DANVILLE -- A movement has been launched to find ways of helping rural veterans better handle the stress of combat, many of whom have yet to return from serving oversees.

An estimated 1.4 million troops have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, including more than 410,000 of them civilian soldiers serving in National Guard and Army Reserve units, all exposed to some level of combat stress, military officials say.

Still, more than 101,800 troops remained deployed.

The impact of war has even hit home in the Valley, where officials estimated roughly 226,090 veterans live within the Geisinger Health System coverage area. Many of them, officials say, continuously battle the effects of witnessing destruction, gruesome injuries and death while serving overseas.

As a result, more veterans are exhibiting early symptoms of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), an anxiety disorder that can occur after experiencing a traumatic event. The effects can lead to drinking or drug problems, divorce, domestic violence, job loss and even suicide.

Geisinger has thrust itself to the frontline of trying to help when it hosted a first-of-its-kind national conference earlier this week on how PTSD impacts rural families and how local health care providers can work together to provide treatment counseling for the mysterious illness.

Resources few

Veterans now living in rural areas are left with little resources to find help with their anger, stress and anxiety, according to Dr. Charles Figley, director of the Traumatology Institute at Florida State University and a PTSD expert.

"Never before have we asked so few civilian soldiers to do so much," said Dr. Figley, also a Vietnam veteran. "Many forget during Vietnam that joining the National Guard was a way to get out of going to war. Today, that's not the case. Without a draft, these volunteers are being pulled time and time again for duty, then returning home to rural areas that are ill-equipped to help them."

Dr. Figley was the among the featured speakers, which included military psychologists, veterans affairs officers and Geisinger researchers, who spoke about the challenges of not only identifying veterans with PTSD but getting them adequate treatment in rural areas.

"We're especially concerned with screenings, referrals and mental health services in primary care," Dr. Figley said. "The hope is health systems like Geisinger can develop a model program for helping civilian soldiers and their families. We want to promote cooperative agreements with the community leaders and primary health care providers. There needs to be a commitment to referring these veterans and addressing their needs."

Understanding needed

Geisinger is hoping to engage family physicians to better understand PTSD, as well as expand its own PTSD research. The initiative is important because so many effected veterans live under the Geisinger umbrella, according to Dr. Glenn Steele Jr., Geisinger's president and chief executive officer.

"The (PTSD) epidemic cuts right through industrial America and into our region," Dr. Steele said. "Take a look at the economic culture and who enter the National Guard and Army Reserves. It's our middle-class workers. The repeated tours are something pretty dramatic and a significant contributor to this epidemic."

The goal, he said, is to extend services to the veterans and their families rather than rely on them to seek help on their own.