Behavioral health activity and workload in the Iraq theater of operations

Deployed service members encounter greater stressors such as combat, separation from normal support groups, and high operational tempo in the Iraq theater of operations than in a stateside setting. Consequently, the services that behavioral health personnel provide during deployment include a wider breadth of activities than are tracked and provided in a US military medical treatment facility setting. The Combat and Operational Stress Control Workload and Activity Reporting System was developed to track the diverse behavioral health activities performed in theater. These activities during the period of January through June 2008 included psychoeducational classes (n=3,900), traumatic event interventions (n=535), command directed mental health evaluations (n=750), and casual walkabout/prevention contacts (n=80,400). These behavioral health treatment and prevention activities performed in the Iraq theater of operations are a crucial part of the medical support provided to troops in a harsh environment. These activities serve as force multipliers and help conserve the fighting strength of combat troops.