The nation's duty to vets who bring the war home

FOR many thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans returning home with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or traumatic brain injury, the war will not be over. It is our community's responsibility to help these men and women in their transition back to public life and support those who may bring effects of the war back home.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has already diagnosed 150,000 Iraq and Afghanistan vets with PTSD. Thousands more have been diagnosed by private physicians treating service personnel. A study by the Rand Corporation found that nearly 20 percent, or 300,000, of returning veterans have symptoms of this condition or major depression.

Despite evidence that vets with PTSD symptoms often respond to appropriate treatment, many do not seek it out, or follow through with treatment long enough for it to be successful. For those individuals, PTSD can become disabling, or worse.

Decompressing after several tours of duty in a hostile environment can be tough on even the most mature soldiers. Unfortunately, many members of the military are barely out of their teens. Although they are trained to survive within the highly-structured world of the military, readjustment to civilian life can be especially difficult for these young people.

Perhaps that is one reason why the suicide rate for veterans ages 18 to 29 in 2007 was 80 percent higher than the rate for active-duty personnel and the civilian population. These young adults seem particularly vulnerable to the effects of PTSD.

Veterans struggling with PTSD often do not suffer alone. Although the tragically high rate of suicide among service personnel over the past several years has been well-reported, less attention is devoted to the destructive impact PTSD and related conditions have upon the vet's family members. Dealing with one's internal demons can exact a high price, through damaged relationships with spouses, children and others. The emotional scars of the veteran's continuing battle often are passed along to loved ones, at times across several generations.

Still, there is reason to be hopeful for this generation of veterans, and their families.

As reported in The Seattle Times on July 8 and July 11, the VA has eased its rules on qualifying for assistance with PTSD. Now, veterans only have to show that the conditions surrounding their service could have contributed to their illness. This is a major change in government policy, allowing soldiers to more easily receive treatment for their condition and preserve their dignity and self-respect.

But there is much more to do. The VA is an institution-based care system and was never intended to meet the needs of 300,000 victims of PTSD. These veterans and their families will be much better served by the national network of outpatient community mental-health providers already in existence.

Needless to say, additional resources must be made available to such providers to ensure that vets and families have adequate access to the various services they need. These services include not just individual and family therapy, but also assistance in securing affordable housing and developing vocational skills appropriate for the civilian job market.

It is incumbent upon us to demand that appropriate community-based services be made available to these brave folks who — through no fault of their own — are bringing the war home with them. We owe them that much, and we should not sleep until we pay that debt ... so they can sleep better as well.