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San Antonio Express-News
June 11, 2008 By Jeorge Zarazua, Express-News
A suicide prevention project in San Antonio found that nearly 35 percent of more than 200 children from local military families needed to be treated for mental health conditions, further illustrating how the stresses of military life can affect the entire family.
That number is 31/2 times greater than the percentage of children 4 to 17 nationwide who use mental health services, according to a study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Results of the one-year screening project to identify military dependents at risk of suicide were announced Tuesday at the third annual Texas Suicide Prevention Symposium, which is being held in San Antonio to increase suicide awareness in the Alamo City.
Isaac Martinez, principal investigator for the Center for Health Care Services, said the pilot project is being conducted on a volunteer basis within the Fort Sam Houston Independent School District and at the pediatric and adolescent clinics of Brooke Army Medical Center.
Martinez said that while there are no statistics of suicide rates among children from military families, studies have shown that deployments, frequent moves or having a parent injured during combat exacerbates the development of depression and suicidal behavior.
About 19,000 American children have had a military parent injured since 9-11, and more than 3,500 have lost parents in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Teresa Arata-Maiers, a psychologist at BAMC, said many of the feelings adolescents tend to exhibit after a parent is deployed, such as being withdrawn, apathetic, angry or aloof, are “budding depression problems.”
Martinez said, “The important thing about this study is it's screening for those behavior health disorders, such as anxiety and depression.”
James Castro, director of children's operations at the Center for Health Care Services, said the project will help determine, among other things, the prevalence of depression and suicidal tendencies among children of soldiers. The project is being funded through a federal State/Tribal Youth Suicide Prevention grant that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration distributes to states.
Since the screening project began in April 2007, Martinez said, 70 children were found to be in need of further assessment and treatment, an amount he considered significant.
“I think it speaks to the importance of this project,” Castro told mental health professionals and advocates gathered for the two-day symposium at La Quinta Inn & Suites in downtown San Antonio.
Martinez said that of the 70, seven were referred to inpatient evaluation, with four needing inpatient treatment for mental health disorders. The others were treated on an outpatient basis.
Schools that serve large numbers of military children are figuring out ways to provide support to kids whose parents are gone for long stretches serving in dangerous areas. Many San Antonio schools have support groups for military kids, and counselors keep close tabs on children whose parents are deployed or have suffered traumatic injuries in combat zones.
St. Mary's University is using nearly $300,000 in grant money from the Texas Resources for Iraq-Afghanistan Deployment Fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation to provide counseling for local military families.
The grant also will cover services provided in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District, where nearly 30 percent of students come from military families.
June 11, 2008 By Jeorge Zarazua, Express-News
A suicide prevention project in San Antonio found that nearly 35 percent of more than 200 children from local military families needed to be treated for mental health conditions, further illustrating how the stresses of military life can affect the entire family.
That number is 31/2 times greater than the percentage of children 4 to 17 nationwide who use mental health services, according to a study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Results of the one-year screening project to identify military dependents at risk of suicide were announced Tuesday at the third annual Texas Suicide Prevention Symposium, which is being held in San Antonio to increase suicide awareness in the Alamo City.
Isaac Martinez, principal investigator for the Center for Health Care Services, said the pilot project is being conducted on a volunteer basis within the Fort Sam Houston Independent School District and at the pediatric and adolescent clinics of Brooke Army Medical Center.
Martinez said that while there are no statistics of suicide rates among children from military families, studies have shown that deployments, frequent moves or having a parent injured during combat exacerbates the development of depression and suicidal behavior.
About 19,000 American children have had a military parent injured since 9-11, and more than 3,500 have lost parents in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Teresa Arata-Maiers, a psychologist at BAMC, said many of the feelings adolescents tend to exhibit after a parent is deployed, such as being withdrawn, apathetic, angry or aloof, are “budding depression problems.”
Martinez said, “The important thing about this study is it's screening for those behavior health disorders, such as anxiety and depression.”
James Castro, director of children's operations at the Center for Health Care Services, said the project will help determine, among other things, the prevalence of depression and suicidal tendencies among children of soldiers. The project is being funded through a federal State/Tribal Youth Suicide Prevention grant that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration distributes to states.
Since the screening project began in April 2007, Martinez said, 70 children were found to be in need of further assessment and treatment, an amount he considered significant.
“I think it speaks to the importance of this project,” Castro told mental health professionals and advocates gathered for the two-day symposium at La Quinta Inn & Suites in downtown San Antonio.
Martinez said that of the 70, seven were referred to inpatient evaluation, with four needing inpatient treatment for mental health disorders. The others were treated on an outpatient basis.
Schools that serve large numbers of military children are figuring out ways to provide support to kids whose parents are gone for long stretches serving in dangerous areas. Many San Antonio schools have support groups for military kids, and counselors keep close tabs on children whose parents are deployed or have suffered traumatic injuries in combat zones.
St. Mary's University is using nearly $300,000 in grant money from the Texas Resources for Iraq-Afghanistan Deployment Fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation to provide counseling for local military families.
The grant also will cover services provided in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District, where nearly 30 percent of students come from military families.