Military City USA will welcome hundreds of researchers, clinicians, military leaders and policymakers Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 20-21, for the San Antonio Combat PTSD Conference, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. They’ll gather at the Westin Riverwalk to discuss the latest advances in caring for those with the psychological wounds of war and how to lead more affected service members and veterans to recovery.
Hosted by the STRONG STAR Consortium and UT Health San Antonio, the health enterprise of The University of Texas at San Antonio, the annual gathering started 10 years ago as a way to share the state of the science on post-traumatic stress disorder and co-occurring conditions affecting our war fighters. Today it is recognized as the premier scientific gathering on the topic of military psychological health.
Each year, the conference attracts an international audience of professionals from within the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs as well as from academic institutions and the civilian sector. Numerous military personnel, veterans and community members with an interest in military psychology also join the proceedings, as do students and professional trainees.
“This year’s conference has so much to offer,” said Alan Peterson, PhD, director of the STRONG STAR Consortium and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the UT San Antonio Long School of Medicine. “We’ll report on the promise of innovative new and complementary treatments, offer practical tips and advice on the delivery of evidence-based therapies, and share personal stories and professional camaraderie that inspire us in our work.”
Program highlights
Sure to inspire is Monday’s “Profiles and Resilience” keynote by Benjamin Hall. After sustaining traumatic injuries while covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Fox News correspondent eventually was flown to and treated at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio and went through a long recovery involving more than 30 surgeries. He will discuss his harrowing experience and the factors that contributed to his resolve in overcoming the psychological aftermath of trauma.
Afterwards, conference attendees will hear from retired Army colonel and orthopaedic surgeon Joseph Alderete Jr., MD, of UT Health San Antonio and other members of Hall’s stellar BAMC care team. They will discuss from an interdisciplinary perspective how incorporating psychological resiliency into patient care can be a force multiplier.
Tuesday’s keynote will be delivered by international PTSD expert Barbara Rothbaum, PhD, of Emory University School of Medicine, who will speak on a topic that has great national interest: the promise of psychedelic-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD.
Other topical highlights will include:
- Strategies to optimize PTSD treatment outcomes by involving romantic partners and family members
- How to address trauma-related guilt and shame
- Self-compassion, moral injury and spirituality in the context of evidence-based treatments
- Project blitz of innovative new studies being launched by the STRONG STAR Consortium
“This conference is a tremendous opportunity to learn about advances in treating traumatic psychological injuries and practical tips for implementing best practices,” Peterson said. “It also offers a chance to discuss current research gaps and how best to keep moving the science forward for the benefit of our war fighters and others affected by trauma.”
For more information on the San Antonio Combat PTSD Conference, visit www.combatPTSDconference.com. The full agenda is available at https://combatptsdconference.com/agenda/.