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" Treatment needs, barriers, and preferences of partners of veterans with PTSD "
Christopher S. Polizzi
C. S. Rosen
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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53848
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| Doc. No
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TL23802
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| Call number
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3274097
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| Main Entry
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Christopher S. Polizzi
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| Title & Author
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Treatment needs, barriers, and preferences of partners of veterans with PTSD\ Christopher S. Polizzi
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| College
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Pacific Graduate School of Psychology
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| Date
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2007
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| Degree
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Psy.D.
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| student score
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2007
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| Page No
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125
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| Abstract
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Health care issues related to the treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) have become vital to a much larger population than existed prior to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Partners and spouses of veterans diagnosed with PTSD experience significant distress as caregivers ranging from physical and emotional mistreatment to feelings of isolation and poor psychological adjustment. Yet, only a small portion of spouses and veterans utilize couples and families counseling at Veterans Affairs clinics that offer it. To better understand what partners of veterans need and want in the form of treatment and resources, qualitative analyses of open-ended telephone interviews were conducted with eight Vietnam and Korean War veterans and their spouses. Remer and Ferguson’s theory of secondary traumatic stress (STS) was applicable to the experiences of veteran couples and was used to frame the findings. Spouses reported experiencing high levels of stress but had developed some effective coping strategies. Outreach efforts are needed to reach families destroyed by problems secondary to PTSD such as domestic violence, divorce, substance abuse, incarceration, and homelessness. Partners and spouses also reported a need for continuing information to identify PTSD at the onset, and to better understand it as it changed over time. They requested help coping with their veteran’s anger and depression, reducing their own stress, and increasing social activities to ease their isolation. An after-hours telephone hotline was enthusiastically endorsed by both spouses and veterans to overcome some of the barriers they reported. Spouses and veterans were often willing to share their coping strategies and assist their counterparts returning from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan by telephone or in casual meetings with other couples. Mental illness stigma and fear of its impact on career advancement were common barriers to seeking treatment. The impact of practical issues, such as transportation, cost, and appointment hours, on accessing services varied, and depended on geographic location and socioeconomic status. Potential advantages of supporting partners, such as maintaining healthy families, and the importance of their role as an extension of the veteran’s treatment team were discussed.
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| Subject
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Health and environmental sciences; Psychology; Partners; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Treatment needs; Veterans; Mental health; Psychotherapy; 0347:Mental health; 0622:Psychotherapy
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| Added Entry
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C. S. Rosen
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Pacific Graduate School of Psychology
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