Improving the efficiency of outpatient treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder

This article uses service utilization and outcome data from the specialized posttraumatic stress disorder outpatient programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs to illustrate a method of evaluating the required intensity of outpatient psychiatric treatment. The analyses presented suggest that posttraumatic stress disorder treatment programs could offer intensive services for only the first four months of treatment, followed by a reduction in intensity to an average of only one visit per month, without loss of clinical gains. Workload projections suggest that applying such standards under a system of regulatory control would allow a 17%-51% increase in patients treated.