The Walter Reed Army Institute of Research’s iCOVER training has been shown to maintain combat effectiveness and bolster resilience, and recent reports from Ukraine indicate the particular usefulness of the technique for service members under attack by drones.
Research from WRAIR’s Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience shows that 1 in 6 deployed service members report being so overwhelmed by combat stress that they stop functioning. WRAIR’s iCOVER is an easily-fielded technique to quickly identify team members who are freezing up and get them back on-mission.
“When a soldier has an acute stress reaction, it can jeopardize their own safety and the safety of their team” explained Dr. Amy Adler, a senior scientist at WRAIR. “iCOVER provides service members with a technique they can use to look out for one another.”
iCOVER training has been distributed across all U.S. services and many allied forces since its first implementation in 2020. Since 2023, WRAIR has collaborated with the Norwegian Armed Forces to provide iCOVER to Ukrainian service members.
“Reports from Ukraine indicate that drone warfare is particularly difficult,” explained Dr. Adler. “But we are hearing that iCOVER can help Ukrainian service members recover quickly from an acute stress reaction.”
In response to this feedback, WRAIR has begun development on a training video tailored to teach service members how to use iCOVER while under drone attacks. The video is expected to be released later this year.
For more information about iCOVER and other training from WRAIR, visit the website: https://wrair.health.mil/Biomedical-Research/Center-for-Military-Psychiatry-and-Neuroscience/CMPN-Training-Products/