Working to share post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)research and expertise with Ukraine’s active duty psychologists, psychiatrists and veterans’ services mental health doctors, a six-member delegation from the United States will be in Kyiv May 28-31, 2024 to present a best practices seminar designed to improve outcomes for the country’s military veterans. Estimates from the Ministry of Veterans Affairs places the total number of veterans by the end of Ukraine’s conflict with Russia at five million even though the country is challenged to serve its current military veterans population right now.
PTSD impacts not only active duty but their families and communities. Our hope is that by presenting this new conference, right in Kyiv, we can expedite the healing process for Ukraine and its people.”- Lena Denman, president of the Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation
Sponsored by the Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation under the direction of Lena Denman, president, with funding from the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), the six delegation members include PTSD researchers and experts:
Israel Liberzon, MD, is the department head of Texas A&M College of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry. A clinician and researcher, Liberzon has a wealth of experience in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD),comorbidity of depression and anxiety, neurobiology of trauma and stress related disorders, and neuroanatomy and neuroimaging of emotions. Since the 1980s, Liberzon has served in multiple roles at the University of Michigan and Veterans Administration Ann Arbor Medical Center, where he founded a PTSD and neuroimaging research program.
Dr. Greg Muller is an assistant professor and licensed psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Dell Medical School of the University of Texas at Austin. His current roles also include work as a PE trainer and supervisor on the D43 Ukraine Adult Program.
Dr. Tetiana Nickelsen of Texas A&M University started her professional career in Ukraine. For over 15 years she has worked to improve health care delivery and access for vulnerable populations in Ukraine. She led an educational initiative to train Ukrainian physicians in the use of substitution therapy and pain control. After moving to US in 2018, she dedicated her professional career to studying PTSD neurobiological mechanisms and treatment, as well as implementation of trauma treatment.
Sessions will focus on prolonged exposure, PTSD pathophysiology, pharmacological treatment of PTSD and implementational science.
In a recent report, “The Importance of Aiding Ukrainian Veterans”, Lena Denman, president of the Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation, previewed information that will help shape conference discussions.
Ukraine faces a serious shortage of medical professionals. Many Ukrainian doctors and scientists who were best equipped to assist in the rehabilitation of Ukrainian veterans have left the country.
A WHO report estimates there is one psychologist in Ukraine for every 100,000 people. By contrast, the average number of psychologists per 100,000 people is 33.9 in the U.S. and 48.7 in France.
Part of the Ukrainian military’s attempts to address the country’s mental health crisis is through drug trials.
In a survey of 593 Ukrainian veterans, only 48.4% of respondents knew they had access, through the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, to services to help them transition to civilian life.
Just as the United States uses Ukraine as a proving ground for weapons systems, it can benefit from understanding the dynamics of rehabilitating and reintegrating a large veteran population into society so the country can be prepared in the event of facing a near-peer adversary such as Russia or China.
“Post-traumatic stress disorder’s impact is felt not only by active duty military personnel but their families and communities back home,” said Lena Denman, president of the Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation. “It is incredibly essential for experts in the field to engage in knowledge sharing that helps not only the people of Ukraine and the region, but citizens of any country that may experience something similar.”
“My years of visits to Ukraine have shown me that the country’s infrastructure for serving the medical and mental health needs of hospitalized Ukrainian soldiers and veterans is in desperate need of an overhaul and support,” Denman stated. “The ACHF has delivered truckloads of medical supplies and advocated for U.S. support. Our hope is that by presenting this new conference, right in Kyiv, we can expedite the healing process for Ukraine and its people.”
Ms. Denman is available for interviews to discuss her experiences in Ukraine and the need for additional Western support.
The Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation, founded in 2016, provides medical supplies for hospitals in Kyiv and helps facilitate physician training and research programs between U.S. and Ukrainian physicians. It continues the work of the late Arlene Campbell who in 1989 started a not-for-profit agency called Russian Relief, one goal of which was to supply medical equipment and supplies to Ukrainians. The current foundation memorializes Ms. Campbell. For more information visit https://arlenecampbell.org.
Courtesy of Dan Curran, EIN Presswire
The Ukrainian Club TAMU is closely affiliated and supports Arlene Campbell Humanitarian Foundation (ACHF). For more information and updates on the Ukrainian Club, follow them on Instagram @uaclub.tamu or Facebook at Ukrainian Club TAMU.
