Combat stress casualties in Iraq. Part 2: psychiatric screening prior to aeromedical evacuation.
OBJECTIVE
Exposure to combat-related trauma is a leading cause of posttraumatic stress disorder. Deployed military mental health practitioners serve important roles in the assessment, diagnosis, and aeromedical evacuation of psychiatric patients from the combat zone.


OBJECTIVE
To review the role of military mental health professionals working with psychiatric patients at a combat hospital and aeromedical staging facility in Iraq.


METHODS
Military operating instructions, existing theoretical and research literature, and personal experiences of the authors while deployed to Iraq.


CONCLUSIONS
Psychiatric screening can help reduce risk in potentially unstable mental health patients prior to aeromedical evacuation. Civilian nurse psychotherapists and advanced practice psychiatric nurses will be needed to provide psychiatric follow-up care for the large number of military veterans returning from combat.
Peterson
Alan L
AL
Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, and Center for Clinical Health Psychology Research, Wilford Hall Medical Center, San Antonio, TX, USA. petersona3@uthscsa.edu
Baker
Monty T
MT
McCarthy
Kelly R
KR
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003130:Combat Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006772:Hospitals, Military; D006801:Humans; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008888:Military Nursing / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008890:Military Psychiatry / Q000458:organization & administration; D009720:Nurse Clinicians / Q000458:organization & administration; D024802:Nurse's Role; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000458:organization & administration; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011568:Psychiatric Nursing / Q000458:organization & administration*; D023481:Terrorism; D014187:Transportation of Patients / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology