Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan

Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 193
Release: 2010-03-31
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309152852

Nearly 1.9 million U.S. troops have been deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq since October 2001. Many service members and veterans face serious challenges in readjusting to normal life after returning home. This initial book presents findings on the most critical challenges, and lays out the blueprint for the second phase of the study to determine how best to meet the needs of returning troops and their families.

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 467
Release: 2018-03-29
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309466601

Approximately 4 million U.S. service members took part in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Shortly after troops started returning from their deployments, some active-duty service members and veterans began experiencing mental health problems. Given the stressors associated with war, it is not surprising that some service members developed such mental health conditions as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use disorder. Subsequent epidemiologic studies conducted on military and veteran populations that served in the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq provided scientific evidence that those who fought were in fact being diagnosed with mental illnesses and experiencing mental healthâ€"related outcomesâ€"in particular, suicideâ€"at a higher rate than the general population. This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the quality, capacity, and access to mental health care services for veterans who served in the Armed Forces in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn. It includes an analysis of not only the quality and capacity of mental health care services within the Department of Veterans Affairs, but also barriers faced by patients in utilizing those services.

Textbook of Men's Mental Health

Textbook of Men's Mental Health
Author: Jon E. Grant
Publisher: American Psychiatric Pub
Total Pages: 476
Release: 2007-04-02
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1585626546

The first of its kind, this book reflects progress in a too-little explored corner of psychiatry to show that gender plays an integral role in mental health issues for men. Textbook of Men's Mental Health provides clinicians with the information they need for understanding how certain disorders manifest differently in men -- and for recognizing how treatment responses in men differ from those in women. Multidisciplinary coverage in this groundbreaking guide draws from fields such as public health and substance abuse to create a well-rounded approach to addressing men's specific mental health problems. With contributions by today's experts in men's mental health, this work gathers the latest research about men's psychiatric issues, from the difficulties in diagnosing male depression to strategies for engaging men in marital therapy. First addressing developmental issues specific to childhood, adolescence, and old age, the text then presents treatment options for an array of problems, from anxiety to sexual disorders to posttraumatic stress disorder. This volume then addresses psychosocial issues as they apply uniquely to men, such as fathering, marriage, aggression, and overcoming the stigma of mental health treatment -- as well as a chapter on how men's ethnicity influences the effectiveness of therapy. Among the topics discussed are how men behave in intimate relationships with women -- and the mental health considerations unique to gay men psychiatric disorders more prevalent in men than women, such as substance abuse, antisocial personality, and conduct disorder up-to-date facts on male sexual functioning, covering erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, and male orgasmic disorder why disorders less common in men -- anxiety, depression, PTSD -- require different treatment than for women coverage of compulsive disorders seen in men both more frequently, such as pathological gambling and compulsive sexual behavior -- and less frequently, such as kleptomania and compulsive buying insight into how body image, a problem usually associated with women, has become a serious health issue for men, as evidenced by eating disorders, muscle dysmorphia, and steroid abuse No previous text has addressed such a wide range of issues concerning men's mental health, presented here in evidence-based coverage featuring case vignettes, key points, practice guidelines, and an extensive reference list in each chapter. Clinicians who wish to make more prudent decisions regarding the care of men with mental health issues will find this text indispensable to their practice -- and to the well-being of their male patients.

Mental Health Stigma in the Military

Mental Health Stigma in the Military
Author: Joie D. Acosta
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2014
Genre: History
ISBN:

This report assesses the U.S. military's approach to reducing stigma for mental health disorders and their treatment, how well it is working, and how it might be improved. It presents priorities for program and policy development and research and evaluation to get service members the treatment they need as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Military Life

Military Life
Author: Thomas W. Britt
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 1071
Release: 2005-12-30
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0313015090

With global commitments and combat duty, our armed forces face life-threatening challenges on a daily basis. However, less visible threats also impact the mental health of our military men and women. Experts examine challenges on the battlefield, such as women coming to terms with life after being prisoners of war, or soldiers dealing with mistakenly killing civilians. But life in the armed forces presents less dramatic, daily challenges. Away from the front lines, soldiers have to raise their families, sometimes as single parents. Children have to learn what it's like to be in a military family, and to make sense of war. Gay or lesbian officers cope with a don't ask, don't tell policy. An unprecedented range of contributors—military officers, medical doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, and professors—take us onto the bases and the battlefields and inside the minds of military personnel who face far greater challenges than most of us ever see in the headlines. These volumes also highlight factors that make members of the military resilient and stable, as well as programs and practices that can ease the psychological burdens of military personnel, families, and children. Readers can better understand how society views our military and military operations, and how each one of us can play a role in supporting our armed forces.

