Thursday February 19, 2008
Afternoon
Concurrent Sessions (2:30pm-4:00pm)
Mental Health Advisory Team V (MHAT V)
MAJ Dennis McGurk, PhD
This presentation will present finding from
the MHAT V mission. During October and November of 2007, MHAT personnel deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan to assess the
mental health status of Soldiers. The percent of Soldiers in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) screening positive for mental
health problems is similar to previous years (17.9% for a combined measure of acute stress, depression or anxiety).
In Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), the percent of Soldiers screening positive for a mental health problem (17%) is higher
than 2005 OEF and comparable to 2007 OIF. However, OEF 2007 Brigade Combat Team (BCT) Soldiers had higher rates of mental
health problems comparable to OIF 2007 when controlling for rank, gender, and time in theater. Behavioral health care
delivery in both theatres will be discussed. Risk and protective factors such as combat experiences and mental health
training will also be presented.
Cultural Competence in Trauma Treatment
Kamana’opono
Crabbe, PhD & Panel
This panel presentation will provide a variety of perspectives on providing culturally-competent treatment
for trauma and violence victims in the Pacific Islands.
Friday February 20, 2008
Morning Concurrent Sessions (10:30am-12:00pm)
Responding to Trauma: Beyond the Obvious (Part 1)
Russell
W. Strand
Trauma comes from many different sources. This presentation will focus on victims/witnesses of
crime. This session is designed to assist helping professionals including law enforcement, firefighters,
medical and mental health providers, clergy and others have a clear understanding of trauma and its effects on the victims
and on themselves. Differentiating among stress, crisis, and trauma will assist helping professionals in
understanding the impact on the victim. Understanding trauma and common victim behaviors will aid professionals
in understanding the needs of the individual and potentially reduce frustration experienced by the professional/first responder.
Information on how trauma affects memory and recall will also be presented. Vicarious trauma can
be damaging, in some cases just as damaging as primary trauma. It is important that helping professionals
and first responders understand not only the effects of trauma on victims and witnesses but also how trauma affects the professional.
Professionals/first responders will leave this training with improved knowledge and skills for how to better respond
to trauma by understanding and helping the victim and themselves.
After
the War Zone: Practical Guidance for
Assisting Military Family Members
Laurie Slone, PhD
This presentation will assist
participants to understand what family members experience during the cycle of deployment , including the impact of common
stress reactions on relationships, including anger, numbing and avoidance, as well as the importance of treating the family
unit, impact on treatment, overcoming mental health stigma, psycho-education and more. Video clips about homecoming
will be shown, and strategies for dealing with deployment-related family problems will be discussed.
Treating Traumatic Nightmares
Lori Daniels, PhD, LCSW
Trauma survivors often
report suffering from dreams that reference traumatic incidents. In addition, the re-occurrence of trauma
memories during sleep has long-term, negative physical ramifications and emotional impact on interpersonal relationships and
occupational functioning. This presentation discusses the relationship between traumatic stress and nightmares
and will subsequently describe Nightmare Therapy techniques designed to reduce the frequency and intensity of trauma-based
nightmares. A major emphasis will be the description of two methods of working with nightmares:
sand-play processing and a writing technique. A major goal of each technique is to use a client’s
nightmare “story” to facilitate the healing process, thereby minimizing the negative influence of nightmares on
survivors.
Friday February 20, 2008
Afternoon Concurrent Sessions (2:30pm-4:00pm)
Expanding the Circle of Post-Deployment Healing for
War Veterans and Trauma Survivors
Ray Scurfield, DSW
This workshop provides an overview of an expanded paradigm of treatment and healing
for military personnel post-deployment and veterans that goes beyond the typical individualized cognitive-behavioral treatment
interventions that focus on narrow targeting of DSM-IV-TR defined PTSD symptoms. Discussion includes: what is missing
from the DSM-IV-TR definition of PTSD; issues of racism and gender-based trauma; medical evacuation dynamics for
wounded and injured personnel; and the salience of the veteran’s military peer group. Expansion of the circle of healing
further includes facilitating attending to dynamics involving: vets of other eras; non-veterans/civilians; our government
and American society; both the negatives and positives of war experiences; challenges regarding belief in God, religion
or faith in humanity; and dynamics regarding the people and land of the country where the war has been waged.
Assessing Sexual Trauma in Veterans
Allison Aosved, PhD
This presentation will include
review of definitions and rates of sexual trauma including sexual harassment, sexual assault, and childhood sexual abuse among
veterans. This presentation will provide suggestions for assessment of sexual trauma in a veteran population
including review of written assessment measures as well as interview questions. The presentation will include
small discussion and role play, and time permitting, treatment options for sexual trauma survivors will also be discussed.
Responding to Trauma: Beyond the Obvious (Part 2)
Russell
W. Strand
Trauma comes from many different sources. This presentation will focus on victims/witnesses of
crime. This session is designed to assist helping professionals including law enforcement, firefighters,
medical and mental health providers, clergy and others have a clear understanding of trauma and its effects on the victims
and on themselves. Differentiating among stress, crisis, and trauma will assist helping professionals in
understanding the impact on the victim. Understanding trauma and common victim behaviors will aid professionals
in understanding the needs of the individual and potentially reduce frustration experienced by the professional/first responder.
Information on how trauma affects memory and recall will also be presented. Vicarious trauma can
be damaging, in some cases just as damaging as primary trauma. It is important that helping professionals
and first responders understand not only the effects of trauma on victims and witnesses but also how trauma affects the professional.
Professionals/first responders will leave this training with improved knowledge and skills for how to better respond
to trauma by understanding and helping the victim and themselves.