Clinical trial NCT01330888: Exploring Deployment Stress and Reintegration in Army National Guard Chaplains
Official title: Exploring Deployment Stress and Reintegration in Army National Guard Chaplains
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Conditions: Combat Stress Disorder
Keywords: war
religion
caregiver
combat stress disorder
Lead sponsor: VA Office of Research and Development
Sponsor class: FED
First posted: 2011-04-07
Enrollment: 102
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 65
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Time perspective: CROSS_SECTIONAL
Sampling method: NON_PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: ARNG Chaplains who have ever/never been deployed to OEF/OIF combat theaters

Brief summary: The purpose of this 2-year pilot study is to explore the impact of deployment on the psychosocial and health characteristics and reintegration of Military Chaplains, specifically those of the Army National Guard (ARNG). This pilot will serve as the foundation for subsequent investigations of chaplains from multiple branches of the military. In addition to spiritual and religious support, Military Chaplains play a key role in the behavioral health of deployed service-members, routinely participating in suicide prevention training, conducting critical event debriefing, and identifying service-members at risk for combat and operational stress reactions1. A high risk group for exposure to trauma2, Military Chaplains have suffered brain injuries, gunshot wounds and blast injuries in OEF/OIF Theater3. In addition, many report combat related stress issues such as compassion fatigue, PTSD, and reintegration issues3. While the traumatic experiences of OEF/OIF deployed troops have been well documented, the effects on military chaplains caring for these service-members have received little attention in the research to date. We are collaborating with the National Guard Chaplain Corps Leadership on this program of research. The aims of this 2-year pilot cross-sectional study focus on describing and exploring deployment and its impact on psychosocial, health characteristics and reintegration of ARNG chaplains using a mixed method approach (web-based survey, in-depth interviews, social network analysis).


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* current, active members of ARNG during timeframe of OIF/OEF/OND
* Chaplains
* able to be contacted by email for survey explanation and participation
* consent to participate in interview or network questionnaire

Exclusion Criteria:

* not current, active members of ARNG during timeframe of OIF/OEF/OND
* not Chaplains
* not able to be contacted by email for survey explanation and participation
* do not consent to participate in interview or network questionnaire

Primary outcomes:
measure: observational
timeFrame: 2 years
Secondary outcomes:
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Tampa
country: United States
facility: James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital
state: Florida
Study officials:
affiliation: James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital
name: Karen Besterman-Dahan, PhD MA BS
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Besterman-Dahan K, Barnett S, Hickling E, Elnitsky C, Lind J, Skvoretz J, Antinori N. Bearing the burden: deployment stress among army national guard chaplains. J Health Care Chaplain. 2012;18(3-4):151-68. doi: 10.1080/08854726.2012.723538.
citation: Besterman-Dahan K, Gibbons SW, Barnett SD, Hickling EJ. The role of military chaplains in mental health care of the deployed service member. Mil Med. 2012 Sep;177(9):1028-33. doi: 10.7205/milmed-d-12-00071.