Protective Factors for Suicide: A Multi-Tiered Veteran-Driven Community Engagement Project

Abstract

Background There are approximately 20 million veterans living in the United States today (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2018a). The military conflicts of the Post 9/11 era, such as Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, increased combat operations and subsequently grew the size of the military, resulting in the largest surge of reintegrating veterans in recent history. The transition from active duty to veteran status often requires service members to move from certainty, routine, community, and a sense of purpose to uncertainty. Reintegrating veterans are vulnerable to social isolation, anxiety, depression, and exacerbations of post-traumatic stress. In comparison to their civilian peers, veterans of these Post 9/11 conflicts experience elevated rates of mental illness and suicide (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2016). However, struggles with mental health are not unique to newly reintegrating veterans alone. Veterans of prior conflicts also experience a high burden of mental illness (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2016). For example, in a 2015 assessment of Vietnam veterans, 11.2% had a diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), 36.7% had a diagnosis of major depression, and 2.2% struggled with alcohol abuse (Marmar et al., 2015). Further, in 2016, approximately 65% of all veterans who died by suicide were older than 50 years (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2016). Moreover, approximately 20 veterans of all conflicts die from suicide each day (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2018b). According to the Veterans Affairs (2017), suicide risk was 22 percent higher among veterans when compared to their civilian counterparts (after adjusting for the difference in age and sex). The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), academic institutions, and healthcare and community organizations are developing strategies to address this

Effectiveness of Operation K9 Assistance Dogs on Suicidality in Australian Veterans with PTSD: A 12-Month Mixed-Methods Follow-Up Study

“…Three veterans explicitly discussed the role of their dog in reducing suicidality. This is consistent with previous qualitative studies that have reported the role of an assistance dog as a protective factor for suicidality [ 25 , 26 ]. Interestingly, participants in our study did not raise concerns regarding experiencing challenges, such as managing their dog’s needs and feeling overwhelmed when in public spaces due to the attention they received when they went out with their dog, as was found in a previous study [ 27 ].…”

“…Qualitative studies frequently reported reductions in suicidality, with veterans accrediting their assistance dog with keeping them alive [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. McLaughlin and Hamilton (2019) explored the influence of service dogs on participation in daily occupations in Australian veterans with PTSD [ 26 ].…”

Suicide Risk in Military Personnel during the COVID-19 Health Emergency in a Peruvian Region: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Similarly, a systematic review that included military personnel, where the main exposure was a concussion or mild traumatic brain injury, identified that these conditions confer a twofold increased risk of suicide [ 8 ]. However, a series of protective factors against suicide risk have also been studied, such as programs that facilitate assistance to the military, assistance with social networks, family support and educational counseling sessions, factors that are little evaluated [ 9 ]. Thus, it is critical to evaluate this group.…”

Operation PCOR: A Community Engagement Project Preparing Veterans as Full Partners in PTSD-Related Research

“…Our previous engagement projects confirmed that many veterans are unfamiliar with the research process and are uncomfortable embracing the role of research partner. Operation PCOR was designed based on veterans' expressed concerns and recommendations elicited from our previous engagement projects (Flynn et al, 2019;Krause-Parello, et al, 2019). Therefore, the overarching goal of this current project was two-fold: 1.…”