DCoE Blog

• Caring for our Warriors

  Posted by DCoE Strategic Communications on January 27, 2010

  Health care professionals are currently gathering at the 2010 MHS Conference to share knowledge on ways to better health care for our service members, including enhancing medical readiness; improving patient experiences and health outcomes; and achieving the best value for health care expenditures. The DoD and the Army are committed to providing continuity of care for service members with psychological health issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder. “We are clearly just beginning to deal with the long-term effects of the signature injuries of these wars – not just the visible, but the invisible,” said Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as he addressed the more than 3,000 military and civilian medical professionals in attendance. “We must provide the best possible care in the worst possible place,” said Capt. Edward Simmer, senior executive director for psychological health at DCoE. Simmer emphasized the value of ...

  Categories: Conferences, Psychological Health   |   Comments (0)

• DCoE’s “Take Note” Section Features Books, Videos and Projects

  Posted by DCoE Strategic Communications on January 26, 2010

  The DCoE Web site’s new Take Note section features a variety of books, videos and projects that are valuable for anyone interested in psychological health, traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder.

  Check out one of the featured videos, “Change A Mind About Mental Illness” below:

  Get the Flash Player to see this player.

  Categories: DCoE   |   Comments (1)

• Interested in Military Family Caregiver Issues?

  Posted by Cmdr. Brenda Gearhart on January 25, 2010

  Don’t forget to participate in DCoE’s Monthly Webinar, “Support for Family Caregivers” this Thursday, January 28 from 1300 to 1500 hours EST. Be sure to register for the event. For all questions, contact DCoE.MonthlyWebinar@tma.osd.mil. Check out our earlier post for more information.

  Categories: Families   |   Comments (0)

• Harnessing New and Social Media to Prevent Suicide

  Posted by DCoE Strategic Communications on January 22, 2010

  Another breakout session featured at the 2010 Suicide Prevention Conference was a lively and informative session centered on New and Social Media titled Harnessing New and Social Media to Prevent Suicide. The goal of the conversation was to understand how social media can serve as a powerful means to prevent suicide and the discussion began with a simple question: What is Social Media? Social Media is defined as an online set of tools that allows anyone with basic computer skills to tell their stories using the internet to create a shared community experience both online and in-person. Online social media forums can be found such as: Blogs Example: DCoE Blog Networking sites Example: DCoE Facebook Page Videos Example: You Tube Photo Sharing Example: Flickr Wikis Example: Wikipedia Shared online communities contain a group of people with common interests who connect online to: learn, play, work, organize and socialize. Online ...

  Categories: Technology, Conferences, Suicide, Psychological Health   |   Comments (1)

• Suicide Prevention Resource Center: A National Resource for a National Imperative

  Posted by DCoE Strategic Communications on January 22, 2010

  The Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC) hosted an important breakout session last week at our 2010 Suicide Prevention Conference called “Suicide Prevention: A National Resource for a National Imperative.” The session was one of over twenty conference breakout sessions on topics ranging from “Safety Planning in Care of Suicidal Veterans,” to “Training in the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicide” to “The Role of Law Enforcement in Preventing Suicide.” We’ll be posting all presentations online, so please stay tuned. It is likely you’ll find a presentation useful for your perspective. Founded in 2002, the SPRC is the only federally funded suicide prevention resource center. Born out of a need to move suicide into the public health arena, SPRC approaches suicide as a preventable public health problem and looks to create a national dialogue in which suicide is viewed as a pivotal issue that needs to be taken seriously because it ...

  Categories: Conferences, Suicide, Psychological Health   |   Comments (1)

• Frontline Psych with Doc Bender: Coming Back Home

  Posted by Dr. James Bender on January 19, 2010

  Dr. James Bender recently returned from Iraq after spending 12 months as the brigade psychologist for the 4-1 CAV out of Ft Hood. He served for four and a half years in the Army. During his deployment, he traveled through Southern Iraq, from Basra to Baghdad and many spots in between. He’ll be writing a monthly post for the DCoE Blog on mental health issues related to deployment and being in the military. Hello, I’m Dr. James Bender and excited to be writing a monthly post. I hope you’ll share your thoughts and comments with me, so I can address the things you want to know and talk about. Having just returned from Iraq, deployment issues are top of mind. Friends and families welcome home U.S. Army Soldiers from the 596th Maintenance Company with cheers and smiles in Darmstadt, Germany, Sept. 6, 2007. The Soldiers are returning from a one-year ...

  Categories: Reintegration   |   Comments (3)