A leading US-based medical expert has told a royal commission investigating the issue of defence and veteran suicide that it's possible to eliminate suicide in the military.
The commission in Sydney is this week looking at urgent issues contributing to suicide among the ADF community such as negative experiences with the Veterans Affairs' Department and long wait times on compensation claims.
The inquiry was sparked last year when Prime Minister Scott Morrison agreed to the probe into the long-running issue of ADF and veteran suicides.
Edward Coffey, a doctor from the US-based Henry Ford Health Service, said curbing suicide meant removing "fatalism" from the topic and pursuing perfection.
"Perfection is possible," Dr Coffey told the inquiry on Wednesday.
Key to moving in the right direction of "zero suicide" in the military was to work with not just serving members and veterans, but also defence force communities.
It also meant implementing a system of ambitious targets, learning from mistakes and rapid improvement, he said.
The inquiry was told "compassionate care", involving carers and family of veterans at risk of suicide, was another area that needed to be focused on, to address stigma surrounding mental health help.
Making immediate care available for anyone at risk of suicide and opening up "crisis care" pathways for veterans, especially those outside hospital systems, were other hallmarks of a "zero suicide framework", it was told.
Mainstream health care system also needed to be better equipped to deal with veterans presenting at risk of suicide.
Later on Wednesday, the commission is expected to hear evidence from an anonymous Afghanistan veteran who was sexually assaulted on deployment.
Already this week, there has been harrowing testimony from ADF veterans who considered suicide after being treated unfairly by the military due to their sexuality.
Families of veterans who have taken their own lives have also given evidence about how their loved ones were failed by the military after suffering mental health challenges such as PTSD.
The inquiry has also been told evidence will be adduced of an unacceptably high backlog of compensation claims at DVA.
Suicide rates are 24 per cent higher for ex-serving men and double for ex-serving women, compared with the general population, according to federal government data.
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