Issue: PTSD Cases
Flood into the US... New Policy Needed!
According
to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, PTSD affects almost 31% of Vietnam
veterans, 10% Gulf War veteran, and 11% Afghanistan veterans. These statistics
were from 2009, however, there was an extensive scientific review done. This
review revealed that there has been a dramatic growth in mental illness after
13 years of war. There was an increased by ten fold of the soldiers returning
from war with PTSD in 2012 compared to 2004. In 2003, slightly more than
200,000 veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan were found to have service connected
PTSD. In the last year, this number surpassed 650,000. Furthermore, many of
these individuals with PTSD are said to not be receiving treatment. As
occupational therapists we must advocate for these individuals so that they can
be both diagnosed and treated.
You can find the article here: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/06/20/ptsd-va-pentagon-scientists-institute-medicine/10764991/
Service Delivery:
The service delivery to address
this issue involves both the health care system as well as the educational
system. Educating different branches of the military about the risk factors and
symptoms of PTSD can help to identify individuals who may be suffering and in
need of assistance.
The health care system is clearly
involved as the policy requires a change in the care received upon arriving
home after war. In addition, the health care system needs to ensure that they
have adequate staffing to account for the growing number of veterans they could
potentially be seeing. Statistics say that patients wait an average of eight
weeks to see a VA counselor for PTSD and 2 ½ before they are enrolled in
treatment programs. Hopefully the health care system (VA in particular) can
work on this to cut down the time veterans are waiting to receive treatment.
The health care system has the potential to change the lives of the people who
have put their lives on the line for our country.
The financial and funding systems
will also be involved in delivering this policy. The Pentagon’s expenditures on
PTSD grew from 30 million in 2004 to 300 million in 2012 and will need to
continue to rise along side the increase in PTSD prevalence. All of these
systems are involved in the service delivery of this proposed policy and cannot
be possible without the other. In order for the health care system to improve,
they will need to receive adequate funding.
Policy:
Policies exist that enable veterans
with PTSD to receive disability benefits for treatment. However, a lot of
veterans delay treatment for PTSD after retuning from war. When PTSD goes
untreated, the ability to succeed in relationships and in performance at work
or school can be affected. PTSD can also create stress related problems such as
alcohol or drug abuse, gambling, or eating disorders. With all of this in mind, action must be
taken to create a new policy to help identify PTSD as early as possible so that
veterans are able to seek treatment immediately.
The new proposed policy would
require all veterans to be screened for PTSD upon return from war overseas. In
addition, this policy would also require all veterans to be subsequently
screened for PTSD annually. This would help to identify and diagnose PTSD as
soon as they arrive back from deployment. In addition, the annual checkups
would ensure to screen for any new PTSD symptoms.
In order to make this policy
possible for all, these PTSD screenings should be free for all veterans as well
as active military members.
Data:
The data that would be needed to
support this policy is that the number of veterans coming back from war with
PTSD has increased. In addition, it may be helpful to know how many veterans
have PTSD but have delayed treatment due to not being diagnosed until long
after their return. If we are able to show that individuals are coming back
from war with PTSD and not being treated, we will demonstrate the need for this
policy of mandated PTSD screenings. There would also need to be data that the
high-quality care needed for these individuals would be accessible to them. If
this policy is able to identify more veterans with PTSD, there must be a plan
in place to treat all of these individuals. Without the ability to provide care
for these individuals, this proposed policy will not have any impact on the
treatment of PTSD in veterans.
Implications for OT:
Occupational therapy will be
affected, as it is predicted that we will begin to see more individuals coming
back from the ware with PTSD than ever before. As more individuals with PTSD
seek treatment, there may be a higher demand for occupational therapists in the
VA and areas that have a high population of veterans. PTSD symptoms can
severely impact social and occupational performance. As occupational
therapists, our aim is to assist these individuals who are experiencing
barriers to engage in meaningful roles and occupations. In addition, we work on
increasing their participation, health, and wellness. As our caseloads
involving PTSD increase, we need to ensure that we are treating our patients to
the best of our ability. These veterans have served our country and this policy
would give us a greater opportunity to honor these individuals by helping them
receive the care that they need.
Additional Resources:
https://www.aota.org/-/media/corporate/files/aboutot/professionals/whatisot/mh/facts/ptsd%20fact%20sheet.pdf
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