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Re-engaging Dropouts of Prolonged Exposure for PTSD Delivered via Home-Based Telemedicine or In Person: Satisfaction with Veteran-to-Veteran Support

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Abstract

This paper describes feasibility of and patient and peer satisfaction with a Veteran-to-Veteran peer support program purposefully integrated into prolonged exposure (PE) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to address barriers contributing to dropout from both in person and telemedicine delivered PE. Specifically, patients who had dropped out of PE were offered the opportunity to return to treatment, this time with a peer who themselves had completed PE, who would join them during a limited number of PE in vivo exposure homework trials. About half of the Veterans who dropped out indicated willingness to return to treatment, noting the peer as central to this decision, and about a third actually returned to treatment. Participants reported high satisfaction with the program, as did peers. Peers reported that their own symptoms were not exacerbated by engaging in exposure homework with the patients. While in the military, service members are trained to leverage the power of the group toward mission-specific tasks; and this training appears relevant to PTSD treatment in the present context.

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Funding

Funding for the parent studies from which dropouts were recruited and for whom baseline data were provided included: the Department of Veterans Affairs HSR&D MERIT Award HX00152 and the Department of Defense Grants W81XWH-14-1-0264 and W81XWH-08-2-0047.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences | Trauma & Resilience Center, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 1941 East Road, BBSB 3120, Houston, TX, 77054, USA

    Melba A. Hernandez-Tejada PhD, DHA & Ron Acierno PhD

  2. Ralph H. Johnson Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 109 Bee St., Charleston, SC, 29425, USA

    Melba A. Hernandez-Tejada PhD, DHA & Ron Acierno PhD

  3. Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edicici B, Campus de la UAB, 08193, Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Barcelona, Spain

    David Sánchez-Carracedo PhD

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  1. Melba A. Hernandez-Tejada PhD, DHA
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  2. Ron Acierno PhD
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  3. David Sánchez-Carracedo PhD
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Correspondence to Melba A. Hernandez-Tejada PhD, DHA.

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Hernandez-Tejada, M.A., Acierno, R. & Sánchez-Carracedo, D. Re-engaging Dropouts of Prolonged Exposure for PTSD Delivered via Home-Based Telemedicine or In Person: Satisfaction with Veteran-to-Veteran Support. J Behav Health Serv Res 48, 171–182 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-020-09734-0

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