Evaluation of the Veteran Resilience Project

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a daunting concern among the majority of organizations with diverse, or tangential, affiliations to the United States Military and/or its personnel. Unquestionably, the 21 million service-connected individuals, at the time of this writing, (i.e., Active-Duty, Reserve, National Guard, and Veterans) afflicted with this disorder are the catalyst for the intense public and private sector interest and involvement in eradication of this disorder. Prevalence rates of PTSD among this complex classification of persons vary across the relevant literature. Some estimates suggest anywhere from 11 to 20 percent, while other sources indicate that upwards of 40 percent of some military service-connected populations (i.e., those who served in Operation Enduring Freedom [OEF], Operation Iraqi Freedom [OIF], and Operation New Dawn as well as less publicized military actions which have taken place within the same timeframe) demonstrate PTSD or other related mental health disorders. Given the high PTSD prevalence demonstrated among service-connected populations, effective, practical, and accessible treatment of PTSD among this contingent is a primary and salient area of exploration both clinically and empirically. Relevant to this, the Veteran Resilience Project (VRP) of Minnesota utilizes Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) as an intervention to treat veterans with PTSD. Thus, the organization contracted this program evaluator to undertake a program evaluation of their nonprofit organization. The association utilizes Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) as a therapeutic intervention due to their belief that it is the most efficacious treatment for PTSD. Along with the comprehensive evaluation of their program and the establishment of proof of efficacy for their interventions of choice, EMDR, the VRP seeks to increase their capacity through the recruitment of military service-connected clients and retention of treating therapists. Therefore, the achievement of these objects occurs through an implementation program evaluation dissertation, based on both qualitative (i.e., using survey and interview methodologies) and quantitative data (i.e., analyzing accessible collected data from a sample of service-connected clients who had previously utilized services at the VRP). As a part of the program evaluation, the data were used to inform specific recommendations thus refining ameliorative procedures. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and Ohio Link ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/etd