TBI clinics in Germany to open in early 2010

TBI clinics in Germany to open in early 2010
By Seth Robson, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Monday, December 21, 2009

GRAFENWÖHR, Germany — The Army is preparing to open several multimillion-dollar facilities to treat soldiers for combat stress and traumatic brain injury at Grafenwöhr and Vilseck.

One of the facilities, a $2.5 million behavioral health clinic in Grafenwöhr, will include therapy and conference rooms along with office space. It will house “everything we are doing to help soldiers with the new emphasis on Army mental health — all these issues like depression and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder),” U.S. Army Garrison Grafenwöhr commander Col. Nils “Chris” Sorenson said earlier this year.

The clinic, set to open in mid-February, will have an 11-member staff including psychiatrists, psychologists, behavioral health social workers and a behavioral health technician, Grafenwöhr Health Clinic commander Lt. Col. Kendra Whyatt said.

In May, Sorenson urged members of his 30,000-strong military community to seek professional help for problems such as grief, depression, anger and frustration.

He cited the effects of the fatal shooting of five U.S. soldiers — allegedly by another U.S. soldier — on May 11 at a combat stress treatment center at Camp Liberty, Iraq. Two of the victims were members of Grafenwöhr’s 172nd Infantry Brigade.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=66799