Training Military Psychiatrists to Adapt and Overcome: How COVID-19 Highlighted the Unique Flexibility of Military Psychiatry in Training and in the Fleet.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Born out of necessity, military medicine continues to find itself at the forefront of medical innovation. This generation of military physicians has never previously been challenged with continuing to provide top notch medical support to servicemembers in a variety of operational settings in the midst of a global pandemic. While military medicine has always been able to uniquely meet the educational goals of residency training, COVID-19 brought new challenges to the forefront. RECENT FINDINGS: While the threat presented by COVID-19 was different from the historical battlefield threats and challenges that have given birth to military medicine, it was nevertheless ready to pivot and adjust course, focusing on how to best meet the medical needs of the military patient population in an ever-changing geopolitical environment while continuing to meet and exceed the educational standards that training programs are held to. Historically and currently, mental health remains one of the most common reasons that servicemembers are evacuated from combat zones. The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity for modern military psychiatry to showcase its ability to adjust the educational focus in certain areas of residency training to prepare the next generation of military psychiatrists to be able to face the newest threat to force wellness.

Personality Disorders as a Basis for Discharge and Denial of Benefits in the Military: Logical or Abusive?

ABSTRACT: The US Department of Defense specifically states that intellectual disability and personality disorders are not diseases for compensation purposes, and disabilities from them may not be service connected absent a superimposed mental disorder. In addition, the diagnosis of a personality disorder led to the discharge of 31,000 troops during the years 2001 to 2010. I review the history of these developments, and how the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders enabled these actions. In contrast, the United Kingdom and Canada do not allow such actions. Whether our approach is logical seems highly questionable, especially given the significant problems with the DSM's definitions of personality disorders, definitions at odds with the literature.

Development of a Tool to Predict Risk of Behavioral Health Evacuation From Combat.

In the present study, we examined administrative data on 667,437 deployments of at least 30 days duration to Iraq and Afghanistan from 2011 through the end of 2016 to determine risk factors for evacuation from the combat zone for behavioral health reasons. Demographic data, military-specific data, responses on predeployment mental health assessments, and presence of previous treatment for psychiatric conditions were entered into a logistic regression based on expert determination, distinguishing the 2,133 behavioral health evacuations from those deployments that either did not end in evacuation or included evacuations for reasons other than behavioral health. The model, derived from a random half of the sample (training set), was verified on the other half (validation set). Predictor variables used in the model were calendar year; gender; age; rank; marital status; parental status; number of prior war zone deployments; branch of service; screens for symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and hazardous alcohol use on the predeployment mental health assessment; and prior substance- and non-substance-related behavioral health diagnoses. Odds ratios (range: 1.05-3.85) for selected variables that contributed to the model were used to assign risk scores in the Behavioral Health Evacuation Risk Tool, which can aid predicting which service members are more likely to be evacuated from combat for behavioral health reasons, thus indicating where resources can be allocated for behavioral health referrals and war zone care.

Medication by Proxy: The Devolution of Psychiatric Power and Shared Accountability to Psychopharmaceutical Use Among Soldiers in America's Post-9/11 Wars.

With the United States military stretched thin in the "global war on terror," military officials have embraced psychopharmaceuticals in the effort to enable more troops to remain "mission-capable." Within the intimate conditions in which deployed military personnel work and live, soldiers learn to read for signs of psychopharmaceutical use by others, and consequently, may become accountable to those on medication in new ways. On convoys and in the barracks, up in the observation post and out in the motor pool, the presence and perceived volatility of psychopharmaceuticals can enlist non-medical military personnel into the surveillance and monitoring of medicated peers, in sites far beyond the clinic. Drawing on fieldwork with Army personnel and veterans, this article explores collective and relational aspects of psychopharmaceutical use among soldiers deployed post-9/11 in Iraq and Afghanistan. I theorize this social landscape as a form of "medication by proxy," both to play on the fluidity of the locus of medication administration and effects within the military corporate body, and to emphasize the material and spatial ways that proximity to psychopharmaceuticals pulls soldiers into relationships of care, concern and risk management. Cases presented here reveal a devolution and dispersal of biomedical psychiatric power that complicates mainstream narratives of mental health stigma in the US military.

Identifying Research Gaps and Prioritizing Psychological Health Evidence Synthesis Needs.

