Ethical Dilemmas In The Military

There are many issues within the military organization that require focus and resolve in order to maintain the superior fighting force that protects the homeland. Unfortunately solider suicide is one of those issues. Suicide is the deliberate taking of ending of one’s life. It is often associated with a severe crisis that does not go away, or may worsen over time (Warning Signs, n.d.). This issue requires knowledge and training to help protect fellow soldiers. The military organization has decided that required annual training be conducted to every person wearing the uniform. The goal of this training is to increase awareness of suicide risk factors, warning signs, and how to provide intervention to at-risk soldiers.

Suicide rates in the military are at twenty-two a day and that was in two thousand one (Dao and Lehren). In two thousand two suicides were at the rate of ten point three per one hundred thousand people (Dao and Lehren). Suicide rates in two thousand twelve were at three hundred and fifty (Dao and Lehren). In two thousand one there were two thousand seven hundred and maybe even more because this statistic did not include National Guard and reserve troops who were not on active duty (Dao and Lehren). However, studies are finding that eighty percent of soldier suicides were non-combat related (Dao and Lehren). This study is causing a concern to the military for the aspects of the background checks that the soldiers have to go through to get into the military. This is causing concern in the metal health part of the multiple series of test that these soldiers have to go through. Questions are arising like “Are the test becoming to easy and are we letting to many people in for not the right reasons?” This leads to looking farther into the causes of suicide in the military.

The article demonstrates the culture of problem solving in America where every little problem is projected to demonstrate its importance. In many other countries, the issue of suicide in the Army would not be given much attention but in this study, the Pentagon funding the study alone is important in taking care of soldiers. The most important thing in the article however is training the chaplains to first believe in therapy and then help those that seek help in the Army since it is shocking that many of them do not believe in the importance of therapy. Soldiers should also be made to see the importance of therapy and sensitized against stigmatization of those that seek therapy because about half of soldiers claimed they would feel embarrassed if their fellow soldiers found out that they sought

Suicide has historically been and continues to be a significant issue in the United States, for civilians as well as active duty military service members and veterans. While statistics surrounding suicide appear to be just numbers on a page, I personally implore the reader of the following paper to never lose sight of the fact that those numbers represent real people. Each one of those people, be they civilian or military, represent a loss of a father or a mother, a brother or a sister, a son or a daughter, a best friend, a comrade, …a person whose life, and that life’s potential, is now forever lost. The following statistics on suicide rates in the United States do not differentiate if the individual was a civilian, an active duty

Ethics matter in any kind of business or organization, but they are especially significant when it comes to the US Army (Blackburn, 2001). The reason behind this involves the chain of command and the risk to life and limb that are such large parts of military life. When a soldier in the Army has no ethics, he or she can cause trust and respect problems with other members of his or her unit. The US military is a stressful organization for most people involved with it, and people's lives are on the line frequently. Issues like PTSD and other medical problems are commonplace for those who leave the military and must adjust to civilian life, so it is very important that those who are in the Army work with their colleagues and higher-ups to get the help and support they need during and after their service. There is more to ethics in the Army than the problems that military individuals can face, though.

Common practices for Noncommissioned Officers (NCOs) and higher leadership is to simply punish a Service Member (SM) who repeatedly displays poor behavior than attempt to understand the deep-seated issues plaguing the SM.

“ Despite universal access to health care services, mandatory suicide prevention training, and other preventive efforts, suicide has become one of the leading causes of death in the US military in recent years.1- 3 Suicide rates across the population of active-duty US military personnel began to increase sharply in 2005 from a baseline rate of 10.3 to 11.3 per 100 000 persons to a rate of 16.3 per 100 000 persons in 2008, with the highest rates among Marine Corps and Army personnel (19.9 and 19.3 per 100 000 persons).4 Since 2009, suicide rates among those on active-duty status have stabilized at approximately 18

I. INTRODUCTION: While the numbers of suicides in the military are lower from previous years, in my opinion, the Army remains doubtful about how to handle suicides in their formations. There are some tools created by the Army available for leaders to raise suicide awareness, but in my opinion, the Army inherited something that it can’t be handle by a power point training, a suicidal awareness card, or a should not be part of its legacy. There is a debate regarding the root cause of the problem therefore, if military leaders are to be accountable for suicides among their ranks, then the military must change the culture on how we treat, and evaluate behavioral and psychological issues among the troops.

