The Army released suicide data today for the month of January. Among active-duty soldiers, there were 15 potential suicides: one has been confirmed as suicide, and 14 remain under investigation. For December 2010, the Army reported 12 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, one has been confirmed as suicide, and 11 remain under investigation.
During January 2011, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were seven potential suicides: two have been confirmed as suicides, and five remain under investigation. For December 2010, among that same group, there were 17 total suicides. Of those, six were confirmed as suicides and 11 are pending determination of the manner of death.
“Army wide efforts implemented during 2010 to improve the health of the force and enhance our overall resiliency will continue to be a focus for all members of the Army family in 2011,” said Col. Chris Philbrick, deputy director, Army Health Promotion, Risk Reduction Task Force. “We must continue to examine our risk reduction and health promotion programs to ensure that in every instance they are readily available and accessible to those in need. Informed and engaged leaders are vital to these efforts and continue to be the most effective resource in this endeavor,” Philbrick said.
Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org.
The Army’s comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.preventsuicide.army.mil.
Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdf and Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf.
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).
Information about Military OneSource is located at http://www.militaryonesource.com or by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647 for those residing in the continental U.S. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.
Information about the Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf.
The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil.
The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org, and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found at http://www.sprc.org/index.asp.
The website for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors is http://www.TAPS.org, and they can be reached at -1-800-959-TAPS (8277).
