File:Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury Care (IA 08671C3STATEMENT7Feb08HACDNavyBUMEDVADMRobinsonPSTDTBIFinal2).pdf

Statement of Vice Admiral Adam M. Robinson, USN, MC, Surgeon General of the Navy Before the Subcommittee on Defense of the House Appropriations Committee.

"The mental health task force’s recommendations were aimed at accomplishing the following four major tasks:
a. Build a culture of support for psychological health.
b. Ensure a full continuum of excellent care for service members and their families.
c. Provide sufficient resources for mental health services and allocate them according to requirements, and
d. Empower leadership to establish advocacy for a culture of psychological health.
Navy Medicine has taken significant steps to address the task force’s recommendations and our ability to do so has been accelerated by the additional funds that were appropriated as part of the fiscal year 2007 appropriations bill.

Beginning in 2006, Navy Medicine established Deployment Health Clinics (DHCs) to serve as non-stigmatizing portals of entry in high fleet and Marine Corps concentration areas and augment primary care services offered at the military treatment facilities or in garrison. Staffed by primary care providers and mental health teams, they are designed to provide care for Marines and Sailors who identify mental health concerns on the Post Deployment Health Assessment and Reassessment but also provide treatment for other service members. We now have 17 such clinics, up from 14 since last year. Through January 2008, DHCs had more than 46,431 visits, approximately 28 percent of which were for mental health issues.

Delays in seeking mental health services increase the risks of developing mental illness and exacerbating physiological symptoms. These delays can have a negative impact on a service member’s career. As a result, we remain committed to reducing stigma as a barrier to ensuring service members receive full and timely treatment following their return from deployment. Of particular interest is the recognition and treatment of mental health conditions such as PTSD and other related disorders. At the Navy’s Bureau of Medicine and Surgery we established the position for a “Combat and Operational Stress Control Consultant”. This individual, a combat experienced psychiatrist and preventive medicine/operational medicine specialist, reported in December 2006. Dedicated to addressing mental health stigma, training for combat stress control, and the development of non-stigmatizing care for returning deployers and support services for Navy caregivers, this individual also serves as the Director of Deployment Health. He and his staff oversee Post Deployment Reassessment (inclusive of Deployment Health Centers), Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment, Traumatic Brain Injury, and a newly created position for Psychological Health Outreach for Reserve Component Sailors."