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Lee-Tauler SY, Grammer J, LaCroix JM, Walsh AK, Clark SE, Holloway KJ, Sundararaman R, Carter CKM, Crouterfield CB, Hazlett CGR, Hess CRM, Miyahara CJM, Varsogea CCE, Whalen CC, Ghahramanlou-Holloway M. Pilot Evaluation of the Online 'Chaplains-CARE' Program: Enhancing Skills for United States Military Suicide Intervention Practices and Care. J Relig Health 2023; 62:3856-3873. [PMID: 37612485 DOI: 10.1007/s10943-023-01882-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023]
Abstract
Chaplains frequently serve as first responders for United States military personnel experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors. The Chaplains-CARE Program, a self-paced, e-learning course grounded in suicide-focused cognitive behavioral therapy principles, was tailored for United States military chaplains to enhance their suicide intervention skills. A pilot program evaluation gathered 76 Department of Defense (DoD), Veterans Affairs (VA), and international military chaplain learners' responses. Most learners indicated that the course was helpful, easy to use, relevant, applicable, and that they were likely to recommend it to other chaplains. Based on open-ended responses, one-quarter (25.0%) of learners indicated that all content was useful, and over one-quarter (26.3%) of learners highlighted the usefulness of the self-care module. One-third (30.3%) of learners reported the usefulness of the interactive e-learning features, while others (26.3%) highlighted the usefulness of chaplains' role play demonstrations, which portrayed counseling scenarios with service members. Suggested areas of improvement include specific course adaptation for VA chaplains and further incorporation of experiential learning and spiritual care principles. The pilot findings suggest that Chaplains-CARE Online was perceived as a useful suicide intervention training for chaplains. Future training can be enhanced by providing experiential, simulation-based practice of suicide intervention skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Su Yeon Lee-Tauler
- Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD, 20814-4799, USA
| | - Joseph Grammer
- Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD, 20814-4799, USA
| | - Jessica M LaCroix
- Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD, 20814-4799, USA
| | - Adam K Walsh
- Defense Suicide Prevention Office, Alexandria, VA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Marjan Ghahramanlou-Holloway
- Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD, 20814-4799, USA.
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