Reservists Say Military Clinics Cannot Keep Up With War's Mental Health Demand
Tens of thousands of soldiers may develop PTSD, and reservists are already paying for private treatment abroad.
By Fatou Kim ·
Reservists who served in long combat deployments say the Israeli military's mental health clinics cannot handle the number of soldiers seeking help, and many are paying for treatment themselves overseas. The concerns, reported by The Jerusalem Post, describe a system that military sources say shifts responsibility to reservists once they return to civilian life. One source said the IDF should have partnered with private nonprofits to standardize care. "It would have been preferable for the IDF to initiate a process with the nonprofit organizations and private bodies to minimize the gaps in diagnosis, oversight, and ultimately treatment," the source said.
The scale of the problem is visible in military data. More than 7,000 soldiers, most of them combat troops, have been officially recognized as having psychological disabilities from their service. Estimates from the IDF and the Defense Ministry's Rehabilitation Department project that tens of thousands of soldiers, mostly reservists, will develop PTSD because of the war. One specialist said the psychological shockwaves among hundreds of thousands of combat soldiers and reservists "are only beginning and are expected to intensify in the coming years."
Reservists describe a different experience from regular-service troops. Soldiers on active duty receive ongoing support, they say, while reservists typically get limited help near the end of their deployments, if they get any at all. Military sources say that once reservists return to civilian status, the military treats its obligation as finished and leaves them to navigate support services and paperwork on their own. Thousands have traveled abroad for workshops and treatment run by private nonprofit groups.
The IDF operates the Ta'atzumot Clinic and the Combat Stress Reaction Unit through its Medical Corps. Sources said the capacity of those services has not matched demand while fighting continues, and they described a pattern of soldiers seeking help from private providers, nonprofits and overseas programs instead of military channels. The Ta'atzumot Clinic reports that about 65% of its patients return to service, though sources questioned whether that number reflects all patients or only those who reached the front line of treatment.
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said the military gives mental health care the utmost importance and has expanded capacity and service quality since the war began. It said new clinics have opened across Israel and a 24-hour hotline runs seven days a week. The military said it identifies soldiers who may need help through debriefing sessions with units after operational deployments, rather than waiting for them to come forward. The Ta'atzumot Clinic has added staff, occupational therapy, a track for career personnel, and an intensive outpatient program.
The Combat Stress Reaction Unit has taken on more than 5,000 new patients and expanded access in northern and southern Israel, according to the IDF. The Medical Corps said surveys show most patients are satisfied with care. It noted that some services fall under civilian bodies, including the Health Ministry, health maintenance organizations, and the Defense Ministry's Rehabilitation Department, and that Israeli law generally bars the IDF from treating civilians except through that unit. The IDF said it built a framework called the Service Cycle after almost three years of intensive reserve deployments.
