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Symposium Report June 18 2010

On May 11, 2010 the 101st Airborne of Fort Campbell, the NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Tennessee and NPT (Nashville Public Television) hosted a symposium that sought to help warriors, their families and communities overcome personal and cultural barriers preventing them from receiving mental health support . The symposium brought to the forefront the effects of war trauma on active duty personnel, National Guard, discharged veterans, families and communities which emanated from deployment, action in theatre, reintegration issues and other issues faced regardless of deployment history.

With unprecedented access Fort Campbell opened its doors to mental health providers, soldiers, their families and community members in a collaborative effort too examine current resources and explore solutions for unmet needs. Throughout this report you can click on any bold-typed, underlined phrase to be linked to more information.

The Goal

Healing the Hidden Wounds is in its third year. This year the goal was to recognize, acknowledge and promote treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the effects of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and stem the alarming rise in suicides for military personnel returning from areas of live combat and conflict.  As the “forerunners in dealing with warrior recovery” Ft. Campbell is uniquely poised to offer leading edge information based on their experiences in the treatment of PTSD and TBI and the state of the art equipment being used at their facilities. While military personnel were the immediate focus, the conference also sought to positively impact the family members whose daily lives are affected with each deployment, reintegration and the effects of PTSD and TBI. The collaboration also sought to mitigate the differences in military and civilian cultures helping each to gain an understanding of language, systems and avenues of the outcomes for the people involved. 

Keynote Speakers

Brigadier General Dr. Richard W. Thomas an Army physician serving as the current Assistant Surgeon General (Force Projection), Office of the Surgeon General served as the keynote speaker on busting the stigma of warriors seeking help. He addressed the stigma in military culture that perceives seeking mental health treatment as a sign of weakness.  Many of BG Thomas’s remarks focused specifically on the effects of TBI on soldiers and their families.

 Colonel Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, MD, MPH is the Medical Director of the Army Medical Department’s Office of Strategic Communications. She brings a unique public health approach to the management of disaster and combat mental health issues. Col Ritchie addressed her remarks to the effects of deployment, combat and reintegration on soldiers and their families. 

Featured Speakers & Panelists

Throughout the course of the day various speakers provider insight and shared perceptions in introductory speeches and panel presentations. Click on each name for more information.

Introductions & Insights:

Joe Varney, Fort Campbell Suicide Prevention Program Manager 

Lt Col (Ret) Kenny Allred,  Chairman NAMI Tennessee Veterans Council                                                  

Luann F Engle, LCSW Regional Manager, 3B South Central Regional Office Vet Center

CSM Scott C. Schroeder, CSM, 101st Airborne Div  (AASLT) Fort Campbell

Stigma Panelists:

Dr Stan Frager, Ph.D University of Louisville             

Dr (MAJ) Sebastian Schnellbacher, Division Psychiatrist,

101st Airborne Div  (AASLT) Fort Campbell                                    

Dr Chris Bonner, Ph.D. Nashville Vet Center                                         

Noel Riley Philpo, LCSW Tennessee National Guard

Family Panelists:

Dr (CPT) Joseph E. Wise, Soldier Readiness Resiliency Service, BACH                                                                                                        

Mrs. Melissa Townsend, 101st Div Senior Spouse

Ms Donnella Prentice, Director, Army Marriage Project Survey, University of Denver

Rev Jodi McCullah, APSU Wesley Foundation                                                              

Scott Lawrence, NP Centerstone

Closing Remarks

Brigadier General Warren E. Phipps, Deputy Commanding General (Support) , 101st Airborne Division (Air  Assault) provided closing remarks. Focusing on command group’s commitment to the symposium and to the mental health of soldiers, Brigadier General Phipps closed the symposium stating that soldiers must be “sound in body, mind and spirit.”  

