Biopsychosociocultural Perspective on ‘Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom’ Women Veterans as Civilian Police Officers: Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Challenges
| Date | 01 March 2013 |
| Published date | 01 March 2013 |
| Author | Ronn Johnson |
| DOI | 10.1350/ijps.2013.15.1.300 |
| Subject Matter | Paper |
Biopsychosociocultural perspective on
‘Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation
Iraqi Freedom’ women veterans as civilian
police officers: mild traumatic brain injury
and post-traumatic stress disorder
challenges
Ronn Johnson
University of San Diego, 3525 Del Mar Heights Road #302, San Diego, CA 92130, USA.
Email: ronnjohn@sandiego.edu
Submitted 17 September 2012; accepted 20 February 2013
Keywords: OEF/OIF women, mTBI, PTSD
Dr Ronn Johnson
is a licensed and board certi-
fied clinical psychologist with extensive experi-
ence in academic, clinical and law enforcement
settings. Dr Johnson is a Diplomate of the
American Board of Professional Psychology. He
has served as a staff psychologist in community
mental health clinics, hospitals, veteran medical
centres, schools and university counselling
centres. The University of Iowa, University of
Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Central Okla-
homa, University of San Diego and San Diego
State University are among the sites of his pre-
vious academic appointments. His forensic,
scholarship and teaching interests include: risk
assessment, police psychology, women, death
penalty and contraterrorism.
A
BSTRACT
Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi
Freedom (OEF/OIF) veterans constitute a large
portion of police officer recruits. Women applicants
present with similar gender-specific health-care
practice needs. To improve the quality of care for
this vulnerable and underserved veteran popula-
tion, it is essential to begin with a systematic
assessment using a biopsychosociocultural
approach. Internationally, shortages in compensa-
tion and pension health-care professionals within
Veterans Affairs have resulted in the under-
diagnosis and undertreatment of post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) and mild traumatic brain
injury (mTBI). The health-care needs of OEF/
OIF veterans can fuel psycholegal issues for police
departments. These issues usually take place in
the form of negligent hire and/or retention mis-
conduct cases. Female OEF/OIF veterans may
need additional health-care services for PTSD or
mTBI after they enter another male-dominated
culture. Although not every female veteran seek-
ing a job in law enforcement has PTSD and
mTBI, evaluating these veterans using a bio-
psychosociocultural approach provides a frame-
work for early identification, intervention and
prevention. This paper offers an educational and
training perspective aimed at sensitising hiring
authorities to clinically relevant transition and
adjustment issues as female veterans shift into
civilian police departments.
INTRODUCTION
Large US police departments report that
anywhere between 35 and 40 per cent of
International Journal of Police Science & Management Volume 15 Number 1
International Journal of Police
Science and Management,
Vol. 15 No. 1, 2013, pp. 45–50.
DOI: 10.1350/ijps.2013.15.1.300
Page 45
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