With the end of the war in Iraq and the pending drawdown of forces in Afghanistan, the United States will see a substantial increase in the amount of combat veterans in the civilian world. At current there are approximately 300,000 veterans in the United States who suffer the effects from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder caused by combat operations. With this number sure to grow over the next few years, it is paramount to identify the organizations the government has set up to serve this population. The Department of Veterans Affairs has established the Readjustment Counseling Service (RCS) division of its healthcare branch. The RCS has established 302 Vet Centers across the country to provide servicemen and women with readjustment counseling to help make the transition from military to civilian life (Department of Veterans Affairs, 2012). This paper will discuss the organizational structure, functions, and design of RCS to illustrate how it will meet the needs of veterans.…
PTSD and Veterans: A Conversation with Dr. Frank Ochberg documents an interview of Dr. Frank Ochberg, M.D. by broadcast journalist, Mike Walter. Dr. Ochberg is a leading psychiatrist in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with over 30 years of field experience. He is credited with editing the foremost text for the treatment of PTSD as well as participating in the team that created the medical definition for the diagnosis. Throughout the interview, Dr. Ochberg discussed many facets of PTSD as it relates to working with military veterans as well as working with civilians. In fact, he highlighted that there is no specific differentiation between civilian PTSD and that experienced by veterans. Dr. Ochberg discussed characteristics of an effective counselor for working with those that have experienced trauma, common problems encountered, approaches to utilize, as well as the treatment of co-occurring disorders such as depression (Gift from Within, 2008).…
The practicum learning agreement created between the masters of Science in nursing (MSN) student and the instructor was approved for the goal to perform in the role of a nurse educator at the Domiciliary Rehabilitation Program at the Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC). The population of the Domiciliary Residential Rehabilitation Program is veterans with multiple and severe medical conditions, mental illness, addiction, or psychosocial deficits. Military-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can negatively affect the veteran’s well-being (Health Services Administration, 2010). The care needs of the nursing staff were assessed to identify the need for the educational program in the rehabilitation program. Further development, implementation and evaluation of a program to improve the veteran’s quality-of-life were the objectives to provide the best outcomes of a teaching/learning program. The learning agreement included the strategies to accomplish the objective with an established time-line and self-reflective journal to meet the best outcomes. Professional relationships were established with a mentor and networking with the organization improved professional advancement capabilities at the Orlando VAMC. Evaluation of the effectiveness of the project produced positive outcomes to improve the veterans’ quality of life. The role of a leader used evidence-based decision-making and applied ethical standards. The importance of nursing theory provided the principles to generate nursing knowledge and create practices to help the veterans who are affected by PTSD. The practicum experience enhanced the role as a nurse educator to improve cost-effective nursing practices for the veterans at the VA Medical Center.…
I agree with the premise of the essay that the four generations discussed have very different points of view about work and the preferred ways of management. In my country too, this all four generations have very different points of view about work and the preferred ways of management. The Veterans, Baby Boomers, and Generation xers these three generations' people have completely different points of view in lifestyle, their ways of view at work and home, conversation, and relationship than my generation's people in my country. For example, my grand mother and grand father always dressed properly, and done their work on time. Consequently, my cousins never dressed properly on their work, and do not done their work on time even if they have time…
(2011). Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com The author illustrates how finding a safe common ground between combat veterans suffering from PTSD and the therapist is a successful approach as it enables the veteran to find their own solutions for their problems…
The Vietnam War was considered one of the bloodiest battles ever in the history of the United States. Not only were soldiers harmed physically during the war, but they were also wounded mentally. There are endless accounts of soldiers leaving the war and coming home not just with bullet wounds, but the memories that followed with it. These memories caused soldiers to not sleep at night and in some cases ruining their lives and forcing them to suicide. After the war, specialists came up with a name for this “disease” that was destroying the lives of many Vietnam veterans. They classified it as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. (National) The psychological burdens of war, such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, have substantial effects on soldiers in the armed forces making reentry into civilian life challenging.…
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) causes a painful recollection of a past harrowing event that haunts victims for the rest of their lives and often causes extreme anxiety, depression, and in some cases, drug abuse and suicide. The suicide rates have increased effectually among soldiers, with about twenty-eight veterans killing themselves each day (Rosenshield). Many veterans are diagnosed with PTSD, and are forced to live with it for the rest of their lives. It is hard to understand the shift in a person before and after serving in war because the change is not physical, but mental. Though a person may seem perfectly normal, their mental make-up is morphed in a way that changes them forever. As time progresses, medical advances increase. Less and less soldiers are being injured and killed on the battlefield, however the damage being done to soldiers is not controlled due to PTSD. Until the 1980’s, medical professionals did not recognize PTSD as an illness. This being said, many veterans traumatized in the Vietnam war did not get the recognition they needed from psychiatric doctors and suffered alone. This rings true for both World Wars as well,…
