Government Report Publication No AFRL-SA-BR-TR-2009-0017 : Accession Number: ADA511279 (2009) JuneTeg W. McBride, Major, USAF
Air Force Materiel
Command, Brooks AFB, TX
This article is a descriptive utilization study of a United States Air Force (USAF) outpatient mental health clinic at a remote Air Base in northern Iraq over an 8-month period (Nov 07 – Jun 08). This study provides a description of the clinic and psychological services (i.e., intake and triage, hospitalization, aero-medical evacuations and follow-up care), and utilization data of military personnel seeking care. The study follows the outline of a previously published study (Chappelle & Lumley, 2006) for those interested in comparing services and utilization data between northern and southern regions of Iraq over similar lengths of time. The study also provides recommendations to USAF military mental health providers preparing to serve the mental health needs of military personnel during their deployment.Excerpt: The screening included administration of the Military Acute Concussion Evaluation (MACE) and the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM). The ANAM has been used extensively with Army soldiers following deployment (Vasterling et al., 2006). The level of acute impairment, the patient’s unique duty requirements, and the likelihood of re-exposure were considered when making return-to-duty recommendations.