Source:
ReutersUS Army starts stress program but lacks resources
By Kristin Roberts
WASHINGTON, July 17 (Reuters) - The U.S. Army will start training all soldiers on Wednesday to recognize signs of post-traumatic stress and seek help when needed, but it still lacks the mental health resources to treat those troops.
About 1.5 million U.S. service members have been sent to Iraq or Afghanistan since 2001. Repeated and extended deployments to those war zones have driven up the need for mental health services.
But the military's mental health system is too short of funds and staff to help service members, according to the Pentagon and the American Psychological Association, which found more than 30 percent of all soldiers met the criteria for a mental disorder.
Starting on Wednesday, the Army plans to train every service member, including those in Iraq and Afghanistan, within 90 days to gauge symptoms in themselves and those around them.
While the program -- a one-hour briefing to be delivered in small groups -- is expected to boost the number of soldiers reporting symptoms of stress, the Army has too few mental health professionals to treat them.
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