A new program has been established to train and certify medical personnel in implementing deployment mental health assessments for service members. By law, mental health assessments are required for each member of the Armed Forces deployed in connection with a contingency operation. Deployment Mental Health Assessments are completed to identify and assess post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, suicidality, and other mental health conditions, risks and concerns, before and after deployment.

Through the program, medical personnel will learn to implement effective deployment mental health screening, education, and referral. Other goals involve protecting service member privacy, respecting service member dignity, maximizing service member trust and confidence, and conveying appreciation for each service member’s service to country.

After completion of the training, clinicians will be able to describe the rationale and process for a staged mental health assessment, define the roles of trained and certified providers in the assessment process, and use key assessment tools to identify symptoms of depression, PTSD, risky drinking, and other mental health concerns. Recipients will earn a certificate indicating that they are trained and certified to administer DoD deployment mental health assessments.

This training is a collaboration of the Office of Force Health Protection & Readiness and the Deployment Health Clinical Center. For more information, please visit http://fhpr.osd.mil and http://www.pdhealth.mil.