title: Dissemination of evidence-based psychological treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder in the Veterans Health Administration.
abstract: Unlike the post-Vietnam era, effective, specialized treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) now exist, although these treatments have not been widely available in clinical settings. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is nationally disseminating 2 evidence-based psychotherapies for PTSD throughout the VA health care system. The VA has developed national initiatives to train mental health staff in the delivery of Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure therapy (PE) and has implemented a variety of strategies to promote local implementation. In this article, the authors examine VA's national CPT and PE training initiatives and report initial patient, therapist, and system-level program evaluation results. Key issues, lessons learned, and next steps for maximizing impact and sustainability are also addressed.
authors.affiliation: Office of Mental Health Services, VA Central Office, Washington, DC 20420, USA. Bradley.Karlin2@va.gov
authors.forename: Bradley E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Karlin
authors.forename: Josef I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Ruzek
authors.forename: Kathleen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Chard
authors.forename: Afsoon
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eftekhari
authors.forename: Candice M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Monson
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Hembree
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Resick
authors.forename: Edna B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Foa
mesh_terms: D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs