Volume of VA Patients With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in the New York Metropolitan Area After September 11

Abstract

The authors examined data from the Veterans Integrated Service Network of New York and New Jersey to determine whether the number of veterans who were treated for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) increased significantly after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. They analyzed the number of veterans treated for PTSD at Veterans Healthcare Administration facilities in New York and New Jersey from September 1999 through June 2002. The number of veterans treated for PTSD in these facilities after September 11 exceeded projections based on secular trends, and the increase was more pronounced than for other diagnostic groups. The results highlight the need to ensure adequate availability of services in the wake of traumatic events.

Mental Health Consequences of September 11: A Five-Year Review of the Behavioral Sciences Literature

“…Rosenheck and colleagues studied veterans for six months after the attacks, whereas the Weissman study had a longer time frame (which ended in June 2002). The highest increase in PTSD cases occurred in the last three months of the study, thus suggesting delayed onset of PTSD in these veterans (Weissman et al 2003).…”

Population Psychiatric Medication Prescription Rates following a Terrorist Attack

“…8,9 One study, using data from the Veteran's Healthcare Administration facilities in New York and New Jersey, showed a greater than expected mental health service utilization after the 11 September 2001 attacks on New York City. 10 Several other papers have documented a high prevalence of utilization of mental health services through Project Liberty, a free service established by federal, state, and local public health authorities, to provide mental health services in the aftermath of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks. [11][12][13][14] However, in contrast, other studies have demonstrated that there was no significant increase in the utilization of mental health services for the treatment of PTSD among military veteran's in the New York City area, 15 a national sample of those admitted to a specialized intensive PTSD treatment program for military veterans during that period did not have significantly worse symptomatology than was observed in previous years.…”

Emergency Department Visits for Behavioral and Mental Health Care After a Terrorist Attack

“…13 Despite this evidence, it is less clear that increased mental and behavioral health disorders in the population translated into increased health service use. Although one Department of Veterans Affairs analysis found a small but significant increase in service use for posttraumatic stress disorder in New York and New Jersey after the terrorist attacks of , 14 others found no significant increase in the use of mental health services for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder among military veterans in the New York City area. 15 Nationally, those treated in a Department of Veterans Affairs posttraumatic stress disorder program in the 6 months after the September 11 attacks did not have significantly worse symptomology compared with the 6 months before the attack.…”