MINNEAPOLIS, April 5, 2011 – Approximately 50 percent of military servicemembers returning from combat duty report experiencing a mental health issue, but only half of them have sought treatment. That is according to a recently released study titled Joining Forces America (www.joiningforcesamerica.org), a comprehensive survey of more than 1,000 military servicemembers, family members of servicemembers, and mental health professionals. The study, which was sponsored by Capella University (www.capella.edu), an accredited online university* that has been recognized as a Yellow Ribbon institution for its support of the military, is a follow-up to a similar study conducted in 2008 on the mental health issues impacting our returning troops and how prepared the rest of us are to welcome them home. Approximately 13 percent of Capella students are affiliated with the military.
The survey results showed some modest gains since the 2008 study:
However, it is still the case that not nearly enough servicemembers are getting the level of mental health care they need, nor are their family and friends adequately prepared to assist them.
"Our biggest insight from this survey is that despite increased national attention on the mental health needs of returning combat veterans, too many servicemembers aren’t getting the help they need. And families are struggling, too," said Capella University Interim President Deborah Bushway. "The conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have lasted far longer than the American involvement in World War II, and they’ve challenged our armed forces in unprecedented ways. When servicemembers return from battle, many are clearly struggling to resume their 'normal' lives."
To help achieve that quest to resume their normal lives, servicemembers who participated in the study identified the following strategies they use to help ease their post-combat transition:
Those servicemembers also offered the following suggestions for how family, friends and coworkers can help with their readjustment:
The full Joining Forces America report can be viewed at www.joiningforcesamerica.org. That website also allows visitors to post their own ideas and suggestions for how we can all help returning service members readjust to life back home.
Capella University (www.capella.edu) is an accredited online university* that has built its reputation by providing quality online degree programs for working adults. Nearly 80 percent of Capella students are currently enrolled in master's, specialist, or doctoral degree programs in business, counseling, education, health administration, human resource management, human services, information technology, nonprofit management and leadership, nursing, psychology, public administration, public health, public safety, and social work. Capella also offers bachelor's degree programs in business, information technology, nursing, psychology, public administration, and public safety. Within those areas, Capella currently offers 136 graduate and undergraduate specializations and 17 certificate programs. More than 39,000 learners were enrolled as of Dec. 31, 2010, from all 50 states and 59 other countries. Capella is committed to providing high-caliber academic excellence and pursuing balanced business growth. Founded in 1993, Capella University is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Capella Education Company, headquartered in Minneapolis. For more information, please visit http://www.capella.edu or call 1.888.CAPELLA (227.3552).
Visit the Capella Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/CapellaUniversity. Follow Capella on Twitter at http://twitter.com/CapellaU.
* Capella University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), www.ncahlc.org. Capella University, Capella Tower, 225 South Sixth Street, Ninth Floor, Minneapolis, MN 55402, 1.888.CAPELLA (227.3552), www.capella.edu.
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