EP 149 | Veteran Suicides Continue To Increase At A Higher Rate Than Civilians

Since 2019, veteran suicide-related deaths have increased at a greater rate than that of the general U.S. population and are the second-leading cause of death for post-9/11 veterans, accounting for 22.3% of all deaths. A 2021 report found that 30,177 active-duty personnel and veterans who served in the military after 9/11 have died by suicide. And despite hundreds of millions of dollars spent each year and the proliferation of veteran-related mental health initiatives, suicide rates among veterans continue to increase. So not surprisingly for us veterans, the Veteran’s Affairs department released a report on September 19th showing trend analyses did not identify associations between onset of the pandemic and Veteran suicide mortality, decreased Veteran suicide in 2020 continued a trend that began in 2019, and that this pattern was not associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The VA report only muddies the waters and attempts to use two isolated years to imply veterans suicide rates are improving. Today’s guest is the founder and CEO of ENODO Global Inc, Jim Sisco, a veteran, and entrepreneur who has studied and developed veteran suicide prevention programs for several years. In January 2019 ENODO Global launched its Veterans Suicide Prevention Program (VSPP). The program was designed to identify high-risk veterans and interdict potential suicides. Over the next nine months, ENODO representatives met with the head of the Veterans Administration (VA), representatives from the President’s Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End the National Tragedy of Suicide (PREVENTS) task force, and numerous non-profits and private sector organizations to identify funding for a six-month pilot project. ENODO was unable to identify a resource sponsor and the initiative was put on hold. We do have some good news to report on that front and happy to say it will be good news!