Evidence based practice MBI in veterans with PTSD

GCU

Part B: Problem Description

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common problem among many veterans. The disorder is mainly connected to trauma that veterans may have picked from combat and war zones. As such, the focus of the Department of Veteran Affairs is to tackle the issue of PTSD through different programs. The problem of PTSD among veterans affects their ability to adjust to civilian life and live healthily after their service. The adverse effects of PTSD and other combat-related problems among veterans include the inability of the veterans to function normally in their daily life. Additionally, more severe effects may include suicidal ideation and manic symptoms including criminal conduct by veterans who suffer mental illnesses. As such, there is an urgent need to tackle PTSD among veterans to ensure that they transition to civilian life properly and also live a fulfilled life after their service years.

Based on the identified need to tackle PTSD among veterans, the Picot statement is as follows: In war veterans diagnosed with PTSD, do mindfulness- based interventions (MBI) such as meditation for at least three months help decrease their symptoms compared to not participating in such interventions? This statement is focused on using the hospital setting and nursing staff to implement MBI with veterans to check the effectiveness of the same in three months. The main stakeholders surrounding this issue are the Department of Veteran Affairs, the nursing community of the target organization, and the National Center for PTSD. From the research, these groups are bound to benefit because they can implement MBI as a standard approach to dealing with PTSD. More importantly, veterans will benefit from the intervention and the utilization of the approach in future if the study reveals effectiveness.

Additionally, the purpose and objectives of the statement are to implement MBI with veterans for three months and compare its effect on reducing PTSD as compared to a control group. The general purpose of this EBP effort is to test the effectiveness of MBI in dealing with PTSD among veterans. The main objective is to check the overall effectiveness of MBI in the hospital setting if implemented within three months and compared to a control group on which the treatment is not performed. PTSD measures using questionnaires developed by experts such as DSM-5 can be used to test PTSD symptoms prior to the implementation of the intervention. After the intervention, the same scale (DSM-5) of diagnosis will be used to compare the treatment and control group.

The implementation of MBI for veterans will focus on reducing the symptoms of PTSD due to combat trauma and the effectiveness of the intervention will be tested and results used by the department of veteran affairs to institute standard procedures for using the intervention. The main problem is that without the necessary treatment, PTSD presents adverse symptoms affecting the mental health and the ability of the veterans to reintegrate into the society. Using the MBI plan, it is expected that the results will assist the veterans to live a fulfilled life while properly engaging with the society and performing their daily functions satisfactorily.

Initial Reference List

Steinberg, C. A., & Eisner, D. A. (2015). Mindfulness-based interventions for veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder. International Journal of Behavioral Consultation & Therapy, 9(4).

King, A. P., Erickson, T. M., Giardino, N. D., Favorite, T., Rauch, S. A., Robinson, E., … & Liberzon, I. (2013). A pilot study of group mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy (MBCT) for combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Depression and anxiety, 30(7), 638-645.

Polusny, M. A., Erbes, C. R., Thuras, P., Moran, A., Lamberty, G. J., Collins, R. C., … & Lim, K. O. (2015). Mindfulness-based stress reduction for posttraumatic stress disorder among veterans: a randomized clinical trial. Jama, 314(5), 456-465.

Strauss, C., Cavanagh, K., Oliver, A., & Pettman, D. (2014). Mindfulness-based interventions for people diagnosed with a current episode of an anxiety or depressive disorder: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. PLOS one, 9(4), e96110.

Seppälä, E. M., Nitschke, J. B., Tudorascu, D. L., Hayes, A., Goldstein, M. R., Nguyen, D. T., … & Davidson, R. J. (2014). Breathing‐based meditation decreases posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in US Military veterans: A randomized controlled longitudinal study. Journal of traumatic stress, 27(4), 397-405.