Bringing Psychotherapy to the Underserved

Bringing Psychotherapy to the Underserved
Author: Jeffrey Zimmerman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 377
Release: 2020
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0190912723

Bringing Psychotherapy to the Underserved will focus on the massive challenge of making psychotherapy available to underserved, often marginalized populations, both within and outside the United States.

Public Health Perspectives on Depressive Disorders

Public Health Perspectives on Depressive Disorders
Author: Neal L. Cohen
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Total Pages: 457
Release: 2017-08-29
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1421422794

How does mental health impact public health? In 2001, the WHO recognized depressive disorders as the leading cause of disability worldwide. But most Americans who meet diagnostic criteria for major depression are untreated or undertreated. Luckily, recent advances have finally made it possible for the field of public health to address mental health in the population. Public Health Perspectives on Depressive Disorders fills a gap by identifying the tools and strategies of public health practice and by exploring their application to twenty-first-century public mental health policy and practice. By looking at depressive disorders through a public health lens, this book highlights the centrality of mental health to public health. Linking the available research on depressive illness at the population level with public mental health policy and practice, expert contributors set a research agenda that will help make mental health a central part of public health science and practice. This book is an invaluable resource for researchers and practitioners to develop, facilitate, and conduct pilot and feasibility studies of promising preventive and treatment interventions that might mitigate the progression toward major depression and other mental disorders among populations at risk. The first part of the book underscores the public health significance of depressive illness by focusing on the evidence provided by recent approaches to nosology, epidemiology, illness burden, and impact on overall health. The second part looks at the social and environmental influences on depressive disorders that are critical to future efforts to prevent illness and to promote mentally healthy communities. The third and longest part addresses the vulnerability of diverse groups to depressive illness and underscore best practices to mitigate risk while improving both the preventive and therapeutic armamentaria.

Promoting Psychological Resilience in the U.S. Military

Promoting Psychological Resilience in the U.S. Military
Author: Lisa S. Meredith
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Total Pages: 185
Release: 2011-06
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0833058169

As U.S. service members deploy for extended periods on a repeated basis, their ability to cope with the stress of deployment may be challenged. Many programs are available to encourage and support psychological resilience among service members and families. However, little is known about these programs' effectiveness. This report reviews resilience literature and programs to identify evidence-informed factors for promoting resilience.

Provision of Mental Health Counseling Services Under TRICARE

Provision of Mental Health Counseling Services Under TRICARE
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 351
Release: 2010-06-23
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309157196

In this book, the IOM makes recommendations for permitting independent practice for mental health counselors treating patients within TRICARE-the DOD's health care benefits program. This would change current policy, which requires all counselors to practice under a physician's supervision without regard to their education, training, licensure or experience.

Gulf War Veterans

Gulf War Veterans
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 136
Release: 1999-09-25
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309065801

Many individuals, groups, and federal agencies have a strong interest in finding answers to the numerous and complex questions regarding the health of Gulf War veterans. Various types of research and health measurement are needed to address these diverse issues. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) was asked by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense (DoD) to undertake a study to identify important questions concerning the health of Gulf War veterans and then to design a study to answer those questions. The committee determined that it is of fundamental importance to ask how healthy are Gulf War veterans? Are they as healthy as others? What characteristics are associated with differences between the health of Gulf War veterans and the health of others? To address these questions, it will be necessary to measure not only the health status of those who served in the Gulf War, but also to compare Gulf War veterans with other groups. Further, one must continue to follow these groups through time to determine whether the groups differ in the way their health status is changing. As the committee began to develop a design that would address the fundamental questions identified, it realized that such a study could have important implications for understanding not only the health of Gulf War veterans, but also the health of veterans of other conflicts.