Reducing the Burden of Mental Illness in Military Veterans

Abstract

Clinical psychology as a profession owes much to the recognition of the psychosocial needs of servicemen and women returning from World War II and the Korean conflict. The current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan represent another opportunity for substantial advancements in assessment and treatment practices. Stimulated by the prescient article by Kazdin and Blase (2011), we briefly describe innovations in evidence-based practices currently being implemented in the Veterans Health Administration to best serve the more than 2 million returning servicemen and women. The largest healthcare system in the nation, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs began a wide range of innovations early this century to include dissemination of evidence-based mental health treatments, the use of anonymous Internet-based interventions to reach large numbers of military personnel who may not otherwise present for mental health service, the use of videoconferencing to deliver assessment and treatment to individuals residing in remote locations, and the use of laypersons (e.g., peers) for treatment delivery. In addition to describing the strengths of these efforts to reduce mental health burden, we also discuss persisting barriers and limitations of these innovative efforts within this system of healthcare.