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KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – “Suicide may end their pain, but that pain transfers to surviving family and friends.”
Laura Roman, U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz Risk Reduction coordinator isn’t reading from a manual or syllabus. She is speaking from the broken heart of someone who lost a family member to suicide.
“My brother, an Air Force veteran who served in Afghanistan, a husband, a father, the life of the party, died by suicide in March 2019,” Roman said. “In May, I interviewed for this job.”
Roman’s job as risk reduction coordinator is self-explanatory. She’s in charge of finding and mitigating high-risk behavior in Soldiers and garrison employees. A lot of what she does is talk about suicide, alcohol abuse and other high-risk activities.
USAG Rheinland-Pfalz Army Substance Abuse Program
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany The difficult process of finding a new normal during COVID-19 has been a challenge for many, especially those who struggle with substance use.
A recent report on substance use (https://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/drug-use-rises-among-us-workers-amidst-the-pandemic/healthcare-administration) notes that more than “20 million people in the United States suffer from a substance use disorder.” Before the pandemic started, drug testing positivity rates among U.S. workers had reached a 16-year high. Since the beginning of the pandemic several states have reported an increase in opioid overdoses, according to recent reports.
In contrast, the active duty military community has not seen a rise in opioid overdose related deaths or opioid use. In fact, because of more options for pain management and more stringent prescription rules, opioid related deaths have been decreasing for the past two years, accordi