The 65th Medical Brigade in the Republic of Korea invited Dr. Amy Adler, Senior Scientist with the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR), and Capt. George Mesias, Clinical Social Work Researcher at WRAIR, to give talks on behavioral health at the 38th Parallel Healthcare Training Symposium in October 2024.

At the 74th annual Symposium, held in the Republic of Korea, Dr. Adler and Capt. Mesias presented on training developed and evaluated by WRAIR, including Behavioral Health Guidelines for mEdic Assessment and Response (BH GEAR), a behavioral health training package for medics to extend their capabilities in far forward, austere operational environments, and Operational Resilience Training, a frontline resilience training package for soldiers in large-scale combat operations.

BH GEAR gives medics tools and strategies to respond when behavioral health problems occur in far-forward environments and behavioral health providers are not easily available.

“Our research shows that Soldiers frequently go to medics for behavioral health issues in remote outposts, or when units are geographically dispersed. We want to equip medics so that they can have the knowledge and confidence to support those warfighters, and to recognize when a soldier needs a higher level of care,” reports Capt. Mesias.

Research from WRAIR demonstrates that BH GEAR shows promise as an effective training. Medics have given this training high ratings, and evaluations of the training show a significant increase in medic knowledge about behavioral health and confidence in aiding service members who are experiencing behavioral health difficulties. In light of its important contribution to the medic toolkit, BH GEAR is being reviewed for wider and systematic implementation across the Army and Navy.

Capt. Mesias notes, “It’s gratifying to know that there is so much interest in the work we do to bring behavioral health support to the warfighter -- where they need it most but it’s hardest for them to access it.”

In addition to BH GEAR, WRAIR presenters highlighted other behavioral health training products to support warfighters at the frontline. Dr. Adler presented on Operational Resilience Training, which was packaged by the US and counterparts from the Norwegian Armed Forces for use with Ukrainian soldiers. Operational Resilience Training integrates modules that address a range of topics relevant in large-scale combat operations and was informed by feedback from Ukrainian service members. These modules include managing acute stress using WRAIR’s iCOVER technique, mental skills that improve mission performance, supporting team members experiencing grief, and specific methods for building cohesion.

“Ukrainian soldiers from the frontlines are giving Operational Resilience Training high marks and talking about how relevant they find the training. Their feedback really underscores the importance of making sure we take care of soldiers both mentally and physically,” said Dr. Adler.

Operational Resilience Training is now being fielded for use by other allied nations, demonstrating WRAIR’s role as an international leader in military behavioral health and resilience.