BACKGROUND: Evidence synthesis is key in promoting evidence-based health care, but it is resource-intense. Methods are needed to identify and prioritize evidence synthesis needs within health care systems. We describe a collaboration between an agency charged with facilitating the implementation of evidence-based research and practices across the Military Health System and a research center specializing in evidence synthesis. METHODS: Scoping searches targeted 15 sources, including the Veterans Affairs/Department of Defense Guidelines and National Defense Authorization Acts. We screened for evidence gaps in psychological health management approaches relevant to the target population. We translated gaps into potential topics for evidence maps and/or systematic reviews. Gaps amenable to evidence synthesis format provided the basis for stakeholder input. Stakeholders rated topics for their potential to inform psychological health care in the military health system. Feasibility scans determined whether topics were ready to be pursued, that is, sufficient literature exists, and duplicative efforts are avoided. RESULTS: We identified 58 intervention, 9 diagnostics, 12 outcome, 19 population, and 24 health services evidence synthesis gaps. Areas included: posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (19), suicide prevention (14), depression (9), bipolar disorder (9), substance use (24), traumatic brain injury (20), anxiety (1), and cross-cutting (14) synthesis topics. Stakeholder input helped prioritize 19 potential PTSD topics and 22 other psychological health topics. To date, 46 topics have undergone feasibility scans. We document lessons learned across clinical topics and research methods. CONCLUSION: We describe a transparent and structured approach to evidence synthesis topic selection for a health care system using scoping searches, translation into evidence synthesis format, stakeholder input, and feasibility scans.

[ISRAELI MILITARY PSYCHIATRY: CHALLENGES AND ACHIEVEMENTS].

INTRODUCTION: In this article, we have attempted to summarize the achievements and the challenges of the mental health department (MHD) of the IDF Medical Core from the past four decades, since its initiation. We approach this wide scope question through the investigation of the MHD according to the perspective of its main fields of endeavor. These domains are widely arrayed. In this paper, we chose to focus on the following: the unique training of the mental health officers; the initial psychological screening of soldiers - from recruitment to discharge; the mental health treatment of soldiers and officers, and the life-time treatment of combat post traumatic (PTSD) patients; the development of combat PTSD diagnosis, treatment and prevention; the continuous prevention of soldiers' suicides; the prevention of psychiatric hospitalizations; and the participation of the MHD in research and in the development of new treatment modalities. In the writing of this paper we relied on the accumulative experience of the MHD and the historic perspective of the last four commanders of the Mental Health Department of the IDF.

Burnout Among US Military Behavioral Health Providers.

The present study investigated the prevalence of burnout among US military behavioral health providers (BHPs) and tested a mechanism of developing burnout in a job demands-resources model. Surveys were sent to BHPs working with US military populations globally (T1). Six months after, surveys were collected again at T2. In total, 271 providers completed T1, and 116 completed T2. The job demands-resources model showed that T1 burnout self-efficacy and support predicted T2 burnout and work engagement. T1 job demands predicted T2 burnout. To provide a deeper comparison of our findings, we included a meta-analysis, which indicated burnout among BHPs working on a military installation was equivalent with other professions. Providers working with military clients within the community reported lower burnout than other professionals. Findings suggest BHPs working on a military installation might be at greater risk of developing burnout. Burnout might be preventable by increasing job resources and decreasing job demands.

Effects of sense of coherence on depressive symptoms after employment in the Japan Self-Defense Force among male young adults.

Objective　The present study aimed to explore the effects of sense of coherence (SOC) on depressive symptoms after employment in the Japan Self-Defense Force among male young adults.Methods　In April 2013, 953 new male members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF; age range: 18-24 years) participated in this study. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 20-item version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES-D), which defines a score of 16 or greater as indicating the presence of depressive symptoms. The SOC score was assessed using a 13-item version (SOC-13), in which a score of 59 or greater is as assigned to the high score group. A second survey was conducted two months later, in June of 2013. For the analysis, we selected participants without depressive symptoms at the baseline survey. The association between SOC scores at baseline and the onset of depressive symptoms was examined using a logistic regression analysis.Results　The final analysis was conducted on data on 389 new male members of the JGSDF. The logistic regression analysis showed a significant reduction in the onset of depressive symptoms among the group with high SOC scores (odds ratios: 0.59, 95% confidence interval=0.35-0.98) as compared with that observed in the group with low SOC scores.Conclusions　The present study clarified that SOC among male young adults has a buffering effect on the risk of developing depressive symptoms after employment in the Japan Self-Defense Force. Our results may be useful for improving the mental health of new employees.

The training value of working with armed forces inpatients in psychiatry.

Over the last 10 years, the UK armed forces (UKAF) have been involved in operations worldwide. Mental health in the armed forces (AF) has been the subject of considerable interest in part because of a perceived added risk of psychological distress in this population. Inpatient psychiatric services are provided through partnerships with NHS hospitals. The Cavell Centre, Peterborough's acute inpatient psychiatric unit has up to four beds for service personnel, under the care of a civilian consultant psychiatrist and his AF Foundation Year 2 doctor (F2). This was the only Ministry of Defence (MoD) inpatient unit which had a training post for an AF doctor, but the post ended in August 2014 with the closure of MoD Hospital Unit Peterborough (MDHU(P)). This article outlines the differences in civilian and AF inpatient care and discusses the training value of AF doctors managing service personnel who are psychiatric inpatients.

