By Debbie Gregory.
A Rand study found that the Marine Corps’ stress control and readiness program — while popular with commanders — has no positive impact on Marines’ mental health. However, Marine officials say they plan to continue using an improved version of the program into the post-Afghanistan era.
More than 1,300 Marines who deployed to Afghanistan or Iraq between March 2010 and December 2011 took part in the study. The study compares the outcomes for Marines who received training from the Marines’ Corps-wide Operational Stress Control and Readiness Program — or OSCAR — against a control group of Marines who did not receive the training.
During the week-long class, Marines and sailors trained to receive their team-member and team-trainer certification. Team members work one-on-one with Marines and sailors to help them with stress. If they’re unable to resolve the issue, the service members are instructed to escort their stressed comrades to seek help from the chaplain or a medical facility.
Questions asked were:
While the study did find Marines in OSCAR-trained battalions to be more likely to report seeking help from fellow Marine unit members and corpsmen to deal with personal stress, they were not more likely to seek help from outside medical providers. Moreover, the study found, the prevalence of stress-related conditions or mental health outcomes — such as major depression, post-traumatic stress, and alcohol and substance use — were unaffected by OSCAR participation.
The report makes four primary recommendations:
Future improvements planned for the program include bio-feedback mechanisms, which measure neurological responses to stressors and improvement to the program’s review of mental health, first aid, and tools to combat negative thinking and regulate emotions.
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Military Connection: OSCAR Combat Stress Program Ineffective: by Debbie Gregory
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