TY - JOUR
T1 - Why we need military psychiatrists
T2 - 20th century U.S. Military psychiatry and proposal for the future
AU - Ireland, Robert Roy
AU - Bostwick, John Michael
PY - 1997/4
Y1 - 1997/4
N2 - Military psychiatrists perform distinct military functions that contribute substantially to effective troop performance and cohesion. Three historic approaches to combat psychiatry and the limitations of these approaches are described. A new model is proposed in which military psychiatrists, during war, treat psychiatric casualties by combining lessons learned from past wars with current concepts of deployed medical operations and clinical psychiatry. In peacetime, through their pro-active undertakings, military psychiatrists sustain capabilities to perform combat operations and operations other than war. And finally, military psychiatrists are situated best to deal with specific cross-cultural factors that affect military life. Thus, military psychiatry is a unique mission requiring specialized skills and perspectives. It is optimally practiced by those committed to military life and supportive of its missions.
AB - Military psychiatrists perform distinct military functions that contribute substantially to effective troop performance and cohesion. Three historic approaches to combat psychiatry and the limitations of these approaches are described. A new model is proposed in which military psychiatrists, during war, treat psychiatric casualties by combining lessons learned from past wars with current concepts of deployed medical operations and clinical psychiatry. In peacetime, through their pro-active undertakings, military psychiatrists sustain capabilities to perform combat operations and operations other than war. And finally, military psychiatrists are situated best to deal with specific cross-cultural factors that affect military life. Thus, military psychiatry is a unique mission requiring specialized skills and perspectives. It is optimally practiced by those committed to military life and supportive of its missions.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0030897840&partnerID=8YFLogxK
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U2 - 10.1093/milmed/162.4.278
DO - 10.1093/milmed/162.4.278
M3 - Review article
C2 - 9110555
AN - SCOPUS:0030897840
SN - 0026-4075
VL - 162
SP - 278
EP - 282
JO - Military medicine
JF - Military medicine
IS - 4
ER -