Retired from the U.S. Navy after 25 years of service, Dr.
Lewis also serves as adjunct associate professor of family
medicine and community health at Robert Wood Johnson
Medical School.
Johnson Medical School's training program.
zone, the lifetime prevalence of PTSD may be as much as
three times higher, says Anthony M. Tobia, MD, associate
professor of psychiatry, one of the presenters during the
program. In addition, traumatic brain injury is becoming
more of a problem, Dr. Tobia says, affecting about one-fifth
of those returning from Iraq. Some 44 percent of returnees
from Iraq who reported TBI with loss of consciousness and
ployment also exhibit symptoms of PTSD, he notes.
where death was a real and potentially imminent threat.
More than 60 percent knew someone who was injured or
killed. These experiences are compounded by what Dr.
Lewis calls "moral injuries": "There is an inner sense of
who you are, what helps you distinguish between right and
wrong. It could be a result of your family values, religion,
spirituality. While in the theater, you'll often be doing
things that are in direct conflict with that. These moral
injuries are some of the most impactful."
Johnson Medical School met this year with veterans who
have PTSD, TBI, or both during a half day devoted to train-
ing about different disabilities; while there, the students
had the opportunity to interact with the veterans and learn
more about their experiences.