Operational Stress Control in the Former Yugoslavia: a Joint Endeavor

The response of mental health teams in support of the year-long peace enforcement mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina is reviewed. Emphasis was placed on successful marketing strategies, stress management & suicide prevention classes, prompt access to care & decreasing the stigma of mental health through education. There were 16 suicide attempts or gestures, including 1 completion. Suicide attempters included soldiers experiencing relationship or marital problems, complicated by other stressors.