May 2, 2008
Psychology Chairman To Address Military Suicide For Committee on Veterans Affairs
David Rudd will testify to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs during a hearing titled "The Truth About Veterans’ Suicides."
Written by John Davis
David Rudd, chairman of the Department of Psychology at Texas Tech University, will testify to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs during a hearing titled "The Truth About Veterans’ Suicides."
The meeting will start at 10 a.m. May 6 in Washington, D.C. The hearing comes after an April 21 news report on the CBS Evening News titled "VA Hid Suicide Risk, Internal Emails Show."
The committee will seek to examine the prevalence of veterans’ suicides and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ actions concerning those suicides. Rudd, a former Army psychologist, will testify to his findings on suicide in general as well as his experience and research into suicide among veterans and active members of the military.
"I’ve commented quite a bit on military suicides in terms of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan," Rudd said.
"There were some pretty significant increases, with suicides doubling and army suicide attempt rates increasing five-fold since the start of the Iraq War."
Rudd can discuss veteran and military suicides prior to the event by phone or e-mail. Access a live Webcast of the hearings at 10 a.m., May 6.
Featured Expert
David Rudd, chairman of the Department of Psychology, College of Arts & Sciences, (806) 742-0818 or David.Rudd@ttu.edu.
Story produced by the Office of Communications and Marketing, (806) 742-2136. Photos by Artie Limmer.