Large numbers of vets with PTSD live near military bases

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2014/04/10/3143165/large-numbers-of-vets-with-ptsd.html?sp=/99/296/331/354/



Spc. Kristen Haley, right, the fiancee of Sgt. First Class Daniel Ferguson, who was killed in the Fort Hood shooting, is consoled at the memorial ceremony for the victims of the Fort Hood shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, on Wednesday, April 9, 2014.

Large numbers of vets with PTSD live near military bases
By Chris Adams
McClatchy Washington Bureau
April 10, 2014 Updated 13 hours ago

WASHINGTON — The Army specialist who killed three soldiers at Fort Hood last week isn’t the only person from the neighborhoods that surround the massive military base near Killeen, Texas, who’s been evaluated or diagnosed with mental illness.

Data compiled by the Department of Veterans Affairs and analyzed by McClatchy show that hundreds of veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and live near Fort Hood, while thousands more reside near the nation’s other military installations.

In fact, the communities adjacent to military bases have the highest number of veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, a concentration that reflects the tendency of former soldiers to settle near bases once they leave the service but also raises concerns about base security.

Experts are quick to say that most veterans with PTSD or other service-connected mental ailments don’t engage in violence or other unlawful behavior, but there is an association between PTSD and elevated levels of violence.