Mentally ill troops tell of bullying and neglect
Monday, April 21st, 2008Nick McKenzie; 21/4/08
Serving and former soldiers have broken ranks to expose the neglect, bullying and bastardisation faced by some Australian Defence Force personnel with mental health problems. The soldiers, who have served in the Middle East, East Timor and Africa, claim they were denied adequate support and ostracised after seeking help for mental health problems. The Age can also reveal that the family of an army captain who has served twice in Iraq and who has severe mental health problems has claimed he received an appalling level of care at a Queensland defence base in February. A letter from Defence about the incident says its health services work in a “frugal financial environment”.
