Embedded Mental Health in the United States Marine Corps

Despite the rich history and progression of mental health assets and their utilization within the Marine Corps, the implementation of these assets has been varied and inconsistent. This article strives to take the lessons learned from the past and improve on them. The goal is to develop a consistent program focused on resiliency and retention, and propose an integrated organized structure across all the Marine Expeditionary Forces (MEF).

Review of the literature, current practices, and future recommendations.

This article demonstrates that continuing to utilize mental health resources at the Regimental level with a focus on community mental health principles rather than the medical model allows for proximity to members and leadership of their primary command, immediate access to them as their Special Staff Officer, the ability to set the expectation of recovery, resiliency, and readiness, and the capability to implement simple principles of nonmedical recuperation and advisement.

Improving on the organizational structure of mental health in the Marine Corps by placing a mental health Special Staff Officer at the MEF level and focusing on the principles of community mental health will shift the focus back to the primary and secondary prevention care efforts across all levels of the Marine Corps and provide clinical and leadership oversight as it relates to the philosophy, role, and implementation of organic mental health Officers.