Legal Update: The Sixth Sense online news service for the British Forces community in Germany reports that the Bundeswehr (German armed forces) is considering psychological screening for all its personnel.
The Sixth Sense online news service for the British Forces community in Germany reports that the Bundeswehr (German armed forces) is considering psychological screening for all its personnel.
The idea is to help prevent soldiers suffering mental health problems such as PTSD as a result of tours of duty in challenging overseas missions. Written by battle-trauma specialists commissioned by the German Defence Ministry, prevention, post-trauma job opportunities and the process of getting therapy were all highlighted as problem areas for the Bundeswehr. Many veterans of the British Armed Forces will recognise that those issues are not just limited to German service personnel.
One of the report's authors, Hans-Ulrich Wittchen, professor of clinical psychology at Dresden Technical University, pushed for improvements in preventative measures, claiming that procedeures such as pre-screening would cut the number of psychological problems experienced by service personnel in half.
Professor Wittchen maintains that this will be helpful in informing decisions as to who to send on difficult deployments. He cited a recent study which found that two-thirds of soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of combat experiences had previously unrecognised or undiagnosed mental health problems before their deployment.
That has been taken on board by the German Defence Ministry and with the first screenings set to take place by the end of the year, all German soldiers are to undergo regular psychological fitness tests, including one at their enrolment, as well as before and after tours to conflicts abroad. All the results of these screenings will be put into an individual 'psychological fitness' file.
Traumatised Bundeswehr soldiers have long criticised the length of time it takes to get therapy, a situation that will be familiar to their British comrades. In some cases, it takes years for affected soldiers to be given the help they are entitled to.
Serving military personnel in both Germany and the UK with mental health problems are at least supported to some extent while they are in the services, although the MoD apparently has no plans to follow the Bundeswehr's lead in pre-screening.
However, once those serving soldiers, sailors and airmen leave the Armed Forces, that support network disappears but their problems, which could range depression, mood disorders, PTSD and other issues remain. They deserve recognition, rehabilitation and compensation to improve the quality of life for themselves and their families.
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