FORT HOOD, Texas -- Last fiscal year, the Army’s suicide rate per 100,000 surpassed the civilian population for the first time. Army-wide, 160 Soldiers took their lives. Nine of those were Fort Hood soldiers.
Suicide prevention is an ongoing battle and something the Army is taking seriously.
In May 2008, then-Secretary of the Army Pete Geren and Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. George Casey launched a full-scale effort to understand and mitigate suicide trends.
In January 2009, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Peter Chiarelli was appointed to provide a directed look at suicide prevention.
Chiarelli visited six installations, including Fort Hood, in early spring 2009 as part of a fact-finding mission.
“We almost immediately noticed need to widen the aperture to include holistic approach to prevention and treatment,” Chiarelli said.
Last fall, Army leaders found their far-reaching approach. In October 2009, Casey and Secretary of the Army John McHugh unveiled the Army-wide Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program, an all-inclusive approach to building resilience in the force.
The goal of the program is to build strength in the force in five areas: physical, emotional, spiritual, social and family.
Fort Hood was ahead of the game in the holistic approach to the overall health and well-being of soldiers. The Resiliency Campus, a city-block sized complex located at 31st Street and Battalion Avenue, became fully operational in mid-September 2008.
The brainchild of former III Corps and Fort Hood Commander Lt. Gen. Rick Lynch, the campus is a one-stop shop to help Soldiers, family members and civilians build strength and fend off issues before they can become problems.
“We work to build resilience so Soldiers do not get to that point,” Col. Bill Rabena, commandant, Fort Hood Resiliency Campus, said. “For us, it’s all preventive.”
With services and programs geared to promote and enhance health in mind, body and spirit, the Resiliency Campus operates on the principle that happy, healthy soldiers are stronger and better equipped to handle problematic situations.
Stronger soldiers can better handle financial and relationship difficulties and high-risk behaviors that have proven to lead to suicide.
By building their skills and strengths, soldiers are improving their overall health and are less likely to turn to destructive behaviors.
“It’s an indirect approach to prevention,” Rabena said. “Soldiers come here and get that fixed before it gets to that point.”
Although the Resiliency Campus is not billed as a suicide prevention tool, the programs and services offered are geared toward prevention.
Military family life consultants are available on site to assist soldiers and families with relationship issues. A personal financial assistance office can help with financial planning and debt reduction. The Army Center for Enhanced Performance can help soldiers look at problem-solving in new ways.
A new Kids on Site building gives soldiers a place where their children can receive care while the adults attend classes or take advantage of offered services.
In addition, the Functional Fitness Center offers exercise and physical training to build the body. Massage sessions and a rock-climbing wall are two of the newest offerings.
At the Spiritual Fitness Center, soldiers have a 24 hours a day, seven days a week place to meditate or brush up on their faith. A chaplain is always available to assist with a crisis or to offer advice.
The point is made to give soldiers options besides high-risk behaviors or life-threatening decisions.
“The tools are here to give spiritual, behavioral and physical skill sets that may help soldiers think otherwise,” Rabena said.
The campus is often used by groups and units to conduct classes such as Battlemind Training, Battlefield Ethics and the Army’s suicide prevention course, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills
Training.
With programs and services readily available, soldiers and families need to know how to access them.
Educating soldiers and families is key. If those who are closest to a Soldier suffering a crisis do not know the warning signs or indicators of trouble, they cannot help.
“I believe part of it is soldiers and leaders don’t know what to do,” Chiarelli said. “It’s so important that we educate the force.”
When it comes to suicide, statistics have shown that older, new soldiers are the most at-risk.
Sixty percent of Army suicides involve first-term Soldiers; 79 percent of them have had one or no deployments, the vice chief said. The highest level of suicides is in privates 28 to 29 years old.
“I want lieutenants to spend an extra five minutes with that private,” Chiarelli said. “That is someone to check on early.”
With the vice chief’s visits to installations last year and his immersion in the causes and effects of suicides, Chiarelli has become the one to whom others look for suicide prevention.
The Army’s Health Promotion Risk Reduction Suicide Prevention Report released this summer was gleaned from Chiarelli’s visits and includes 250 recommendations to help prevent suicide in the ranks.
Some effects from those visits and the ensuing report came quickly.
The 350-page report shows overall findings and recommends Army-wide policy changes to combat suicides among Soldiers. Although the report points out holes or gaps in services, it is not a critique, the vice chief said.
“The report is meant to be a learning tool and a resource for leaders,” Chiarelli said.
Recommendations including installation health promotion councils, tighter enlistment standards and expanding behavioral health with new screenings and more counselors are already being implemented.
Fort Hood’s Health Promotion Council meets monthly to address concerns and issues with high-risk behaviors. Rabena spearheads a behavioral health group that includes resources from on and off post.
The installation behavioral health survey was conducted in several layers following the Nov. 5 shooting to ensure those who need help receive it.
In conjunction with the CSF, Fort Hood units are undergoing Master Resilience Training, which is geared to teach soldiers at all levels to handle stress and pass their information along to others.
Army leaders at all levels are trying to build strength in soldiers so they are better equipped to handle military life and the associated stressors that are compounded by nearly a decade at war.
At Fort Hood, soldiers and their families can find those resources at the Resiliency Campus.