Evaluation capacity building in an integrative, clinical PTSD treatment program

The need for evaluation capacity-building (ECB) in integrative medicine is apparent in light of the proliferation of newly developed, yet untested programs.  Patients seek evidence in order to make health care decisions. Program managers need data for decision-making about program expansion, remission, and replication. The Warrior Combat Stress Reset Program, an innovative PTSD treatment program that provides integrative care, began operating in 2008 at Ft. Hood, Texas.  During a three-week, outpatient treatment period, soldiers participate in activities which include traditional approaches (i.e., group and individual counseling, coping skills training) and alternative approaches (i.e., self-regulation and biofeedback, acupuncture, Reiki, yoga, therapeutic massage), as well as eight weeks of follow-up treatment. The program has treated over 700 soldiers on whom data has been systematically collected, but program staff lack sufficient knowledge, skills, and competencies for analysis or sustainability of evaluation efforts. This project addresses these deficiencies by offering ECB activities to program staff following a capabilities and needs assessment. The ECB solutions involved creating an improved database that included validation and summary statistics, designing and implementing an online data collection procedure for follow-up data collection, adding a follow-up time point, and training and mentoring staff on program evaluation methodology. Based on this research, program directors, providers, and staff will gain a better understanding of how an ECB intervention can be implemented in a complex cultural and political environment and its effectiveness assessed. Preskill and Boyle’s multi-disciplinary ECB model will be utilized because it emphasizes context which is paramount in military healthcare settings.