CENTER FOR DEPLOYMENT PSYCHOLOGY

1
CENTER FOR DEPLOYMENT PSYCHOLOGY
2
Military Personnel Deployed to OEF/OIF
Thousands
From DOD Contingency Tracking System Deployment
File, Sep. 30, 2006
3
Combat Exposure in Iraq
Hoge, et al, 2004, NEJM
4
Mental Health Issues Among OEF/OIF Veterans
Hoge et al., 2006
5
Military Personnel Wounded - OIF
As of September 30, 2005, Two-thirds of the Army
personnel evacuated due to wounds, had injuries
resulting from explosions.
Casualty figures from www.icasualties.org 30 NOV
2006
6
Impact of Deployment on Families
About 50 of service members are married at the
time of deployment (DOD, Sep. 30, 2006)
Family concerns during deployment
Family concerns following deployment
Data from National Military Families Association
Online Survey, 2005
7
Development of the Center for Deployment
Psychology

• Congressional special interest graduate
  psychology training program sponsored by
  Congressman C.W. (Bill) Young in consultation
  with the American Psychological Association.
• Funding
• Congress Defense Health Program
  USUHS
• 
  HJF
• Mission
• Primary Train military and civilian mental
  health professionals to provide high quality
  deployment-related behavioral health services to
  military personnel and their families.
• Other Program evaluation research on
  psycho-social effects of military deployments

8
Development of the Center for Deployment
Psychology

• Collaborative effort among, Army, Navy, Air
  Force, USUHS SOM, and 10 DoD MTFs
• Planning committee including senior Army, Navy,
  Air Force psychologists and USUHS SOM (MPS chair)
  
• Planned program to provide basic and advanced
  skills in deployment psychology.
• Hub and spoke model developed with the
  headquarters at USUHS serving as the hub spokes
  are each of the 10 DoD APA-accredited clinical
  psychology internship sites.

9
Timeline

• April 06 Develop curriculum outline
• Areas to be covered The deployment experience
  Trauma and resilience
• Serious medical injuries Deployment
  and families
• August 06 Hire CDP Headquarters personnel and
  begin hiring psychologists for satellite
  sites
• Finalize Charter and
  Bylaws of the Center for Deployment Psychology
• September 06 Seat Board of Directors of Center
  for Deployment Psychology
• First CDP staff
  meeting Begin to fill out curriculum
• November 06 CDP Offices Established at USUHS
• January 07 First 2-week short course to be
  held at USUHS
• Spring-Summer 07 Begin conducting continuing
  education workshops/seminars for military and
  civilian mental health professionals
• Fall 07 Stand up research/evaluation component
  and
  post-doctoral fellowship program

10
Overview of Planned CDP Activities

• Two-week course will be offered at USUHS 4-6
  times per year for active duty, reserve
  component, and community mental health
  professionals  increase their ability to treat
  deployment-related issues. 
• CDP personnel at ten satellite sites (MTFs) will
  provide staff and trainees with ongoing
  education, supervision and consultation about
  deployment-related behavioral health problems.  
• CDP personnel will offer continuing education
  workshops to military and community mental health
  professionals to increase their understanding of
  deployment-related issues.
• CDP will sponsor additional continuing education
  workshops presented by military and civilian
  SMEs.
• In FY07 a research component and 1-2 year
  fellowship will be added 

11
Topics in Deployment Psychology

• Curriculum

12
Four Areas of Focus

• Deployment Cycle
• Trauma and resilience
• Behavioral health care for the severely medically
  injured
• Impact of deployment on families

13
The Deployment Cycle

• The Nature of Deployment
• Professional Competencies for Psychologists
• Pre-Deployment
• Deployment Life Experience
• Deployment Mental Health
• Post-Deployment Adjustment
• Reintegration of Service Members
• Family Reintegration
• Community Reintegration

14
Trauma Resilience

• The Nature of Trauma
• Responses to Trauma
• Resilience and Risk Factors
• Assessment
• Treatment of Trauma Related Symptoms
• Self-care for the Clinician
• Addressing trauma symptoms in deployed situations

15
Mental Health Care for the Severely Injured

• Working with Patients who are Seriously Injured
• Assessment and Treatment Issues
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Medical-Surgical Patients
• Experiential exercises

16
Deployment and Families

• Families throughout the deployment cycle
• Families coping with trauma
• Family violence