
-------------------------
posted by Larry
Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
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