NJ center to run counseling program at Fort Hood

NJ center to run counseling program at Fort Hood
By BETH DeFALCO Associated Press © 2011 The Associated Press
Feb. 1, 2011, 2:24PM

TRENTON, N.J. — In response to a record number of suicides in 2010, one of the nation's largest Army posts is turning to a successful veteran-to-veteran counseling program in New Jersey for help.

Beginning Tuesday, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey will provide a toll-free, 24-hour helpline for soldiers and families at Fort Hood in Texas.

Based in Piscataway, N.J., the Vets4Warriors helpline for will be staffed by five veterans, including some who served in Vietnam and Iraq. The counselors, who are trained and employed by UMDNJ, will be available for around-the-clock confidential support both over the phone and through an instant messaging system. Soldiers who call can remain anonymous.

"Unfortunately, the suicide rate among the military has risen dramatically in the past eight years," said Christopher Kosseff, CEO of UMDNJ's University Behavioral HealthCare. "Today, a veteran is twice as likely to commit suicide as someone who has never served."

The Army reported 22 suicides of Fort Hood soldiers last year — double the number in 2009 and even higher than the previous record of 14 in 2008 — prompting officials to look for new ways to help struggling soldiers.

Overall in 2010, the Army reported 343 suicides of soldiers, Army civilians and family members — 69 more than in 2009, according to the Defense Department.

Kosseff, who runs the New Jersey program, had the idea of starting the program at Fort Hood after four suicides were reported in one week at the Army post.

"A veteran can really understand the rigors of military life better than someone who has not lived it," Kosseff said.

Kosseff said that having veterans staff the lines and allowing callers to remain anonymous has been a key reason to its success in New Jersey.

"There's an issue that mental health professionals are not highly regarded by some. They are seen as people who can limit someone's activity, rather than someone who is supporting them," he said.

Known as the Vet2Vet program in New Jersey, the helpline was the first of its kind in the nation when it began operating in New Jersey in 2005. It was modeled after a Cop2Cop counseling program for police.

Master Sgt. Chuck Arnold, a counselor and Vietnam veteran who has worked with the New Jersey hotline since it started said that the peer element is crucial.

"Most are very relieved that they don't have to explain the language of the military," Arnold said. "We follow up and do what we say we are going to do. We are 24-7. You'll always get a live voice."
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NJ center to run counseling program at Fort Hood