READ THE FOLLOWING POST AND Ask questions for clarification, share an alternate viewpoint, offer suggestions or tips for improvement. Remember that constructive feedback includes more than just saying, “Great work!” It also includes analyzing and responding in a way that extends the dialogue. Keep your responses respectful and professional and include reference to at least one scholarly resource other than your textbook. (REFERENCE BELOW)

The Penn Medicine Princeton Health Women’s Trauma program is an innovative model designed to allow women to understand the impact of trauma on their lives (Penn, 2023). This program prioritizes established and maintained safety, aiding in some’s ability to understand coping and relationship-building skills, learn healthy ways to manage emotions, build self-esteem and confidence, and reduce symptoms of depression, BPD, anxiety, and traumatic disorders (Penn, 2023). The program takes on a needs-based treatment plan offering partial hospital stays (five days a week from 9:30a-3:30p) and an intensive outpatient program (three days per week from 9:30a- 12:30p) (Penn, 2023). The program utilizes Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) program. This model is designed to aid in processing emotions. More specifically, the DBT program is used with clients who respond to environmental or psychological stressors with extreme emotional behaviors or thoughts (self-harm behaviors or suicidal thoughts) (Penn, 2023). DBT is used to help patients tolerate stressful situations and interact effectively with others. The use of DBT to help individuals mediate or control maladaptive emotional responses is essential in clients with PTSD or CPTSD because, according to Karatzias (et al., 2019), the presence of PTSD or VPTSD increases the likelihood of suicidality by more than three times when compared those without the diagnosis.

The Men’s (Specialized Services) Penn Medicine Princeton Health program uses a holistic approach to treating male PTSD (Penn, 2023). Treatment at this program includes a comprehensive evaluation and medical management (I.e., collaborative care between mental health professionals and medical providers). Males who attend this program will receive an individualized plan, attend group, family, and individual therapy sessions, receive educational materials concerning mental and physical well-being, and will participate in DBT to regain emotional control (Penn, 2023). The program intends to heighten individual awareness of the trauma and psychiatric symptoms associated with the diagnosis, establish safety, facilitate healthy emotional management, help clients avoid pitfalls related to substance misuse, learn coping skills, understand how maladaptive coping strategies and behaviors negatively impact normal functioning, and build self-esteem (Penn, 2023). The program is also offered according to the needs of the individuals. Like the women’s program, males can participate in partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient programs. However, males are also welcome to enroll in a Telehealth program, which is three to five days per week, spanning three hours for each session (Penn, 2023).

Dialectical behavior therapy has “strong empirical support” for treating borderline personality disorder BPD (Wagner et al., 2007, p. 391). BPD is a complex diagnosis that requires complex treatment strategies for treating the multifaceted diagnosis. One of the main components of BPD is the experience of trauma (Wagner et al., 2007). Over seventy-five percent of adults diagnosed with BPD have experienced childhood abuse (physical, emotional, and or sexual) (Wagner et al., 2007). Further, of those diagnosed, over ninety percent reported adulthood trauma, which sometimes overlaps the diagnosis of BPD with CPTSD or PTSD (Wagner et al., 2007). Therefore, Wagner (et al., 2007) state that there is a clear relevance for the use of DBT on patients diagnosed with PTSD.

The LGBTQyou Program seeks to provide a safe environment for adults aged twenty-five to thirty-five suffering from symptoms of PTSD and CPTSD that are a part of the LGBTQI+ community. LGBTQyou asserts that the best conditions for growth are tailored to the needs of the individual. LGBTQyou recognizes that although all participants are diagnosed with PTSD or CPTSD, the individual experience can vary. LGBTQyou will tailor treatment plans for LGBTQI+ individuals based on need. Individuals can participate in a five-day intensive outpatient program (9a-3p), a three-day intensive outpatient program(9a-3p), or Telehealth sessions three days per week for three and a half hours. Transportation will be provided for those in need, and public transportation vouchers will be given to ensure everyone has an equal opportunity for growth and development.

LGBTQyou intends to use DBT and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing EMDR to address PTSD and CPTSD symptoms. DBT will help participants control maladaptive emotional responses to stressful stimuli (Penn, 2023). EMDR is a practical therapeutic approach to help clients recover from traumatic life experiences (Russell & Shapiro, 2022). EMDR has shown significant results when used to treat PTSD (de Bont et al., 2016). EMDR has also shown positive results in treating c-morbid conditions associated with PTSD and CPTSD symptoms (de Bont et al., 2016). DBT will help prepare clients for normal functioning outside the inpatient or Telehealth sessions. While EMDR therapy will help diminish the experience of symptomology over time.

Just as LGBTQyou recognizes the highly individual experience of individuals experiencing PTSD, we also recognize the personal strengths and weaknesses of those who are a part of the LGBTQI+ community. LGBTQI+ individuals are highly resourceful, strong-willed, and independent individuals who are often discriminated against or turned away, ignored, or dismissed by healthcare professionals (Ahmed et al., 2023). At LGBTQyou, we wish to correct the misconception of mental healthcare for all LGBTQI+ adults seeking help by utilizing the APA’s stress and trauma toolkit: providing trauma-informed care, creating an open environment, properly screening for trauma, planning for uninterrupted care— partnering with LGBTQI+ friendly physicians and psychiatrists to achieve holistic healing for all (Ahmed et al., 2023).

Program evaluation determines program value, and the “evaluand is the subject of the evaluation” (Giancola, 2020, p. 2). LGBTQyou intends to use the consumer-oriented evaluation determines the program’s worth by determining its effectiveness based on the needs of the population it intends to serve (Chyung et al., 2013). More specifically, LGBTQyou intends to evaluate the program’s effectiveness based on live results taken from patient tests and retest PSS-I-5 results. The PSS-I-5 is a 24-item loosely structured interview that is used to assess the severity of PTSD symptoms (Va.gov, 2020). Further, the consumer-oriented evaluation will assist administrators in managing, evaluating, and designing treatment plans (Chyung et al., 2013).

References

Ahmed, S., Dominguez, M., Forstein, M., Hermanstyne, K., Garcia, L., Leli, U., & Yarbrough, E. (2023). Stress & Trauma Toolkit. Psychiatry.org – LGBTQ.

de Bont, ,P.A.J.M., van den Berg, ,D.P.G., van der Vleugel, ,B.M., de Roos, C., de Jongh, A., van der Gaag, M., & van Minnen, ,A.M. (2016). Prolonged exposure and EMDR for PTSD v. a PTSD waiting-list condition: effects on symptoms of psychosis, depression and social functioning in patients with chronic psychotic disorders. Psychological Medicine, 46(11), 2411-2421.