Page 56 - Biobehavioral Resilence to Stress

Resilience and Military Psychiatry 33

evacuated combat stress casualties rarely return to their units, those who
experience signifi cant difficulties are evacuated when military mental health

care professionals recognize that it is necessary and appropriate to do so.
Treatment interventions are targeted exclusively at military personnel
who demonstrate symptoms of behavioral disorders, poor coping skills,
or a history of exposure to trauma, family or social dysfunction, or other

difficulties that make it difficult to handle stress. Treatment interventions

may include medication management, individual therapy, or group therapy.
When adequate treatment can be provided at the “outpatient” level, clinicians
must determine what type and extent of intervention can be safely and
effectively administered in the field within the member’s unit. Certainly, the

need for “inpatient” care generally necessitates evacuation from the fi eld of
combat.
Deployment Cycle Support

Predeployment Support

Prior to deployment, service members and their families partake in a compre-
hensive program that aims to foster resilience to the stress of separation. U.S.
soldiers are monitored annually for their readiness to deploy. Predeployment
screening for readiness (soldier readiness process [SRP]) reviews the status

of the service member’s financial, legal, medical, dental, and family aff airs
with respect to deployment readiness. It is considered critical to identify and
resolve early any issues that may serve as stressors or impediments during
deployment.
Deployable units are typically supported by a family readiness group
(FRG), which serves as an ongoing, formalized support network for the

families of unit personnel. FRGs are often structured around a “chain of
concern” in that more experienced spouses provide leadership to support
younger, less experienced military families. The FRG is a critical resource

because it fosters a sense of hardiness and independence during some pro-
longed periods of time when service members are unavailable to their families.
FRGs frequently establish childcare networks, support groups, workshops,
and newsletters to share information about their unit’s deployment and
to make families aware of opportunities and events that may promote an
ongoing sense of connectedness and involvement while service members are
away from home.
Service members themselves also receive information and support aimed
at helping them to cope with separation from loved ones. CSC units at the bri-
gade, division, and corps levels provide numerous services designed to counter
the negative eff ects of operational stress and thereby improve unit readiness.

For example, CSC units offer deployment cycle support briefi ngs, which

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