| The Rev. Connie Madden challenges
chaplains to be ready to care for American soldiers
returning from Iraq.
Will We
Be Ready?
The nurse sighed in frustration. “This patient
is really giving me trouble. He doesn’t trust
anything the doctors are doing. He refuses to
stay still and pulls out the lines. He’s afraid
of sleeping pills. Frankly, I’m worn out from
his hostility.”
We were already experiencing at our hospital
in Newport News, Virginia, the beginning effects
of "Operation Enduring Freedom" on
the local veteran population. When the Hampton
Roads Chaplains’ Association met this past month,
the Veteran’s Hospital chaplain reminded us to
be prepared for the thousands of returning military
who would experience posttraumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) in the months and years to come.
Most of us were trained in the terminology of
this anxiety disorder and had seen its power
on patients. We knew that any tragic event such
as abuse, rape, murder, homelessness, 9/11 experiences,
etc., could trigger this reaction. The anxiety
in recurring ideation in thoughts and dreams
of the events, the psychological distress to
external/internal cues, the numbness, depression,
detachment, hostility, hyper vigilance, and addiction
which often resulted from PTSD were all reactions
that we had seen.
Yet, the military comprise a unique group. The
stress on these soldiers and their families through
their deployment absences, which are being extended
with increasing violence in the region, will
only compound the anxiety reactions when they
return. The constant reassignments of soldiers
and their families and the changing political
view of the fighting will also provoke stressors.
We will see a rapidly escalating need for education
about PTSD, understanding of resources in the
community, allowing for “trauma narrative” by
the victims and their families, marriage/family
communication strategies, PTSD support groups
for returning military, and an awareness that
many physical conditions are caused by underlying
PTSD symptoms.
We must be ready as caregivers to help. We need
to research through the local veterans’ hospitals,
or on websites such as the National Center for
PTSD to find more detailed information. We must
find treatment centers specific for veterans
and be prepared to support their relatives in
the readjustment times. These military personnel
are putting their lives on the line for us. We
can be prepared to provide the best care for
them when they return.
The Rev. Connie Madden, MDiv, BCC, has served
in North Carolina and Virginia as both a hospital
and hospice chaplain. Currently, she is an associate
pastor at North Riverside Baptist Church in Newport
News, Virginia, where she is educating congregants
in end of life issues and appropriate bereavement
care.
Do you have thoughts about education & research
you’d like to share with your colleagues?
Send an e-mail to info@PlainViews.org.
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