U.S. Army photo

To help providers care for wounded warriors with invisible wounds, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) held a workshop earlier this month at Howard University in Washington, DC.

The workshop, “Addressing the Behavioral Health of Military Troops”, discussed the unique cultural and clinical concerns of service members and others in the military community. Presenters highlighted three major areas:

• Military culture and deployment-cycle stress or impact on service members and their families
• Common post-deployment clinical concerns like depression, sleep problems, PTSD and TBI
• Evidence-based treatments for PTSD, including prolonged exposure therapy and cognitive processing therapy

The more than 140 participants included behavioral health providers and psychiatric residents; members from several academic institutions; federal and local government offices; and community outreach groups.

The workshop was a collaborative effort by DCoE’s Training and Education directorate, the Suicide Prevention Action Group with the Center for Deployment Psychology, and the Howard University Department of Psychiatry.

Don’t miss out on the next workshop! If you’d like to stay updated on various Department of Defense PTSD and TBI training opportunities geared at military and civilian health care providers, please visit dcoe.mil/Training.aspx.