Air Force leaders are urging more attention to mental health as suicide rates rise

Senior Air Force officials have pledged to improve airmen’s mental health services and urged commanders to take an active role in supporting their troops, noting that suicides are on the rise again.

Secretary Frank Kendall, the service’s top civilian, and Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Joanne Bass, the top enlisted leader, encouraged Air Force and Space Force maintainers to look for broader support systems on Sept. 22. Q&A session on Facebook.

“All of us at some point in our lives, [have] There was a time when life wasn’t what we wanted it to be.” Kendall said. “There are things we can do to identify when someone is having certain problems. Know that whatever they feel now isn’t what they always felt.”

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It is not known how many Airmen and Airmen are believed to have killed themselves in the past year. The Air Force Department will no longer provide an annual suicide count, spokeswoman Laurel Falls said Wednesday. Those figures are included in the Pentagon’s quarterly suicide updates and its annual final report.

But Kendall pointed out that this year’s total for fiscal year 2021 is higher.

“We get about the same number every year. I think we can get it down,” he said. “Last year was great; This year’s trends are not very good. … If we pay attention to this as leaders, we can make a difference.

Seventy-one soldiers in the active-duty Air Force and Space Force, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve died by suicide in the fall of 2021 — the lowest in at least six years, according to the Pentagon. In contrast, that number rises to 110 aircrew and caregivers who will die each year in both 2019 and 2020.

Relationship issues, a sense of loss of purpose, and a loss of quality of life and career are often at the root of a person’s decision to end their own life. Firearms are the leading cause of death for airmen and janitors in the continental United States, the Air Force says.

Active duty and National Guard suicide rates are low compared to the US population. In the year The majority of people in the Air Force Department who died by suicide in 2020 were single junior enlisted men between the ages of 23-30, the service said in April.

While the service can’t do anything about a nationwide shortage of mental health providers that’s driving up appointment wait times, it can encourage aircrews to build stronger communities.

“We can do things to help people basically become volunteers that people talk to,” Kendall added. “We can increase our staff, do things that are more efficient … and we can handle priorities faster.”

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Most people seeking mental health services need someone to listen rather than clinical care, Bass said. But she wants to get people treatment and other resources before their feelings escalate into depression or anxiety. The Air Force is also working to increase the number of sexual assault advocates.

The service still has a long way to go in combating the perception that receiving mental health care can affect a person’s career trajectory, especially for those who have security clearances or carry weapons for their jobs.

Seeking help “shows courage, maturity and judgment,” Kendall said. He sought out a therapist while going through a difficult divorce and said it was better for him.

Still, Bass admits that staying in the service can do more harm than good for those who are deeply struggling.

“The reality is that some people should probably take off this uniform for their health,” she said. “We care more about their lives.”

Leaders in the chain of command should set examples of better mental health and a balanced life, he said. At the same time, it is the front line supervisors and other managers in the workforce who need to create a healthy culture.

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One questioner urged the Air Force to give its leaders more guidance on what to do after a suicide.

“My air crew saw a three-day shutdown for the plane crash and only one day without any suicide flights,” she said. “We need a method to assess psychological well-being and ‘post-recovery’.”

Bass pointed to the audience’s input on the Air Force Emotional resilience website. She and Kendall stressed the importance of continuing to grow as leaders and learning to care for others in the military.

The Air Force is looking for ways to better measure whether an organization is safe and healthy for Airmen.

“We’ve had a few meetings to talk about the need to find more effective and responsive ways … to get data from our service members about the quality of life?” Bass said.

Perhaps you can turn to microsurveys, or quick polls that take a pulse of a classroom’s climate. But those won’t work unless enough airmen are responsive and loyal, Kendall added.

It’s hard to manage something if you don’t have good data, especially in a large organization like the Department of the Air Force. [or] Department of Defense,” he said. “Having that feedback allows us to make better decisions and put better policies in place.”

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Instead of taking punitive measures, the leaders urged commanders to work together with their subordinates in difficult times. Poor performance, lack of motivation, and other problems can be signs of burnout or depression, but they can also lead to disciplinary paperwork.

“One of the most suicidal is people who are under investigation for disciplinary matters,” Kendall said. “Give them a chance to correct the problem or solve the problem, and then see if their performance goes up before you take a strong disciplinary response.”

Bass also suggests that people write down the phone numbers of three people they can call in their darkest moments — before those moments arrive.

“There’s always someone who can help you,” she said. “If you come up with your plan in a pinch or when you’re in trouble, it’s probably not a good plan.”

If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can reach the 24-hour Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling 988 or 1-800-273-8255. Veterans, military and their family members can text or visit 838255. VeteransCrisisLine.net for help.