Important COVID-19 Resources
Psychiatrists can play an important role in addressing the specific needs of psychiatrists, other Mental Health professionals and Mental Health systems of care in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our colleagues need reliable, well-articulated information which we can share across our practices, health systems and communities, I offer the following authoritative fact sheets from the Department of Defense and VA along with other materials which we feel may be helpful to our colleagues. What is distinctive about these materials is that they were specifically developed to address the needs of Psychiatrists, other Mental Health professionals and Mental Health systems.
Our nation’s two largest federal agencies have been preparing for a pandemic for decades and I think you’ll find these materials of great value. Given that they have been produced by the Federal Government, they are all in the public domain such that the information shared can be personalized to individual practices, healthcare systems and communities.
The Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress (Bob Ursano’s shop) at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (at which our Committee Member, Dave Benedek is Chair of Psychiatry) has developed a world-class set of materials available at:
We also recommend “What Psychiatrists Can Co to Prepare for the Coming Pandemic”. This commentary by GAP member, Col. (Ret.) Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, MD, MPH, provides a valuable overview of our role as psychiatrists: https://www.mdedge.com/psychiatry/article/218703/anxiety-disorders/what-psychiatrists-can-do-prepare-coming-pandemic
In addition, VA’s National Center for PTSD’s website has developed the following materials (for convenience, I have attached PDFs):
https://www.ptsd.va.gov/covid/index.asp https://www.ptsd.va.gov/covid/COVID_managing_stress.asp https://www.ptsd.va.gov/covid/COVID_providers_comm_leaders.asphttps://www.ptsd.va.gov/covid/COVID_healthcare_workers.asp
David Benedek, MD