The Fort Hood Killer and PTSD

When news first broke of a mass shooting at Fort Hood last week, speculation ran rampant. Was it a traumatized soldier, suffering from PTSD, who had gone over the edge?

No, the alleged killer did not have combat-induced Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But he did treat men and women with PTSD, and that is a major issue that hardly anyone has discussed.

Major Nidal Hasan served in the U.S. Army as a psychiatrist. In this role, he worked at Walter Reed Hospital, where he was tasked with treating patients, some of whom suffered from combat-induced PTSD as a result of deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.

The doctor-patient relationship is a vital piece of recovery and survival for a veteran with PTSD. That relationship must be built on trust and mutual understanding. Major Hasan had issues with his patients at Walter Reed--exactly what those are nobody is saying, but he was apparently not well liked.

No wonder. The Army sent combat veterans to a psychiatrist who sympathizes with our enemies. It makes me wonder how much psychological damage he did to his patients. While working on my book, Shadow of the Sword, I encountered a case where an army NCO suffering from PTSD was sent to a mental health professional of Middle Eastern decent whose broken English was so bad she could hardly understand him. Attempting to share intimate and deeply painful memories with somebody who reminded her of the enemies she had faced sent her fleeing from the clinic. The entire incident did tremendous damage to her.

Major Hasan's case is even worse. He and his family attended a mosque in Northern Virginia known to be radical and anti-American. Two of the 911 hijackers worshiped there. The Imam, Anwar al-Awlaki, is a known extremist. This week, al-Awlaki posted an entry on his blog entitled, "Nidal Hasan Did the Right Thing."

Major Hasan's radical views had come to the attention of the military authorities, and he himself made no attempt to hide his anti-war views. His shared his opinions on American policy in Iraq and Afghanistan frequently, and it led to much contention and resentment.

This was not a man or officer who ever should have been in a position to give treatment to veterans with PTSD. We know of the forty-two victims of his rampage at Fort Hood. But how many more victims are there really? A psychiatrist can do tremendous harm to a trusting patient who has made him/herself psychologically vulnerable during the therapy process. I would hope and expect the U.S. Army begins an investigation on this aspect of Major Hasan's career, and follows up with all those who had been under his care to make sure they are still on the road to recovery.

 

Comments

[derived]

I served in the U.S. Army under Operation Enduring Freedom from '04 to '06. I owe my life to a Psychologist of Middle Eastern descent. I was really depressed and contemplating suicide, but he was always there for me and he helped me through a very difficult time in my life. He was retired Air Force working at Madigan Army Medical Center. Please don't assume that Middle Easterners in the Psychiatric field are a liability to the soldiers and marines who need help.

[Oleg1]

"Middle Eastern" describes many cultures.
Your psychiatrist could've been Israeli or Jewish or an Arab Christian.
But I am glad he was able to help you..

[truthywood]

Not long time ago when people used to call all blacks monsters, used to think about them as enemy , But blacks struggled and got their rights by civil right movement, There was also lot of propaganda against Jews, That too was controlled after genocide of 6 million Jews. They can not make Jews enemies any more because there are laws, they can not make blacks enemies because there are laws, So now their next targets are Muslims, I don't know what is problem with Western nations that they always search for enemies around world, Try to dictate world, and if some one does not like western dictator ship than they become enemies.

West occupies other countries, distributes their land as they like and if there is any protest, they call them terrorist. Mandella was also terrorist some time back, but since white people can't harass blacks any more, he is fine man now.

This incident was no different other incidents where any body kills abortion doctor because of his beliefs, There was no investigation about the person who killed that doctor, no check for organizations he was members of, no check for books he used to read, no check for his computer.

What about the other incident in which a right wing nut who killed 3 cops ?

[gjdagis]

This is a great article. As a person who has practiced many years in the mental health field, I can say that he's "right on the mark". I was wondering about the possible damage he might have done to his patients but haven't seen this referenced until now.

[me1cagen]

No, what's not being reported is that it is unusual to RELOCATE a psych from a case load of patients from one facility to another. Some treatments depend on continuity. BUT, it WAS reported that he did not treat any inbound people for anything, let alone PTSD, that he was counsel for those awaitng deployment.

[Oleg1]

Well, it is very likely that having found him unfit to serve in an elite medical facility Mr. Hasan was sent to the front.
This is a time-honored procedure for undesirables in any army of the world.

[Oleg1]

The major ( no pun intended) issues were Mr. Hasan's his religious self-indoc­trination, shoddy work habits and somewhat traitorous outlook. Those three reasons got him ousted from an elite medical center and sent to the front. Yes?