A greater than 5,500-word Politico Magazine (3/17, Hattem) “Friday Cover” story reported that facing a growing number of suicides among his soldiers, Fort Bliss commander Major General Dana Pittard made it a top priority to focus on how to combat the problem and to find “the roots and causes” to prevent more suicides. A solution he came up with, Politico said, was to “aggressively expand mental health services at the base.” This included increasing mental health staff, “creat[ing] new social spaces and nighttime services, [and] treatment for substance abuse and post traumatic stress disorder.” The services were made available to all, regardless of “whether or not there was any reason to believe they were at risk of killing themselves – because he believed everyone was vulnerable to suicide.”

Related Links:

— “The General Who Went to War On Suicide,”Ben Hatten, Politico Magazine, March 17, 2017.

HealthDay (3/17, Preidt) reported, “US veterans with substance abuse problems have a higher risk of suicide than veterans who don’t,” researchers found after examining data on “more than four million veterans.” The findings were published online March 16 in the journal Addiction.

Related Links:

— “Drinking, Drug Abuse Doubles Veterans’ Suicide Risk: Study,”Robert Preidt, HealthDay, March 17, 2017.

STAT (3/15, Sheridan) reports, “Richer countries have higher rates of anxiety in their population than poorer countries and” such “anxiety also interfered more with daily activities and responsibilities,” researchers from the World Health Organization’s World Mental Health Survey Consortium found. In particular, “there was a higher proportion of people in higher-income countries with generalized anxiety disorder [GAD]…and with severe GAD.” The findings were published online March 15 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Rich countries are more anxious than poorer countries,”Kate Sheridan, STAT, March 15, 2017.

The New York Times (3/15, Bakalar, Subscription Publication) reports, “Background checks and waiting periods for gun purchases are associated with lower suicide rates,” investigators found. The findings were published in the April issue of the American Journal of Public Health.

Related Links:

— “Some Gun Laws Tied to Lower Suicide Rates,”Nicholas Bakalar, The New York Times , March 15, 2017.

Healio (3/15, Oldt) reports, “Individuals with intermittent explosive disorder had increased risk for substance use disorders,” researchers found after analyzing “data from the community-based National Comorbidity Survey Replication (n = 9,282).” The study’s conclusion “suggests aggressive behavior may be an indicator of substance use disorder risk.” The findings were published online in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Aggression may predict substance use disorder, Healio, March 15, 2017.