The Foreign Service Journal, September 2010

26 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 0 Security after an incident at post has raised questions about an officer’s fitness for duty and his or her continued possession of a security clearance. Three years ago, Concerned Foreign Service Officers, a group that has raised these issues in the past, urged col- leagues to seek mental health treatment privately, rather than through the State Department. They did so on the grounds that mental health diagnoses made by MED are shared with Diplomatic Security and that State has as- serted that such files are not subject to medical privacy laws. That position has not changed, says William Savich, a spokesman for the group. “We feel that MED basically works in conjunction with Diplomatic Security and is re- ally swayed by DS’s security recommendations,” he says. “It seems that sometimes that sways their medical deter- mination, and they tend to work in secrecy and use ad- ministrative files and personnel files that should be medically confidential.” But MED officials say such advice is more likely to get officers in trouble than if they seek treatment. “It’s extremely hard, from our perspective, to lose your secu- rity clearance,” says Yun. “If you don’t get treatment and you have an incident, that’s more likely to have an effect on a clearance than seeking treatment.” As for Hirsch’s suggestion that separate, outside doc- tors conduct security clearance reviews, MED officials say that’s not feasible — or even desirable for officers — because of the specialized work that Foreign Service per- sonnel do and the conditions they face at post. It’s best, Yun says, that doctors who know the terrain handle the evaluations. It would seem, then, that the fears officers have about MED may well persist, despite Yun’s assurances. That’s something he regrets, he says, but accepts. “We’re very well-liked for the caring part,” says Yun. “We’re not very well-liked for the company hat part.” If there’s one thing that most Foreign Service employ- ees can agree on, it is that maintaining the balance be- tween patient care and security concerns is not easy. ■ F O C U S 2010 A NNUAL FS A UTHOR R OUNDUP Watch for the November FSJ ’s annual roundup of books by current and former members of the Foreign Service and their families.