AACAP Action Leads To AMA Call For Report On Veterans’ Access To Mental Health

July 10, 2007 – 8:59 pm | posted in Mental Health, Pediatrics

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP), the American Psychiatric Association (APA), and the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL) have asked the American Medical Association House of Delegates (AMAHOD) to advocate for improved access to comprehensive medical services, including mental health services, for soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

According to the Defense Medical Surveillance System data, since June 2005, half of Army National Guardsman and 45 percent of Army and Marine reservists who have served in Iraq have reported significant mental health problems.

In 2006, research shows that 483,514 children of active duty military members and 177,888 children of reserve and guard members are less than five-years-old. These vast and growing populations of military members with young children currently face unique difficulties and challenges, including the stress and anxiety, surrounding a parent’s deployment or reunion after a period of time, according the Office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense.

Furthermore, research on veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder has shown that it has had severe, pervasive negative effects on children, marital adjustment, and general family functioning. Particular concerns have also been raised about the needs of reservists and members of the National Guard, and their families, who may not have ongoing access to the full range of traditional VA services.

“It is our responsibility to provide our men and women who are returning from active military duty with appropriate healthcare, including access to comprehensive mental health care, so that they may rejoin their families and society in a healthy, productive manner,” AACAP President Thomas F. Anders, M.D., said.

The AACAP’s resolution asks the AMA to convene an expert panel, including the representation of child and adolescent psychiatrists, to review the report of the President’s Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors. The report will develop specific recommendations to ensure access to necessary and appropriate health care services for men and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, and their families.

Click here for more information on how military families can cope with the stress and anxiety of deployments and reunions. Visit www.aacap.org to view AACAP’s Facts for Families series, fact sheets written by child and adolescent psychiatrists. To schedule an interview with a child and adolescent psychiatrist about how families can cope, please contact Erin Baker at 202-966-7300, ext. 119 or ebaker@aacap.org.

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

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