Mission:
afterdeployment.org’s provides self-care solutions targeting post-traumatic stress, depression, and other behavioral health challenges commonly faced after a deployment.
VISION:
- To be the pre-eminent Psychological health and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Web portal serving the military community.
MISSION:
- Create and provide media-rich, Web-based, self-care solutions targeting mental health problems commonly faced following a deployment.
- Conduct research and determine best practices for delivering online mental health resources to Service Members, their Families, and veterans.
GOALS:
- Develop PH/TBI standards, processes, and review mechanisms.
- Act as the DoD resource for providing pre-clinical care to Warfighters and their Families in the months following a deployment.
- Coordinate telehealth services to educate, prevent, screen, assess, and treat common adjustment issues.
OBJECTIVES:
- Train senior leadership and behavioral health providers on best practices for treatment and prevention approaches using technology.
- Offer self-care solutions for addressing mental health needs.
- Obtain resources necessary to develop new programs on an as-needed basis.
About Us:
afterdeployment.org is a behavioral health resource supporting service members, their families, and veterans with common post-deployment challenges.
About afterdeployment.org:
Approximately 20% of OIF/OEF Service Members report adjustment problems in the months following a deployment. Limited provider availability and the stigma of being labeled with a “mental illness” are some of the barriers to seeking face-to-face care. In this light, the need for online behavioral health tools has never been greater.
afterdeployment.org is an online resource supporting Service Members, their Families, and Veterans, with common post-deployment concerns. The website provides self-care solutions targeting post-traumatic stress, depression, anger, sleep, relationship concerns, and other mental health challenges.
afterdeployment.org was developed in response to the 2006 and 2007 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) aimed at improving and augmenting military and civilian health care systems.
The website went live to the public in AUG 08 and underwent a major redesign in JUL 09. The redesign featured easier navigation tools such as a search function and site map, a virtual assistant, and social networking features such as that includes blogs and community forums. Future content will include programs targeting traumatic brain injury, warrior resilience, veterans’ issues, military sexual trauma, anxiety, family and partner issues, and smoking cessation.
About the National Center for Telehealth & Technology:
The National Center for Telehealth & Technology (T2) emerged from the military leadership’s desire to leverage the latest technologies to help Service Members suffering with Psychological Health (PH) concerns and/or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
Physically located at Fort Lewis, Washington, T2 is responsible for managing telehealth and technology programs within the Defense Centers of Excellence. T2’s core mission is to foster comprehensive programs that develop, evaluate, research, standardize, and deploy new and existing technologies for PH and TBI throughout the DoD. T2 meets this mission by serving as the principal DoD coordinator in such areas as innovative technology applications, suicide surveillance, online behavioral health tools, and telehealth.
About the Defense Centers of Excellence:
Under the leadership of Army Brig. Gen. Loree K. Sutton, special assistant to the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, DCoE was created in November 2007. DCoE is the open front door of the Department of Defense for warriors and their families needing help with PH and TBI issues, promoting the resilience, recovery and reintegration of warriors and their families.
DCoE partners with the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs and a national network of military and civilian agencies, community leaders, advocacy groups, clinical experts, and academic institutions to establish best practices and quality standards for the treatment of PH and TBI. Our work is carried out across these major areas: clinical care; education and training; prevention; research and patient, family and community outreach.
Leadership:
afterdeployment.org is a core Defense Centers of Excellence project led by the National Center for Telehealth & Technology (T2; Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA).
afterdployment is a core project within the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE PH-TBI; directed by BG Loree K. Sutton), and led at Joint Base Lewis-McChord by the National Center for Telehealth and Technology Center (T2; directed by Dr. Greg Gahm).
Greg Gahm
Director, the National Center for Telehealth and Technology (T2)
The National Center for Telehealth & Technology (T2) Director, Greg Gahm, Ph.D., is a former U.S. Army clinical neuropsychologist and researcher with over 20 years of experience in military behavioral health (BH), research, and technology. T2 is one of several centers located within the Department of Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE PH-TBI). His leadership established the Psychology Department at Madigan Army Medical Center at the forefront of innovation for the DoD. Dr. Gahm has successfully managed many multi-year funded research and development projects, including ongoing clinical trials in Virtual Reality and Prolonged Exposure Therapy. He also directs the DoD Suicide Risk Management & Surveillance Office (SRMSO), which is responsible for worldwide deployment of the DoD Suicide Event Report (DODSER), and established and previously directed the Army Behavioral Health Technology Office (ABHTO).
Dr. Gahm completed his doctorate in clinical psychology at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in neuropsychology at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
Robert Ciulla
Chief, National Center for Telehealth & Technology
Population & Prevention Programs
Dr. Robert Ciulla joined the Madigan Army Medical Center (MAMC) Psychology Department in June, 2004. Since that time, Dr. Ciulla, a clinical psychologist, has served in lead positions and been at the forefront of various initiatives. He led a team of technical developers in creating an interactive DVD directed at the deployment cycle (ARC: Army Readiness Course). He served as Chief of MAMC’s Soldier Readiness Service, and the Soldier Wellness Assessment Pilot Program. Currently, Dr. Ciulla serves as Chief of the National Center for Telehealth and Technology’s (T2) P3 Division (Population & Prevention Programs). T2 is a component directorate of the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE PH-TBI). Dr. Ciulla’s interests are particularly focused on the application of advanced technologies to address military psychological health concerns. P3 develops, coordinates, and expands population and preventative healthcare solutions, to include web-based technologies, standardized surveillance measures, mobile web applications, electronic search tools, provider-based products, and other innovative enterprise-wide resources that assist service members and their families, military leaders, and providers. Dr. Ciulla leads strategic planning efforts, establishes the vision, and is responsible for translating that vision to DoD and VA senior leadership, and to key staff and technical developers.
Partners:
Project partners for afterdeployment.org include leading behavioral health experts from the Department of Defense, Veterans Affairs, and civilian agencies.
afterdeployment.org has developed a number of collaborative relationships with experts in the development of website content and research initiatives. These include:
- The Department of Veteran Affairs
- Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC)
- Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC)
- The National Center for PTSD, Palo Alto, CA
- University of Washington
- Trauma and Neurosurgery Program, St. Michael’s Hospital, Ontario, CA
- The University of Texas
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota
- Foreign Service Institute, U.S. Department of State
- National VA Chaplain Center
Press Kit:
Obtain copies of afterdeployment.org information papers, brochures, and other media materials.
To request hard copies of press kit materials, please call afterdeployment at (253) 968-2591 or contact us.