Taking the Reins: U.S. Veterans and Equine Assisted Activities and Therapies

Olenick, Maria; Flowers, Monica; Lynne, Richard; Muñecas, Teresa; Sarah, Kelava

doi:10.4172/2167-1222.1000427

Cited by 1 publication

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“…The extended involvement in military conflict and multiple deployments has continued to place excessive demands on the mental health of military personnel (Lanning & Krenek, 2013). Besides PTSD, many veterans suffer from traumatic brain injury, chronic pain, and have long-term health issues from harmful exposure to pollutants and toxins (Maria et al, 2018). For example, since 2001 over two million Americans have served in Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom/OIF) and Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom/OEF) with more than 800,000 serving multiple deployments (Fissette et al, 2014).…”

Section: Mental Health Of Veteransmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the Efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy for Military Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Symptomology

Nagrath¹

2020

JVS

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A unique approach in trauma-focused psychotherapy is the evolving field of Equine Assisted Therapy (EAT), a nontraditional, experiential methodology centered on the therapeutic benefits intrinsic in equines. While there is a plethora of anecdotal and qualitative studies showing effectiveness, evidence-based studies are limited, and those that exist have design and implementation flaws such as small sample size, no control group, lack of counselor-administered curriculum and/or assessments, leaving large empirical gaps. To address these gaps, a quasi-experimental nonrandomized control group design was implemented for this study. Fifty veterans participated with 25 assigned to each, intervention and control groups. Veterans in the intervention group completed 3-hour weekly EAT sessions for 10 weeks and those in the control group continued with treatment as usual. Standardized psychometric assessments were PTSD Checklist-Military Version (PCL-M) and Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being Scale (FACIT-Sp). The ANCOVA revealed no significant difference in mean changes for PCL-M, F(1, 43) = 3.255, p = .078, partial η 2 = .070, which suggests a medium-small effect size, as well as for the FACIT-Sp, F(1, 43) = .368, p = .547, partial η 2 = .008, which suggests a small effect size. However, paired samples t-test showed significant reduction in PTSD symptom scores for intervention group when compared to control group. While no conclusion regarding efficacy can be made, the results may be a useful lens to further examine the potential benefits of incorporating a multidimensional, biopsychosocial-spiritual model which could leverage significant outcomes of holistic health for veterans with PTSD symptomology.

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Section: Mental Health Of Veteransmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the Efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy for Military Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Symptomology

Nagrath¹

2020

JVS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Taking the Reins: U.S. Veterans and Equine Assisted Activities and Therapies

Cited by 1 publication

References 0 publications

Investigating the Efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy for Military Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Symptomology

Investigating the Efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy for Military Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Symptomology

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