Rhumb Lines: Warrior Care Month 3 Nov 10 - Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus has designated November as "Warrior Care
Month." Highlighting the Navy and Marine Corps commitment to quality care for our service members and their families, today's Rhumb Lines provides information and resources wounded warrior programs and Navy Medicine's dedication to quality care.
USMC Rhumb Lines: Warrior Care Month November 2010
Navy Operational Stress Control (OSC) is a Line Owned and Led program that is supported by Navy Medicine. The foundation of OSC is the Stress Continuum Model which provides Sailors, leaders, and family members a visual tool for assessing stress responses and practical steps to take to mitigate stress injuries. The goal is to move towards the Ready "Green" zone. For more information, see https://wwwa.nko.navy.mil/portal/operationstresscontrol/operationalstresscontrol
The Naval Center for Combat and Operational Stress Control (NCCOSC); created to improve the psychological health of Navy and Marine Corps forces through training, education, care system improvement and facilitating research and information distribution. NCCOSC offers specialized knowledge and intervention on psychological resilience, PTSD and an interactive website housing a library of operational stress control content and best practices. For more information see, www.nccosc.navy.mil
Project FOCUS, is Families OverComing Under Stress (FOCUS) is designed for families needing to ramp up their resiliency to best handle the demands of deployment and combat and operational stress. Through parent, child and family sessions, FOCUS helps Navy and Marine families develop strong skills in problem solving, goal setting, communication and emotional regulation. The free program is offered through the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery in collaboration with UCLA. For details and a list of FOCUS locations, see www.focusproject.org or call 310-794-2482.
Military OneSource is a DoD program offering a variety of services to service members and their families. Its many services include 12 free counseling sessions per service member or family member, per issue; sessions are conducted 24/7 in person, on the phone or online. Complete information is available at www.MilitaryOneSource.com or by calling 800-342-9647.
Making a successful transition from the war zone to the home front is the focus of Returning Warrior Workshops, (RWW) a well-received program for Navy and Marine Corps reservists. The workshops are expense-paid weekend events, set at four-star hotels, for up to 200 service members and their spouses or significant others. In addition to presentations from senior military leaders who have been in combat, there are breakout sessions where participants discuss — and help learn to resolve — stressful situations arising in deployment and reintegration. A number of support services are available at the workshops, and counselors, psychological health outreach coordinators, and chaplains also attend to assist service members in re-acclimating with their families and to civilian life.
DHCC (Deployment Health Clinical Center) TBI specific information:
http://www.pdhealth.mil/TBI.asp#PD
The core mission of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), Deployment Health Clinical Center (DHCC) is to improve deployment-related health by providing caring assistance and medical advocacy for military personnel and families with deployment-related health concerns. DHCC serves as a catalyst and resource center for the continuous improvement of deployment-related healthcare across the military healthcare system and the Center is a component of the Defense Centers of Excellence (DCoE) For Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury. This link directs you to information directly related to DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines, branch of Service specific policies and directive, and other traumatic brain injury (TBI) related information.
DVBIC (Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center) link:
http://www.dvbic.org
The mission of the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC) is to serve active duty military, their beneficiaries, and veterans with traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) through state-of-the-art clinical care, innovative clinical research initiatives and educational programs. DVBIC fulfills this mission through ongoing collaboration with military, VA and civilian health partners, local communities, families and individuals with TBI. This link provides the most up to date DoD and VA information on TBI.
Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and TBI link:
http://www.dcoe.health.mil
The mission of the Defense Centers of Excellence (DCoE) for Psychological Health (PH) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is to assess, validate, oversee and facilitate prevention, resilience, identification, treatment, outreach, rehabilitation, and reintegration programs for PH and TBI to ensure the Department of Defense meets the needs of the nation's military communities, warriors and families. This link directs you to information related to DoD PH and TBI activities related to Service members and their families, health care professionals and the media. Information on the DCoE’s resource center that provides information and resources about PH, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and TBI can also be found on this site.
Upcoming RWW Workshops
January 2010
Norfolk, Va.; San Antonio, Texas; San Francisco, Calif.
February 2010
Sarasota, Fla.
March 2010
Kansas, Mo., Denver, Colo.
April 2010
Boise, Idaho, Norfolk, Va.
May 2010
Houston, Texas, Sedona, Ariz.
June 2010
Milwaukee, Wis., Manchester, N.H.
July 2010
Savannah, Ga.
CREDO, which stands for Chaplains Religious Enrichment Development Operation, provides free weekend getaways to help service members and their families develop support resources for personal and spiritual growth. Led by chaplains and trained volunteers, CREDO participants are encouraged to define their own goals and work at their own pace. CREDO is open to all active-duty military and offers marriage enrichment retreats as well as workshops for single Sailors. It operates through seven Navy regions (Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Bremerton, Wash.; San Diego, Calif.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Norfolk, Va.; Groton, Conn.; and Naples, Italy) and Marine Corps bases Camp Pendleton, Calif.; Camp Lejeune, N.C.; and Okinawa, Japan.
Navy Fleet and Family Support Centers (FFSC) provide free counseling for individuals, couples and children. In addition to one-on-one sessions, there are workshops, classes and support groups for everything from debt management to effective parenting to IA support. www.nffsp.org
Every Navy command should have an Ombudsman, a volunteer spouse of a Sailor in the command who serves as an important communications link with family members. Ombudsmen, who are appointed by the commanding officer, provide referral sources and are advocates for family members. They are a tremendous Navy resource. For more information, click on “Ombudsman Program” at www.nffsp.org
The USMC Family Readiness Officer is a full-time paid position, assisted by volunteers, assigned to each unit. FROs can help line up counseling and, overall, provide a wealth of resources for challenges associated with deployment. The program operates under the auspices of Marine Corps Community Services, located at all Marine installations. www.usmc-mccs.org
Caregiver Occupational Stress Control (CgOSC) A Navy Medicine project designed to enhance the resilience of caregivers (including medical personnel from Corpsmen to physicians, clinically and non-clinically trained chaplains, religious program specialists, and family service professionals) to the psychological demands of exposure to wear and tear, loss, and inner conflict associated with the therapeutic use of self. Core objectives are early recognition of caregivers in distress, breaking the code of silence related to occupational stress reactions and injuries, and engaging caregivers in early help as needed to maintain mission and personal readiness. For more information, call 1-202-762-3060.
TRICARE, the civilian-care component of the Military Health System, recently launched the TRICARE Assistance Program (TRIAP), a free Web-based service for psychological health services. Available to active-duty service members and their families, TRIAP uses audiovisual telecommunications systems, such as video chat and instant messaging. Assistance counselors are on hand around-the-clock for nearly any behavioral health issue, and a referral or prior authorization is not required. For complete information, see www.tricare.mil/TRIAP.
Additional Resources can be found at:
Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NEHC) Leader's Guide for Managing Personnel in Distress Web page http://www-nmcphc.med.navy.mil/lguide/ Navy Systematic Stress Management Program, NEHC site
http://www-nehc.med.navy.mil/Healthy_Living/Psychological_Health/Stress_Management/navy_program.aspx
Navy Suicide Prevention Program web-site: www.suicide.navy.mil
Combat operational stress control/management, resiliency materials and programs designed specifically for the Navy population are accessible at
http://www-nmcphc.med.navy.mil/Healthy_Living/Psychological_Health/Stress_Management/operandcombatstress.aspx