Subscribe
OCEAN VIEW, Hawaii--Some people believe that medical care is only inclusive of seeing a provider, receiving dental care, eye care and hearing. Often, people fail to realize that mental health situations like depression can have a drastic effect on a persons health or well being.
For residents in underserved communities, mental health may often times go unnoticed as they believe what they are going through is normal and expected for their life situations. The Behavioral Health and Chaplain from the 1984th U.S. Army Hospital Pacific have teamed up to change that thought process for the underserved residents as part of Tropic Care 2016.
“There is a lot of interplay between mental health and physical health and often times a person will not be well physically and then that can contribute to them not feeling well emotionally or vice versa,” explained Maj. Benjamin O’Brien, psychiatrist, 1984th U.S.Army Hospital Pacific, Detachment 2, Fort Shafter Flats, Hawaii. “It is an aspect of health that if it is not addressed you don’t have full opportunity for recovery or improvement.”
While the behavioral health and chaplain team work together, they still have very different roles during Tropic Care.
“I am here just in case anyone needs counseling, but if they have mental health issues, or if they are on medication for mental health issues, I would refer the patient to Maj. O’Brien,” said Chaplain (Captain) Keith Buczak, 1984th USAH-P, Det. 2, Fort Shafter Flats, Hawaii. “What I am available for is if patients are having any issues and it is something I can talk to them about.”
“From a behavioral health perspective, Chaplains are extremely important especially for someone who is spiritually sensitive,” said O’Brien. “We acknowledge and identify it and we know it is a very important portion of their health and so at that point we would call the Chaplain.”
With the two offices working together, they are able to collaborate and discuss the best way to help patients at Tropic Care.
“It’s really symbiotic,” said O’Brien. “We help and support each other and we address slightly different aspects of patient care, but we have the opportunity to identify areas that we may not necessarily specialize in.”
Although Tropic Care 2016 has proved beneficial for the two offices to work together, it is not necessarily a typical practice.
“This is my first opportunity to be able to work with a behavioral health provider and talk to him to discuss different things with him,” Buczak explained. “We try to work really closely with each other.”
O’Brien says that sometimes its just a matter of finding out what people need and then making the arrangements for them to get the care they require and setting them up with the resources they need. Both the Chaplain and Behavioral Health provide that outlet for patients if all they need is an ear or a shoulder to cry on.
Both professionals are happy to be present and helping people, even if their number of patients reached isn’t as high as the dental or hearing clinics.
“This is a very Christian thing to do and as a Chaplain I just love this type of thing that we are doing,” said Buczak. “A Chaplain is kind of like a fireman, you may not always need one, but when you do, you really need them.”
“For me, I see that the community will really surround you with support and make you feel like you are important and that you have helped,” O’Brien said. “We are able to add an aspect to the treatment team, from a long term quality there are things that may be missed that can add to someone’s quality of life.”
| Date Taken: | 06.06.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 06.08.2016 23:59 |
| Story ID: | 200452 |
| Location: | OCEAN VIEW, HI, US |
| Web Views: | 72 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, A common bond, by SGT Jessica DuVernay, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
LEAVE A COMMENT