Canada's military watchdog says bureaucratic red tape is partly to blame for a shortage of medical professionals needed to help care for soldiers and veterans struggling with mental health issues.
The comments come as new concerns are being raised about access to treatment, with three Canadian soldiers allegedly committing suicide in the past week and a top military psychiatrist warning about a "steady" increase in the number of Afghan vets coming forward with mental health needs.
Pierre Daigle, ombudsman for National Defence and the Canadian Forces, said the military is currently facing a 15-20 per cent shortage when it comes to the number of mental health professionals serving Canada's current and former soldiers.
He said there are currently 76 qualified professionals that could be hired tomorrow, but they have remained in the candidate pool because of a "cumbersome" and slow-moving hiring process.
"I'm very concerned about that," he told CTV's Question Period. "Because those 76 could be brought into the system tomorrow and help alleviate the shortage … And if you wait too long, those candidates might leave and there will be further delays."
Daigle said that shortage sometimes forces military personnel to seek help outside the community, often from non-military professionals who might not be as familiar with how to deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
He said another problem plaguing the Canadian Forces is its inability to create an adequate database to track mental health issues among its members.
"If you don't know the exact scope, you cannot define the problem," Daigle said. "It's very difficult to assign the right resources to the right places in the right proportion."
The issue of mental health and the military was thrust back into the spotlight this week as the Canadian Forces confirmed the deaths of three soldiers who served in Afghanistan.
And according to one military doctor, the number of veterans with mental health issues is likely to spike in the coming years.
Speaking to CTV'S Question Period, Defence Minister Rob Nicholson called the mental health of Canada's soldiers an "institutional priority."
"When we know or hear about individuals suffering from depression or hurting in some way, we all have to reach out to those individuals," he said, adding that the government has invested heavily in helping military personnel with mental health issues.
The Conservative government last year gave the Canadian Forces an additional $11.4 million to improve access to treatment among members and veterans.
Nicholson also said the government is attempting to "speed up" the review process when it comes to suicide within the ranks of the armed forces. There remains a backlog of about 50 investigations.
Nicholson added that the military is investigating the most-recent deaths.
According to the latest Defence Department figures, 22 full-time soldiers died of suicide in 2011, and 13 in 2012
Nicholson says 106 Canadian military personal have committed suicide since 2008.
With a report from CTV's Richard Madan and files from The Canadian Press
