From Rebecca Zimmerman "the Hidden Casualties of War: Civilian Front Line Workers"

Maj Kim Patterson — Sat, 18 Jul 2015 12:50:44 -0400

A 2013 Rand Corp. study of more than 600 frontline military contractors found that 25 percent had symptoms of PTSD, a rate higher than that experienced by military service members, which ranges from 8 percent to 20 percent. There's no system in place to provide care for frontline civilians who have separated from service, no equivalent to the Department of Veterans Affairs, no government program to help us successfully make the transition back to domestic life.

Does anyone know of any transition and/or counseling programs to help the government workers, reporters, etc when they come home? You might think that most are working safely behind a desk with all the comforts of home but in reality, many are right in the thick of things

Response by SSG Izzy Abbass made Jul 18 at 2015 12:55 PM

SSG Izzy Abbass — Sat, 18 Jul 2015 12:55:56 -0400

Not aware of any - plus, my opinion is that the US should not be so reliant on contractors

Response by CSM Michael J. Uhlig made Jul 18 at 2015 2:22 PM

CSM Michael J. Uhlig — Sat, 18 Jul 2015 14:22:31 -0400

Thanks for sharing Maj Kim Patterson, I'd assume many already had those signs & symptoms from their time in military service....not many contractors out there "on the front line" that is there for the first time (as a civilian)....I'd appreciate reading the article as well as identifying the demographics of those in the poll (concerning prior military service).

Response by Capt Tom Brown made Jul 5 at 2017 9:12 AM

Capt Tom Brown — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 09:12:44 -0400

Here's one from the past