We need to enhance services for female vets which provide a safe place for them to address their issues and rehabilitate back into society. It’s easy to criticize the military for not providing proper exit education to our troops or to blame the VA for the demise of mental health providers. It’s human nature to look for a quick fix to a complex problem. However, war is an experience that keeps on giving back through addiction, divorce, flashbacks, etc. Our soldiers and their families need all the support we can provide. Jeff Susman eloquently states, “We need to do more to reintegrate returning vets into civilian life. The reality is that we owe our vets—and their families—far more than we provide. (Susman, 2012) Susman quotes a soldier he met on a plane a month before Memorial Day. He sat next to a young man returning from his tour of military duty…”He seemed mature, upbeat, and whole. But when I asked him about his experience, he responded: “Sir, I gotta tell you, what I saw was hell.” (Susman,…
Spouses Perceptions of Veterans Experiences and Symptoms. Journal of Family Psychology, 22(3), 586-594. Research Paper Evaluation/Score Sheet Content outside of textbook, 5 pages20 points Theory of Learning10 pointsAPA format10 pointsFormal writing style 5 points5 research sources, including 2 original research journal articles (2websites) 5 points5 publication dates within the last 5 years 5 pointsReferences complete, accurate10 points Research Project Evaluation/Score Sheet Appropriate Research Content 25 pointsFormal writing style 5 points5 pages, unique from Paper and beginning with METHOD 5 pointsMETHOD, with detailed descriptions in all 3 Categories 5…
The targeted populated would be the veterans who suffer with PTSD, who are homeless, living in poverty, and with mental and physical health issues. Among this group will include the veterans of all cultures; Hispanic, African-American, Whites, Asian, Native Hawaiian and American Indians. Ethnic minority plays a role in the risk factor for PTSD along with the specific war they were involved in. Race-related stressors need to be addressed in order to properly assess and treat the full range of issues that ethnic minority Veterans face (Loo, 2015). The appropriate…
Programs are reinforced by the work of needs assessments. It is essential to preform needs assessments in order to enhance the program and meet the needs of a targeted population. Conducting a needs assessment for a program will allow researchers to put in the time, effort, and resources where needed, to emphasize the programs assets. Needs assessments will provide programs with better outcomes and services to all populations (Astramovich, 2011). Needs assessments are conducted in four stages, which include identifying goals, identifying population being assessed, collect needs data assessment, and analysis and interpretation of data (Astramovich, 2011). I will provide these steps of a needs assessment below for adult military personnel who…
The trauma that they have endured is not handled appropriately and the facilities which they need are often not mentioned to them, this leads to problems developing such as; committing suicide and violent crimes, and suffering homelessness, addiction, and mental illness in record numbers. On January 13, the New York Times published the first part in a series of examinations into killings committed in the United States by returned veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Under the title “War Torn,” the series examines 121 cases in which Iraq and Afghanistan veterans had committed or were charged with killings, most of them murder, and many linked to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and consequent substance abuse and domestic distress. Families or single veterans are left to contend with the mental damage themselves. Overwhelmingly from lower-income working class backgrounds, military families bear multiple burdens in caring for wounded loved ones: psychological difficulties, alienation and lack of social infrastructure, enormous, medical costs, and lost economic livelihoods. With our general economic situation in poor standing – job prospects being impossible to attain, and the cost of living rising – all the difficulties manifest and compound into huge burdens for these veterans. Consequently, domestic disturbances, self-medication and drug dependency, homelessness, and incarceration are becoming more and more…
Lin, Dr. (2012, September 18). Interview by J Westrich [Personal Interview]. Military veterans facing ptsd and tbi.…
The Iraq war has ended as of December 2011. Osama Bin Laden has been killed as of May 2011 and yet the war in Afghanistan is still ongoing. The jihadist terrorism threat that our nation once feared from Al-Qaeda has diminished. Many question the justification of the United State’s involvement in the Middle East over the past decade. What have our intentions been this whole time and have the lives of those brave military men and women lost been worth the fight?…
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder seems far more prevalent in Vietnam War veterans than in those of other wars: fifteen out of one hundred Vietnam Veterans have combat-related PTSD as compared to one out of twenty World War II veterans, a ten percent difference (“How Common is PTSD”). Although it is nearly impossible to pinpoint the root cause for the rise in PTSD in this generation of veterans, there are many factors that could have contributed to this rising issue. Many used to believe that these veterans were simply young, immature boys dragged into the war by the draft and were unable to cope with the pressures of combat: the average age for a soldier in Vietnam was nineteen and in World War II it was twenty-six (Roark 838). However, every…