The D-GPE Program was launched this year by Congressman Bill Young (R-FL), Chair of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.  Through the intervention of APA member, Herb Goldstein PhD, who is in private practice in St. Petersburg, Florida, in June the D-GPE Program was again included in the FY 2007 House bill at $3.6 million (or $200,000 over the FY 2006 level). Unfortunately, there were no funds for the D-GPE Program in the Senate Defense bill. The final Defense Appropriations bill only included $2.9 million for the D-GPE Program. All Defense discretionary programs had significant funding reductions because the House bill, which was promoted by the President and used by Congress, was $4.1 billion below the President’s request.

The D-GPE Program established a Center for Deployment Psychology (CDP) with its primary site at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) in the Washington DC area. Instrumental in the development and initiation of the program was MAJ Vicki Ingram, PsyD of the US Army. Also involved in the bimonthly planning meetings (for about a year) and representing the tri-services, were COL Bruce Crow and COL Marshall Goby of the Army; CAPT Morgan Sammons and Dr. Erik Getka of the Navy, and LtCol Rick Campise and LtCol James Favret of the Air Force.

The Tri-Service CDP has ten regional sites at military hospitals with APA-accredited psychology internship programs. This program is open to both military and civilian psychologists, psychology residents and interns for training in the treatment of military personnel returning from war and their family members. The foci are military personnel suffering from PTSD, Acute Stress reactions and suicidal tendencies, and those with severe medical injuries (e.g., loss of limb, loss of vision, head injury, or disfigured). Training will also include the psychology of trauma and resilience and post-deployment adjustment.

An innovative training program has been designed that ranges from a 4-day Continuing Education event to a nearly 4-week intensive training course. Lectures will be provided by military and civilian experts. In addition, there will be an internet based network for the dissemination of mental health information pertinent to returning military personnel. The intent of the CDP is to reach returning military personnel in remote (underserved) communities. Planned for the second year are program evaluation efforts to determine what changes need to be made and which aspects of the training and service delivery should be replicated.

Curriculum has been developed and staff at the CDP has been hired. Dr. David Riggs, PhD, formerly of the University of Pennsylvania will head the project. You can find a APA Monitor article on the new D-GPE Program at http://www.apa.org/monitor/oct05/ppup.html.

For more information on these Education Directorate advocacy initiatives go to http://www.apa.org/ppo/education.

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