By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Feb 11, 2009 21:46:59 EST
WASHINGTON — Following four suicides at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, officials said Wednesday they are emphasizing to cadets that seeking help for mental health problems won’t jeopardize their military careers.
In the last seven months, two cadets, a faculty member and a staff member at the academy have taken their lives. The suicides were the first at the school in upstate New York since 1999.
They are part of a larger trend as the strained military wages war in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army had its highest rate of suicide on record in 2008 and is investigating a spike in the number in January.
He said three times the number of cadets are seeking mental health help, which leaders view as a positive sign that the stigma associated with getting assistance has been reduced.
Brig. Gen. Michael Linnington, commandant of cadets, said there is a misconception among cadets that seeking help will jeopardize their military careers, so leaders have aggressively emphasized that’s not the case. click link for more
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