Military Mental Health Issues To Be Featured At APA Annual Meeting

Main Category: Mental Health
Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry
Article Date: 29 Apr 2008 - 2:00 PDT

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The trauma of combat, stress of multiple extended deployments on military families, and an Air Force suicide prevention program are among military-focused topics for workshops and forums at the 161st American Psychiatric Association (APA) Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., May 3-8.

Military-focused sessions will include top military officials and experts from across the psychiatric field. Discussions will highlight the important role government and psychiatrists play together in providing effective mental health policy and care to service members, families and friends.

Additionally, a forum focusing on Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC), which is the premier referral center in military medicine for medical and psychiatric casualties, will feature an in-depth discussion on comprehensive and effective evaluations and the necessary treatments for trauma victims.

Highlights on military related topics include:

"Supporting Military Members and Their Families during Times of War: Needs, Challenges, and Opportunities," forum led by David Benedek, M.D., Tuesday, May 6 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Room 149 A/B, Level One at the Convention Center, will feature a discussion of the challenges facing military members and families during and after combat deployment that are unique to the current conflicts. The forum will highlight the role of civilian psychiatrists in supporting their communities in light of changing demographics of combat veterans as well as the changing nature of deployment.

"Psychological Effects of War: From the Battlefront to the Home Front and Back Again," lecture by Col. Elspeth Ritchie, M.D., on Tuesday, May 6 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Room 102A/B, Level One in the Convention Center, will highlight the effects of war, repeated deployments, anxiety and stress disorders, including Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and mild, Traumatic Brain Injury; and the programs developed to provide mental health access and services to the military.

"PTSD and Traumatic Stress: From Gene to Policy, Individual to Community and Trauma to Disaster," lecture by Robert Ursano, M.D., Tuesday, May 6, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. in Room 143 A/B/C, Level One in the Convention Center, will focus on the psychiatric effects of traumatic events; the public health perspective on care for psychiatric illness after disaster; and the developing neurobiology of traumatic stress and traumatic event exposure and recovery.

"Managing the Effects of Combat Trauma: The Evolving Practice at Walter Reed Army Medical Center," forum, chaired by Harold Wain, M.D., Wednesday, May 7, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Room 144 A/B, Level One at the Convention Center, will identify the complex treatment needs of the battlefield casualty and the family; discuss the components of care to optimize recovery of the poly-trauma and psychiatric casualty; evaluate the impact that caring for severely traumatized patients over many years has on a health care system; and discuss the impact of external sources on treatment plans. "The Air Force Suicide Prevention Program: A Community and Organizational Approach to Prevention," workshop chaired by Steven Pflanz, M.D., Wednesday, May 7, from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Room 152 A, Level One, at the Convention Center, will focus on community and organizational concepts to better recognition and build effective suicide prevention programs.

For more information about these symposiums, workshops and others, please view the Annual Meeting 2008 Scientific Program and 2008 New Research Posters.

Advance registration is now closed. Onsite registration will begin on Saturday, May 3 at 11:00 a.m. For more information, visit APA's Online Press Room here.

About the American Psychiatric Association

The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society whose more than 38,000 physician members specialize in diagnosis, treatment, prevention and research of mental illnesses including substance use disorders. Visit the APA at http://www.psych.org and http://www.HealthyMinds.org.

American Psychiatric Association