Accelerated resolution therapy: an innovative mental health intervention to treat post-traumatic stress disorder.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a disabling trauma and stress-related disorder that may occur after a person experiences a traumatic event, and evokes a combination of intrusion and avoidance symptoms, negative alterations in cognitions and mood, and alterations in arousal and reactivity. Accelerated resolution therapy (ART) is an emerging psychotherapy that provides fast and lasting resolution for mental health problems such as PTSD. ART has been shown to achieve a positive result in one to five sessions, typically over a 2-week period, and requires no homework, skills practice or repeated exposure to targeted events. Initial research, including one randomised control trial, has demonstrated that ART interventions can significantly reduce symptoms of psychological trauma in both civilians and US service members and veterans. These results suggest that ART be considered as either a primary treatment option or for refractory PTSD in those with a suboptimal response to endorsed first-line therapies. Conservative estimates indicate substantial potential cost savings in PTSD treatment. Despite the need for more definitive clinical trials, there is increasing interest in ART in the USA, including in the US Army. The growing positive empirical evidence is compelling, and there appears to be sufficient evidence to warrant UK researchers undertaking ART research. The armed forces offer the potential for comparative international trials. However, equally important are veterans, emergency services personnel and those subjected to violence. ART appears to also have application in other conditions, including depression, anxiety disorders, and alcohol or drug misuse. ART can potentially help personnel traumatised by the unique challenges of war and conflict zones by providing brief psychotherapy in a readily accessible and culturally competent manner. ART facilitates the provision of interventions and resolutions in theatre, thus enhancing forces' fighting capability.

[Modern state and prospects of development of medical-and-psychological support of military servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation].

The authors analysed state and prospects of medical-and-psychological support of military servicemen, which is supposed to consider as a complex of measures aimed at monitoring of professional psychological health, professional-and-psychological expertise, psychophysiological and pharmacological, correction, and medical-and-psychological rehabilitation. Organisation and maintaince of the above mentioned measures should be carried out by specialists of medical--and-psychological support groups and medical-and-psychological correction.

Battle for the mind: World War 1 and the birth of military psychiatry.

The 100th anniversary of the outbreak of World War 1 could be viewed as a tempting opportunity to acknowledge the origins of military psychiatry and the start of a journey from psychological ignorance to enlightenment. However, the psychiatric legacy of the war is ambiguous. During World War 1, a new disorder (shellshock) and a new treatment (forward psychiatry) were introduced, but the former should not be thought of as the first recognition of what is now called post-traumatic stress disorder and the latter did not offer the solution to the management of psychiatric casualties, as was subsequently claimed. For this Series paper, we researched contemporary publications, classified military reports, and casualty returns to reassess the conventional narrative about the effect of shellshock on psychiatric practice. We conclude that the expression of distress by soldiers was culturally mediated and that patients with postcombat syndromes presented with symptom clusters and causal interpretations that engaged the attention of doctors but also resonated with popular health concerns. Likewise, claims for the efficacy of forward psychiatry were inflated. The vigorous debates that arose in response to controversy about the nature of psychiatric disorders and the discussions about how these disorders should be managed remain relevant to the trauma experienced by military personnel who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. The psychiatric history of World War 1 should be thought of as an opportunity for commemoration and in terms of its contemporary relevance-not as an opportunity for self-congratulation.

Both Feet In: Maintaining an Academic Focus During the Transition from Residency to a First Military Assignment.

OBJECTIVE: Maintenance of an academic focus is difficult for military residents transitioning into their first duty assignment. METHOD: Building upon previous work on this subject, the authors present an updated and expanded junior faculty development model organized around seven overlapping domains: mentorship, scholarship, research, career planning, openness to experience, networking with other disciplines, and responsibility seeking. Using these seven domains as a platform for discussion, the authors focus on challenges facing early-career military psychiatrists and provide guidance based upon personal experience and limited applicable research. RESULTS: The authors believe that highly successful early-career psychiatrists wishing to maintain an academic focus possess a proactive attitude, obtain skillful mentoring, work well with others, and are able to adapt to new environments. CONCLUSION: Through conscious planning and goal setting, they are able to capitalize on opportunities as they become available.

Impact of an Enduring War on Two Military Psychiatry Residency Programs.

Four active duty military psychiatrists at different points in their careers were asked to reflect on the impact that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan had on their respective training in military psychiatry residency programs. The result is an inside look from four unique perspectives on how military psychiatry residency training adapted over time to prepare their graduates to practice psychiatry in a wartime setting as many graduates went to the front lines of war shortly after graduation. This article will provide an understanding of the challenges faced by these residency programs striving to meet the behavioral health needs created by war while balancing this with ongoing ACGME requirements, how those challenges were met, and the impact it had on residents.

