Implementation Of A Community Psychological Treatment Program For Military Families: Project Homefront

Abstract

Demand for psychological services by the U.S. military population has outpaced supply in recent years. Despite record growth within the government health care systems in this area, roughly half of veterans have sought any healthcare within the Veterans Health Administration system. Civilian health care systems are often filling the void, particularly for military family members. This study used an implementation science approach to describe a civilian psychological treatment program for active duty service members (primarily Army) and their family members. Project Homefront provided free, unlimited and confidential mental health care in 2008-2012 – a time of rising suicide rates throughout the U.S. military. The program was grant funded. A considerable amount of work went into educating grant agencies and the public, while maintaining good working relationships with leadership on Fort Hood, in Central Texas. Fear of stigma was reduced with the use of community-based psychological care that maintained confidential patient records within a private electronic health record. Programmatic offerings evolved to accommodate the needs of those walking through the door: initially, mostly spouses, then later, when deployed units returned, mostly soldiers. A number of recommendations for how to coordinate fundraising, manage administrative infrastructure and reach out to the military community as a private health care entity are discussed