Breakout Group Outcomes

The interactive working sessions of the symposium gave voice to the frustrations, concerns, resources and proposed solutions to questions posed to attendees. The morning breakout session followed a keynote address by Brigadier General Dr. Richard Thomas and a panelist discussion on Stigma Busting. Following the lunch break attendees listened to a keynote address by Colonel Dr. Elspeth Cameron Ritchie on Military Family Mental Health Issues. Following each of the keynotes and panels, symposium attendees broke into ten groups and engaged in a *Modified Nominal Group Technique led by facilitators and notated by recorders. As part of the process individual group members each voiced their answers to the questions presented. Answers were counted as they were collated.  The top answer to each question chosen by consensus of each group was presented to the group at large. Those answers appear below. Additional popular responses to each question can be reviewed by clicking on the links in blue. 

1. What will convince warriors that getting help is a sign of strength and mental health treatment works?

Consensus: Make mental health screenings mandatory on a semi-annual basis by someone who can analyze their problems

Convincing Warriors

2. What am I doing as an individual or agency to engage military personnel or veterans in getting mental health or substance abuse treatment?

Consensus: Getting training, engaging in continuing education, trying to learn as much as possible about where and how to get help for myself, my family member or my client.

What Am I Doing

3. What are the roadblocks?

Consensus: Military culture: bulletproof culture; a fear of being singled out; losing out on promotions; downplaying problems; lack of understanding of TBI.

Roadblocks

4. How am I or my agency getting around them [roadblocks]?

Consensus: Educating ourselves, our staff, families and command on the challenges, issues, services and resources facing and available to soldiers, veterans and their families.

Around Roadblocks

5. What needs to be done?

Consensus: Need more Peer Support: more vet to vet groups, teach the "buddy" warning signs and how to help, groups for young OEF/OIF vets

What To Do

6. What are the mental health needs of military families?

Consensus: Counseling is needed for the deployment and reintegration of families.

MH Needs for Families

7.What are the mental health needs of veterans' families?

Consensus: Counseling is needed for the deployment and reintegration of families.

Veterans Families’ Needs

8. What are the mental health needs of National Guard and Reservists?

Consensus: Need more services and local services for reservists and their families.

Guard Reservist Family Needs

9. What are the barriers to meeting family mental health needs?

Consensus: Health coverage is needed for families to cover costs.

Barriers to Family MH Needs

10. What needs to be done [to overcome barriers to getting mental health treatment]?

Consensus: Need universal health coverage - Need providers that accept Tri-Care.

Overcoming Barriers

11. What needs to be done for families?

Consensus: Have families involved in solutions that impact them

To Be Done for Families

12. What services are available?

Resources: Current Community and military mental health providers.

13. Available Services

Primary Outcome

• A goal to establish a central portral of information on mental health services for soldiers, their families and communities is being established. NAMI Tennessee is circulating a web based survey of available services to mental health providers both military and civilian; veterans’ networks and peer support groups; faith based initiatives, colleges and universities.The information will appear on the NAMI Tennessee's Veterans' Resources page as it is gathered, reviewed and formatted.
• Please contact NAMI Tennessee to participate in the survey by clicking here.
• Primary Recommendation of the Stigma Session: Mandatory semi-annual mental screenings for PTSD included with physical health screenings came out of concern for these issues.
• Primary Recommendation of the Family Mental Health Panel: An easily accessible single web based portal of information to be a receptacle of all this information.
• Military cultural and Chain of Command issues came up consistently in keynote addresses, panelist discussions and in the breakout groups.
• The warrior culture was a frequently mentioned barrier to receiving assistance. While the military has sought to address the issue, soldiers still felt “singled out”, not heard, fearful of reprisals, concerned about career impact.
• The military faces the issue of the need for a force that is combat ready and the reality that some soldiers may no longer be able to serve due to serious mental health issues.
• The most consistent request heard throughout the symposium was the request for information. It was requested most often in the form of subject education (PTSD, TBI) and resource knowledge.
• Civilian providers asked about base services and base providers wanted to know the availability of civilian support.
• Those serving National Guard and discharged veterans wanted to know what the closest services were and their eligibility for any services on base.

