Training and Education Directorate

Mission:

To promote psychological health (PH) and improve traumatic brain injury (TBI) outcomes by assessing training and educational needs and identifying, integrating, developing and disseminating effective programs for providers, service members and their families, military leaders and communities.

Director:

USPHS CAPT Gail Hamilton

Overview:

The Training and Education Directorate promotes PH and improves TBI outcomes for warriors and their families. The directorate assesses the training and educational needs of varied audiences, identifies and evaluates training and educational programs to fill these needs, develops guidelines for the effective delivery of these programs and works with partners to develop new training and education programs. The directorate also works to disseminate effective training and education programs and to expand awareness of these programs.

Training and education programs addressed by the directorate include those designed for warriors and military leaders, military families, health care and mental health care providers, and community leaders. Within this role, the directorate is responsible for identifying best practices, establishing guidelines for the delivery of PH and TBI training and education programs, and evaluating the impact of training and education programs. The directorate also serves a key role in helping to coordinate Department of Defense (DoD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) training efforts within its scope.

Goals and Objectives:

The directorate aims to promote effective and efficient solutions by coordinating programs, encouraging the sharing of resources and programs across military and civilian organizations, developing standards and guidelines for these programs, and promoting the dissemination of effective PH and TBI training and education programs.

Functional Areas:

The functional organization of the directorate is as follows:

• Partner Relations: The directorate promotes effective sharing of training and education program information. It also encourages partnering and collaboration as programs are developed and modified, along with the adoption of training standards and guidelines developed by the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE). Coordination and evaluation of training/education programs requires close collaboration with various DoD programs and entities, as well as other governmental and non-governmental agencies.
• Guidelines for Training and Education Programs: The directorate identifies, develops and disseminates best practices and guidelines for the delivery of training and education programs in the areas of PH and TBI.
• Program Identification and Development: A key function of the directorate is to identify effective training and education programs, and to promote the development of programs where none exist. The directorate is in the process of developing a database of PH and TBI training and education resources that will allow it to become a premier resource for individuals and organizations seeking to develop and/or deliver effective training and education in the areas of PH and TBI. Where appropriate programs do not exist, the directorate works with partners to develop necessary programs. Similarly, the directorate works with partners providing training to modify existing programs to meet guidelines for training and education programs.
• Program Evaluation: Working with the Research, Program Evaluation, Quality Assurance and Surveillance Directorate, the directorate will evaluate existing and new training and education programs.