Brisbane Deacon Gary Stone said the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide final report was a “goldmine of information” for people interested in delivering care for veterans. Source: The Catholic Leader.
“The report addresses the widest range of issues, from prevention and early intervention to structural and cultural reform; it’s a massive work of scholarship and research,” he said.
The report was handed down after three years of consultation and research.
Among 122 recommendations, the royal commission emphasised the need for increased accountability and resources, as well as establishing a permanent body to help veterans in civilian life.
Veterans and defence personnel disproportionately commit suicide by 24 per cent for men and 102 per cent for women compared to their civilian counterparts, something the report tries to tackle.
As a soldier and founder of Veterans Care Association, now run by his son and fellow veteran Michael Stone, Deacon Stone has experienced first-hand the challenges the royal commission investigated.
“A critical point is that we have been on operations; in 1999 we sent 6000 troops to East Timor on no notice, and next minute in the Solomons … it was exhausting,” he said.
“In that environment where you’ve got too much work to do and not enough capacity to recover, it is not surprising that people had catastrophic outcomes.”
Deacon Stone said the final report would give people a better understanding of what did and did not work for veterans care, with an emphasis on continuing help going forward.
“People can now look at this report and turn the information into something that will improve the lives of other people,” he said.
FULL STORY
Royal Commission into veteran suicide calls for more accountability, resources going forward (By Michael Howard, The Catholic Leader)
National FREE 24/7 Crisis Services: • Lifeline 13 11 14 www.lifeline.org.au • Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467 www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au • Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 www.kidshelpline.com.au • MensLine Australia 1300 78 99 78 www.mensline.org.au • Beyond Blue Support Service 1300 22 4636
