PeterG
10-26-2006, 12:07 PM
Link to torrent: http://www.mininova.org/tor/466406
From http://www.pbs.org/wnet/air/episodes_108.html
"It began as a hunch in the newsroom of the HARTFORD COURANT and grew to become a major exposé of shocking mental health care practices within the American armed forces -- practices that have led soldiers to be medicated without proper oversight, redeployed despite suffering post-traumatic-stress disorder (PTSD), and ignored when showing warning signs of suicide. "Question 7" examines how two journalists revealed these failures in the U.S. military's mental healthcare system.
When the media reported in 2005 that military recruitment standards were being lowered in order to offset recruitment shortfalls, COURANT journalists Lisa Chedekel and Matt Kauffman wondered about the impact this new practice was having on the military's psychological standards. As they learned, the pre-deployment screening process is largely ineffective; soldiers are asked to complete an eight-question personal survey on which only one question, No. 7, pertains to mental health: "During the past year have you sought counseling or care for your mental health? Yes or No."
The COURANT analyzed data from more than 900,000 questionnaires and discovered that only a tiny fraction of soldiers answered "yes" to Question 7. Among those who did disclose past psychological treatment, however, nearly all were ultimately deployed.
Deeper investigation revealed that the military provides scant resources -- if any -- for people seeking mental health assistance while on active duty. One soldier featured in the COURANT's report tells AIR he was referred to a chaplain by a physician's assistant. The chaplain, he says, told him that "I would feel better once I got over to the desert and started killing people."
From http://www.pbs.org/wnet/air/episodes_108.html
"It began as a hunch in the newsroom of the HARTFORD COURANT and grew to become a major exposé of shocking mental health care practices within the American armed forces -- practices that have led soldiers to be medicated without proper oversight, redeployed despite suffering post-traumatic-stress disorder (PTSD), and ignored when showing warning signs of suicide. "Question 7" examines how two journalists revealed these failures in the U.S. military's mental healthcare system.
When the media reported in 2005 that military recruitment standards were being lowered in order to offset recruitment shortfalls, COURANT journalists Lisa Chedekel and Matt Kauffman wondered about the impact this new practice was having on the military's psychological standards. As they learned, the pre-deployment screening process is largely ineffective; soldiers are asked to complete an eight-question personal survey on which only one question, No. 7, pertains to mental health: "During the past year have you sought counseling or care for your mental health? Yes or No."
The COURANT analyzed data from more than 900,000 questionnaires and discovered that only a tiny fraction of soldiers answered "yes" to Question 7. Among those who did disclose past psychological treatment, however, nearly all were ultimately deployed.
Deeper investigation revealed that the military provides scant resources -- if any -- for people seeking mental health assistance while on active duty. One soldier featured in the COURANT's report tells AIR he was referred to a chaplain by a physician's assistant. The chaplain, he says, told him that "I would feel better once I got over to the desert and started killing people."