title: Health service utilization before and after evidence-based treatment for PTSD.
abstract: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with functional impairment, co-occurring diagnoses, and increased health care utilization. Associated high demand for health care services is an important contributor to the large public-health cost of PTSD. Treatments incorporating exposure therapy are efficacious in ameliorating or eliminating PTSD symptoms. Accordingly, the Veterans Health Administration has made significant investments toward nationwide dissemination of a manualized exposure therapy protocol, prolonged exposure (PE). PE is effective with veterans; however, the relationship between PE and mental health service utilization is unknown. The current study investigates PE as it relates to actual tracked mental health service utilization in an urban VA medical center. A sample of 60 veterans with a diagnosis of PTSD was used to examine mental health service utilization in the 12-months prior to and 12-months after being offered PE. Hierarchical Linear Models and traditional repeated-measures ANOVA were used to estimate R²- and d-type effect sizes for service utilization. Associated estimated cost saving are reported. PE was associated with large reductions in symptoms and diagnosis remission. Treatment was also associated with statistically significant, large reductions in mental health service utilization for veterans who completed treatment. Findings suggest that expanding access to PE can increase access to mental health services in general by decreasing ongoing demand for specialty care clinical services.
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Service Line, Ralph H. Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
authors.forename: Peter W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Tuerk
authors.forename: Bethany
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wangelin
authors.forename: Sheila A M
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Rauch
authors.forename: Clara E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Dismuke
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoder
authors.forename: Hugh
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Myrick
authors.forename: Afsoon
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eftekhari
authors.forename: Ron
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Acierno
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D007171:Implosive Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult