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Bobbie O'Brien

Reporter
WUSF Public Broadcasting
Tampa, Fla.

Topic: Mental health issues that develop from multiple deployments among military members, and spouses of the Gulf War and Iraq/Afghanistan wars.

Creator and main writer of the blog, "Off the Base," focused on the lives of military life for service members and their families.

One in five veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan experience the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Although the wounds from PTSD are still not well understood, new treatments are proving effective, and military leaders are stressing the importance of recognizing and treating the disorder.
This program explores how these developments are giving hope to both service members and health care providers.

Bay Pines VA Plans to Provide More Mental Health Care (link no longer available) Veteran visits for mental health care at Bay Pines VA in St. Petersburg jumped 18 percent last year. That means there were about 150,000 veteran visits in 2010. And the need for mental health care visits is expected to increase as much as 42 percent in the next two decades.

It's estimated that almost 70 percent of children from active duty military families do not live on a military installation. They are your next door neighbors, your church friends, your schoolmates. And, it's at those public schools that the Department of Defense wants to coordinate better support for military kids.

Many families have committed their own resources, quit jobs and moved across the country to help care for their veterans injured in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. So, last year, Congress passed the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act to provide eligible families of the most severely wounded with benefits like respite care, counseling and a monthly stipend.

Florida needs to improve services, resources and opportunities for returning Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans and their families according to a new study released Tuesday. Researchers held focus groups and interviews surveying veterans, military families and non-profit organizations about the resources and responsiveness of government and charity groups.

For Veterans Day, HBO is airing the documentary "Wartorn: 1861-2010." The film examines the relationship of combat and Post Traumatic Stress from the Civil War to the current conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. "Wartorn" has been screened at the Pentagon and the Carter Center for Mental Health and resulted in some calls for a caution or warning label because its powerful images could stress some veterans.

Veterans Needed to Help Complete PTSD Study(link no longer available)
The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have increased the need to better understand Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Researchers are trying to find a more reliable way to diagnose PTSD, but they need some help.

On this Veterans Day, we catch up with Air Force Senior Master Sergeant Rex Temple, now retired. You may remember Temple who took listeners along during his year-long deployment in Afghanistan on his blog, Afghanistan: My Last Tour, and weekly WUSF radio series. He returned in April of last year and retired June 1, 2011, after 28 years of service.

Off the Base: Telling the Stories of Military Families (link no longer available)
Off the Base is a special project of WUSF designed to spread understanding and make connections between the military and civilian communities. Reporter Bobbie O'Brien talks frankly with two returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan about their struggles with PTSD and investigates a controversial art exhibit about PTSD.

Off the Base (link no longer available)
This special presentation, Off the Base, is a multi-media project designed to build a bridge and give the civilian community a better understanding of military life for service members and their families. It includes radio reports, reaching most of central Florida, that air on WUSF 89.7 News, Tampa, FL.

Transitioning from Combat Situations to Civilian Uncertainty (link no longer available)

USF to Study Web-Based and Rapid PTSD Therapies (link no longer available)

Lady Veterans Night Out (link no longer available)