Thank you Scott Mendelson, M.D.

THIS MAN IS RIGHT ON. Here is just part of what he wrote.

Soldier Suicides And The Dumbing Down Of Military Mental Health Care

Scott Mendelson, M.D.
Author of Beyond Alzheimer's
Posted: October 6, 2010

Unfortunately, the evidence for this type of program being effective is some of the weakest data I have ever seen in my professional life. The evidence is derived almost entirely from a 2006 paper by psychologist Simon Gilbody and associates titled, "Collaborative Care for Depression" (Archives of Internal Medicine 166:2314-2312, 2006). This paper reviewed a series of studies of what is referred to in the "civilian" literature as the Collaborative Care for Depression Model. In this model, nurses are trained in roughly eight weekend training sessions to become "Depression Care Managers" or, in the military's more Pollyannaish term, "Champions." These Champions call regularly, report back to the primary care doctor, and if necessary, inform the primary care doctor that things are not going well and more help is needed. Admittedly, these are all good things. I was, however, astonished to hear at a Veterans Administration conference for the related TIDES program, that these Champions are also expected to advise the doctors as to when and if medication should be adjusted.

Finally, the addition of the new, highly touted, "Resiliency Training" as a method to avert depression, PTSD and suicide completes the recipe for inadequacy, incompetence, and disaster in the treatment of mentally ill soldiers and veterans. The 10 hour course on resiliency is taught by "Master Trainers" who themselves are soldiers who have had 10 days of training to become skilled enough to encourage resiliency and strength, and to prevent suicide in their charges. What are these people thinking?

click the link above and then email this wonderful man for this great piece! We may have been thinking it but he is saying it.  Battlemind and all the other programs they've come up with have produced more suicides, attempted suicides, veterans going to jail and a whole lot of pain that does not need to happen.