It is well-established that modern life in America is filled with innumerable stressors that are potential acute, episodic and even chronic in nature. And soldiers in our Army are subject to many of these same stressors on a daily reoccurring basis as well as those associate with long overseas deployments and even the rigors close combat engagements with a pervasive and ardent series of enemies. Despite the recent finding by C.A Leardmann, Et al, in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) which failed to find a direct corollary between deployments and higher suicide rates among service members, this can cause additional strain; even burnout; which can result in diminishing job performance and reduce unit effectiveness. And the cumulative detrimental psychological and physiological effects on a soldier’s health and welfare when left unrecognized, identified and properly addressed can be truly debilitating over time to the point of suicidal thoughts or tendencies, in fact the New York Times recently reported of ... a military suicide rate that has nearly doubled since 2005... 18.86 deaths...per 100,000. The national average is about 13 deaths per 100,000. (Philipps, 2015). This often times has a lasting negative effect on the family members of these soldiers as well and the Army’s official position on the matter is that... The loss of any American Soldier's life

As a senior leader in the United States Army, it is our responsibility to set the tone for our organizations by providing a positive example for Soldiers to emulate. Soldiers look to senior leaders for guidance, mentorship, and inspiration in difficult times. Suicide and suicidal ideations amongst Soldiers are tragic event that we must prepare for. Ultimately Soldiers that have made up their mind to end their life is one too many, and this epidemic needs a drastic change. In 2009, the Army suffered a record number of suicides among active-duty Soldiers totaling 352 (Haynes, 2015). Since then suicides in the Army have lingered around 280 a year during 2013-2014 (Haynes, 2015). To better prepare leaders and Soldiers for suicide and other stressful situations the Army invested in a program called Master Resilience Training (MRT) part of the Comprehensive Soldier and Family Fitness (CSF2). The premise of MRT is to equip Soldiers and leaders with the skills required to deal with adversity, change how they react to stressful situations, and arm them with the tools they need to cope with complex situations by quickly bouncing back. When a Soldier has decided to take his/her life or attempt to take his life, there are many contributing factors such as personal loss, stress, or even combat related disorder. Sergeants Major

The purpose of this paper is to provide information about the Air Force’s Suicide Prevention Program. Air Force senior leaders have did a great job by ensuring that Air Force members are provided with the necessary help and training needed to prevent suicide. This paper will cover solutions that the Air Force has implemented such as computer based training, group training, and mental health

Loyalty is often talked about when discussing the armed forces. Most of the time when military loyalty is mentioned, the “bond between brothers” is what comes to mind, however, the oath taken by these service members states something completely different. Knowing where those loyalties lie is important, especially when the men and women serving together rely on each other for survival. Conflicts of loyalties can cause many complications. Even the perception of disloyalty to one another can have mental and social implications.

In this short essay, the author will examine preventative measures being taken in the armed forces to combat suicide. However, as we shall see, there is a a lack of education among service members when it comes to incorporating measures such as stress management, service programs and leadership and mentoring in small units contributes to the root cause of suicide trends in the Armed Forces. However, it must be stated at the outset that the answers are not simple and that the results have been at best a mixed bag. In general, a mixture of methods will likely be needed to tackle the problem.

1. In the United States (U.S.), approximately 42,773 Americans die by suicide each year.1 This has become a huge problem not only in the U.S. but also in the military, specifically the Air Force (AF). Suicides are a huge problem in the AF and this issue needs to be address. Some possible solutions are administering mental health screenings yearly and making it mandatory for supervisors to randomly give their subordinates monthly mental screenings. The best solution for this issue would be developing a more extensive background check to aid in figuring out a recruit’s mental status before they enter the military.

Fort Drum is an Army base in northern New York and they are starting to delve into the dark world of suicide. The one thing that all the soldiers on base must do is carry a card on them at all times; on that card is how to identify the danger signs of suicide. (“Fort Drum Highlights Suicide Prevention”) The fact that Fort Drum is showing the initiative to get every soldier involved with knowing how to identify the danger signs of suicide is a giant step toward mitigating the number of suicides on that base.