OTTAWA – Parliamentarians are asking Canada’s defence minister to publicly debunk the myths surrounding post-traumatic stress disorder.
Sources say the recommendation comes in a report today by the House of Commons committee on National Defence, along with three dozen recommendations about the treatment of soldiers suffering from PTSD.
Among them, the all-party committee calls on the auditor general to conduct an examination of the mental-health programs and services offered to veterans, many of them returning from the war in Afghanistan with significant mental stress.
The exhaustive study is being tabled in the Commons today by Conservative committee chair Maxime Bernier.
The attitude of the testosterone-charged military establishment has long been identified as obstacle for traumatized soldiers to come forward.
Public statements by Defence Minister Peter MacKay – and by Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Walter Natynczyk – are seen as key to getting troubled soldiers to come forward and seek treatment..
