Defense Ministry appoints team to update PTSD evaluations for vets
Mental health treatment for IDF veterans has been in the spotlight since a disabled IDF war veteran set himself on fire in April in front of the Defense Ministry's Rehabilitation Division.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFUpdated: JUNE 13, 2021 18:45Alternate Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Benny Gantz seen during a visit on the Israel-Lebanon border, Northern Israel, on November 17, 2020.(photo credit: DAVID COHEN/FLASH 90)
The Defense Ministry appointed a team of experts Sunday to update the evaluations used to determine the degree of disability suffered by IDF veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).The team will submit recommendations to the Defense Minister in a number of weeks, after which it will be possible to implement them immediately, the Defense Ministry said.The team was founded at the directive of Defense Minister Benny Gantz and the Defense Ministry director-general.The current tests were updated over ten years ago and there has been a great deal of new medical research since, meaning that some tests in use are outdated, according to the ministry.Mental health treatment for IDF veterans has been in the spotlight since Itzik Saidian, a disabled IDF war veteran diagnosed with PTSD, set himself on fire in April in front of the Defense Ministry's Rehabilitation Division in Petah Tikva.An investigation into the incident revealed a series of alleged failures regarding the treatment of the former Golani fighter and veteran of the Second Lebanon War."In the process of treating Itzik, there was a gap in communication between the medical committees and the benefits officer regarding the extent of Itzik's recognition," the Defense Ministry report said.It also noted that "there was no orderly passing of medical information or 'transfer of the baton' during Itzik's treatment between the IDF and the Disability Rehabilitation Division at the time the lawsuit was filed."Saidian’s friends had harsh criticism for the Defense Ministry, which they said created bureaucratic obstacles for Saidian to receive the help he desperately needed.“Who decides what is caused by what? He lost his friends. You have to prove you’re not a liar; he was rejected every time, they brought him to the edge. The writing was written in blood on the wall,” said Yaron Porter, a friend of Saidian’s, in an interview with KAN Reshet Bet."I blame the Rehabilitation Division directly for what happened.”
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