OIG Monthly Highlights

CONGRESSIONAL TESTIMONY

Assistant Inspector General’s Testimony Highlights Opportunities to Enhance VA’S Suicide Prevention Efforts

John D. Daigh, Jr., M.D., CPA testified before the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Veterans’ Affairs at a hearing on preventing veteran suicide. Dr. Daigh noted three possible strategies that may lessen the risk that a veteran will attempt or commit suicide. First, he discussed expanding suicide prevention efforts to those veterans who do not receive care through the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Second, he suggested enhancing prediction models beyond identifying who is at risk to also determine an actionable timeframe for when a veteran may be at highest risk to attempt suicide. Finally, he indicated that efforts could be increased to improve communication between care providers and family members of at-risk veterans. With regard to the third strategy, Dr. Daigh explained that the Office of Inspector General (OIG) has reported on the deaths of many veterans with diverse mental health issues that often revealed significant communication gaps between care providers and the veteran’s family due to privacy and confidentiality laws. By devoting more effort to improving communication through the use of advance directives or other mechanisms, VA could determine if better information flow can reduce veterans’ risk of suicide.