WITH “more veterans dying from suicide than in active service”, Macquarie MP Susan Templeman talked to Parliament on Vietnam Veterans’ Day about the need for better mental health services for Defence forces.
“I think our community recognises, either from personal experience or from the experience of family and friends, that there can be a very heavy price to pay for serving your country,” she said last Friday.
With two RAAF bases in her electorate – Richmond and Glenbrook - which employ a total of 2000 people, and 2000 returned personnel in the community, “that means we have thousands of people who have been asked to risk their lives in service of their country”.
Fuelling the discussion, the ‘Review into the Suicide and Self-Harm Prevention services available to current and former serving ADF members and their families’, completed by the National Mental Health Commission in March, was also tabled in parliament on Friday.
The Gazette asked Defence for RAAF-specific figures on suicide. It said Defence data collected since January 2000 showed that 129 current serving full-time Australian Defence Force members are suspected or confirmed to have died by suicide.
“By Service, as at 16 August 2017: 40 were Royal Australian Navy, 66 were Australian Army and 23 were Royal Australian Air Force,” a Defence spokesperson said.
Figures for those who have left the Defence forces have been limited to those who have had dealings with the Department of Veterans Affairs. These figures show 173 suicide-related claims by a dependant between 2001 and 2016.
Unsuccessful self-harm attempts are much higher. Among former serving members and their families, Veterans’ Affairs claims data shows 986 hospitalisations for intentional self-harm from 2000 to 2016 involving 789 people.
Ms Templeman said “the report makes it clear we need to do more to prevent suicide among ex-service personnel. We need to see urgent action from the Government on the recommendations, which were supported by Senators from all political sides, because the fact is there are more veterans dying from suicide than in active service.”
The report also showed almost all suicide deaths in current and former personnel were men. After adjusting for age and when compared with all Australian men, the study found the suicide rate was 53% lower for men serving full-time, 46% lower for men in the reserves, but 13% higher for ex-serving men. But suicide rates were 1.9 times higher for ex-serving men aged 18-24 and 1.5 times higher for ex-serving men aged 25-29.
The inquiry stated that ex-Defence force members found the transitioning out process to be too brief and not good enough and that family support was critical.
If you need help, the Veterans and Families 24-hour Counselling Service is on 1800 011 046.