The Psychiatrist as Leader-Teacher: Promoting Learning Beyond Residency.

In today's fast-paced, data-saturated, zero-tolerance practice environment, psychiatrists and other health care providers are expected to maintain clinical, fiscal, and administrative competence. The authors present a unique type of psychiatric leader­the leader-teacher­who incorporates teaching of these elements into day-to-day practice, enhancing lifelong learning for credentialed staff and increasing their confidence in managing complex clinical and administrative issues. Particular emphasis is placed on leader-teachers working in military environments. The article discusses the primary characteristics of this type of leader, including their tendency to (1) seek clarification, (2) distill information, (3) communicate guidance, and (4) catalogue products. The authors also address the advantages and disadvantages of being a leader-teacher and present several illustrative cases.

The Best of Both Worlds: Psychiatry Training at Combined Civilian-Military Programs.

Air Force psychiatry faces the task of training competent military psychiatrists in an era of continuing reductions. Beginning in the 1980s, the Air Force started collaborating with University partners to create hybrid training programs, civilian-military psychiatry residencies. These mergers provide stability for Air Force psychiatry training in the face of increased operational missions and uncertain military recruiting. As a result of these combined programs, Air Force psychiatry residents gain access to a broader range of civilian clinical experience and expertise while maintaining a focus on distinctive military requirements. The combining of programs opens up options for academic activities which may not have otherwise existed. Both military and civilian residents benefit from the occupational psychiatry experiences available within military clinical sites. These programs give civilian residents a chance to assist active duty members and their families and provide insight into the military "lifecycle." These collaborations benefit the universities by providing access to a larger pool of residents and faculty. The synthesis of the military and civilian programs raises some ongoing obstacles such as civilian residents' ability to gain access to military resources. The programs must also accommodate separate mechanisms for selecting residents (the National Residency Matching Program versus the Joint Selection Board for Graduate Medical Education). Military residents must also comply with military standards and requirements while maintaining the universities' standards of conduct and professionalism. Merging military training programs into university programs creates a vibrant opportunity to create exceptional military and civilian psychiatrists.

US Military Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Training Programs and Careers of Military Child Psychiatrists.

Military child and adolescent psychiatry (CAP) fellowship programs offer educational experiences universal to all civilian training programs in the USA. They also offer unique training opportunities not found in civilian CAP fellowships in order to prepare graduates to serve the needs of military families. Military-specific curricula and exposures prepare trainees to address various issues faced by military families, in contending with frequent military moves, parental deployments, and disrupted social ties. Curricula are also designed to provide the psychiatrist with a greater understanding of the rigors of military service. CAP training and subsequent assignments prepare military psychiatrists for diverse career paths in the military environment. CAP military careers often include duties in addition to treating patients. Administrative roles, academic teaching positions, as well as school consultation positions are all career options available to military CAP.

Suicide Response Guidelines for Residency Trainees: A Novel Postvention Response for the Care and Teaching of Psychiatry Residents who Encounter Suicide in Their Patients.

Suicide is an event that is almost universally encountered by psychiatrists and psychiatry residents. Because psychiatric patients are at a higher risk for completing suicide than patients of other specialties, psychiatry residents are at risk for experiencing the suicide of a patient during their training. A review of the literature shows that there is continually growing research into the negative emotional effects of patient suicides on psychiatry residents and the need for clear response protocols when a suicide occurs, also known as postvention protocols. However, there are no Graduate Medical Education requirements to specifically train psychiatry residents about this, even with a well-voiced desire by residents to receive this training. In the National Capitol Consortium Psychiatry Residency, encounters with patient suicides by residents in a time of war led us to a place in which interventions were designed and instituted to care for the caregiver, in this case focusing on psychiatry trainees. Our process and product, described here, offers an example of a systematic postvention response. It addresses aspects of what is known in the research base, combined with acknowledgement of the human response and the institutional need for a consistent and objective response.

Large-Scale Simulation for Teaching Combat and Operational Stress Control: Operation Bushmaster.

Large-scale high-fidelity casualty simulation and exposure to realistic environmental stressors in Operation Bushmaster represents a unique teaching environment that challenges military medical students to apply skills in assessment and acute management of stress responses. While this training event is specific to military medical students, the skills demonstrated could be readily applied in natural disaster or other mass civilian casualties. Schools seeking to teach mass casualty response could implement many of the elements of the curriculum outlined in this article on a smaller scale. Doing so exposes students to decision making in a disaster where the number of patients exceeds available resources and damage to infrastructure may limit their capabilities. Our experience with large-scale simulation suggests that this is an effective teaching tool.