A panel of U.S. Army veterans, mental health experts, and film producers discussed mental health issues facing military members Wednesday night at a forum at the Harvard Institute of Politics.
Speakers included Jack Hammond, retired brigadier general and CEO of the veterans mental health organization Homebase, Rosalind A. Green, veteran and president of the Wounded Warrior Project, and clinical director of the Women's Trauma Recovery Team. They included psychologist Jack Brooks. Boston Department of Veterans Affairs.
The event was hosted by Dana H. Vaughn, a retired brigadier general and lecturer in public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, and co-director of Stranger at Home, a documentary about military mental health. It was Beth Dolan. Veterans and their families.
Three clips of “Stranger at Home” were played at various points during the event, highlighting the experiences of real-life veterans who struggle with mental health issues.
Each clip introduced one of the three key issues discussed by the panel. These include the stigma surrounding mental health in the U.S. military, the challenges associated with returning veterans to civilian life, and potential solutions to these problems.
“I think there are three major components of stigma. One is society, because there are certain taboos around mental health issues. The other is within the military leadership. The third is the individual. '' Hammond said.
Panelists also emphasized the need for institutions and individuals to balance the mental and physical health of veterans.
“You can have the perfect body, but if your mind isn't there to help it function, it won't function properly,” Green said.
Panelists offered several ideas on how to alleviate the mental health crisis among U.S. military personnel.
“There is no one solution,” Dolan said, but to make “mental health equal to physical health,” the military should introduce a mental health department to “systematically” address the issue. He said that it is possible.
Mr. Brooks also discussed the need to provide timely mental health care to veterans in need. “I think a major policy change would be better funding to put more people into the VA system,” she said. Brooks said existing sources of “community care” tend to focus on physical treatment rather than specialized mental health care for veterans, she argued.
“The therapist closest to you who has an opening may not know anything about the military, may not know anything about veterans, may not specialize in the problem someone is having.” she added.
Hammond argued that suicidal veterans should have immediate access to treatment at any medical facility.
“Wherever care is available, you can go to care and receive care. It doesn't matter,” he said. “This is a policy decision and we need to ensure there are no barriers to treatment and immediate access.”
Dolan concluded the event by asking the audience to sign a petition asking US President Joe Biden to create a mental health unit for veterans.
“People ask us, 'What can we do?' Well, we can take actionable steps,” she said.
