These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.
Pubmed for Handhelds
PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS
Search MEDLINE/PubMed
Title: When a soldier commits suicide in Iraq: impact on unit and caregivers. Author: Carr RB. Journal: Psychiatry; 2011; 74(2):95-106. PubMed ID: 21688957. Abstract: There have been studies about the impact of a suicide on family members and friends, but none to date on a military unit in a combat zone. This is the first description, to my knowledge, of the effects of the suicide of a U.S. Army soldier deployed to Iraq. A narrative from the treating psychiatrist's perspective describes both the acute and longer-term (four months) effects of the suicide on members of the soldier's unit, other soldiers at the same base, members of the medical team who attempted to resuscitate him, and mental health care providers. This account describes how the suicide affected at least thirteen other soldiers on the base. The effects of the soldier's suicide showed a few similarities to those described in the literature, including stigmatization of the survivors and the stress experienced by the mental health providers. There were additional repercussions that have not been previously described, including the impact on the soldier's peers within his unit and other soldiers on the base, the need for medical evacuation from Iraq of soldiers following the event, and the reported stress on the medical staff due to the attempted resuscitation of someone known to them. Future research is needed to understand the impact of a suicide on the survivors in a deployed military setting and to establish best practices for postvention strategies.[Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]