• As a result of the surveys in the coming months NAMI Tennessee will build a directory of available services and will post it on the Veterans Services portion of its website www.namitn.org . As is its practice the agency will seek to collaborate in the building of the directory. The process is expecting to proceed in stages with the first stage being the dissemination and collection of the services available surveys.

Statistics of Healing the Hidden Wounds

• 187 Registrants, 134 Attendees (catastrophic flooding hit middle Tennessee one week previous to event)
• Attendees came from Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Texas, Washington, D. C., Indiana, Nebraska and Maryland
• Six universities from either Kentucky or Tennessee had representatives in attendance.
• In addition to US Army and VA center attendees the event was attended by a sexual assault prevention agency, the American Red Cross, Nashville school systems, several behavioral health organizations and two hospitals serving veterans and those with Traumatic brain injuries, veteran peer support groups and mental health advocacy groups from two states.

CEU’s

The University of Tennessee in Knoxville stepped in to offer 1 CEU for the

event. Twenty three participants took advantage of the opportunity.

The planning committee will try to establish CEU’s for the next symposium

and will advertise them.

Healing the Hidden Wounds 2011

Look for the 4th Annual Healing the Hidden Wounds symposium in March 2011. The focus of the 2011 symposium will be the National Guard. If you would like to receive an invitation to Healing the Hidden Wounds 2011 please click the button for more information.

Key Personnel

Suicide Prevention Program Manager Joe Varney at the Army Substance Abuse Program at Fort Campbell was integral in staging this year’s event at Fort Campbell. He and Suicide Prevention Program Specialist Tiffany Shaw paved the way for access onto to the base, into the Warrior Recovery Unit and to the Soldier Experience Tour, managed the logistics involved in doing so and participated in the planning and implementation of the event. Sita Diehl, Executive Director of NAMI Tennessee, along with Lt Col (Ret) Kenny Allred, Chairman of NAMI Tennessee’s Veteran Council, Carl Groendes, NAMI Tennessee’s Vista Veterans Outreach and Robin Nobling, NAMI Tennessee’s Communication Coordinator, coordinated team meetings, led symposium development, managed registration, organized group breakout sessions and coordinated exhibitors. Kathy Edson of Nashville Public Television procured and distributed the grant that allowed the event to remain without cost to the attendees. Kathy also managed the advertising and public relations for the event and assisted in planning and logistics. Steve Kovnesky of the Veterans Administration/Tennessee Valley Health System (TVHS) participated in symposium planning, the procurement of speakers and small group facilitation and logistics. Jodi McCullah of the APSU and the Lazarus Project participated in symposium planning and the procurement of speakers, panel presentation and logistics.

Our breakout groups would not have existed without the assistance of the following Facilitators and Recorders and additional volunteers:

Facilitators: Matt Hardy, Centerstone; Mitch Jefferson, VA/TVHS; Anthony Saluzzo, Ft. Campbell; Whitney Simmons, VA/TVHS; Scott Vink, VA/TVHS; Roger Stewart, NAMI TN; Sita Diehl NAMI TN; Tania Deal, Ft.  Campbell; Diana Reynolds, Ft Campbell; Jo Huber, Ft Campbell

Recorders: Annie Livingston Garrett, NAMI TN; Brenda Stacey Scott, NAMI TN; Kathy Edson, NPT; Cathy Epperson, NAMI KY; and the individuals who stepped forward to assist us

Additional Volunteers: Debi Wheatley, NAMI TN; Marlie Marion, NAMI TN; Heide Schlack, NAMI TN; Judy Johnson, NAMI TN

Many thanks to everyone whose participation made Healing the Hidden Wounds 2010 possible. Please join us in the work going forward to the benefit of soldiers, their families and communities.

Thank You to our Exhibitors who shared

information on the services they offer

We would like to acknowledge the following sponsors

whose support made Healing the Hidden Wounds 2010

a reality for all to share