Mental Health of Canadian Veterans

MENTAL HEALTH OF CANADIAN VETERANS: A FAMILY PURPOSE Report of the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs Neil R. Ellis Chair JUNE 2017 42nd PARLIAMENT, 1st SESSION Published under the authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons SPEAKER’S PERMISSION Reproduction of the proceedings of the House of Commons and its Committees, in whole or in part and in any medium, is hereby permitted provided [...] As we will see later in the report, although the suicide rate among members of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) is about the same as for other Canadians of the same age, it is alarming, since the military population is already a pre-selected group that is in better health than the general population. [...] When the CAF believes that a member of the Regular Force or the Reserve Force likely died by suicide, the CAF seeks confirmation from the coroner in the province where the death occurred and orders a medical professional technical suicide review (MPTSR). [...] The highlights of this comparison are as follows: From 1995 to 1999, the male suicide rate for the Regular Force was 28% lower than the suicide rate for the male population of the same age, and this difference is statistically significant.12 From 2000 to 2004, the rate was 20% lower, but the difference is not statistically different. [...] For example, for the period from 1995 to 1999, we can state with a degree of confidence of at least a 95% that the suicide rate for men in the Regular Force was below the suicide rate for the general population by a minimum of 6% and a maximum of 45% or, in other words, a confidence interval with limits of 94% and 55%.