When it comes to mental health and assisting veterans with post traumatic stress disorder, health professionals at the VA Augusta Health Care System don’t take a cookie cutter approach to care.
“One of the biggest pieces is the culture of care in the clinic,” said Dr. J. Richard Monroe, who manages the VA Augusta’s Trauma Recovery Center. “The entire staff is deeply connected to doing treatments that have the greatest impact on someone’s recovery.”
Augusta’s VA announced on Oct. 1 that it ranks first among the nation’s VA health care facilities for engagement of veterans with PTSD with evidence-based treatments.
The VA offers a variety of therapies with the care team working closely with the veteran to achieve specific goals.
“We definitely tailor things for the specific veteran. Probably No. 1, we want to match treatment to the problem. These therapies, while they may be very structured in the way we approach them, we want to make sure we’re working toward the goals of the individual veteran.,” he said.
The goal might be geared to managing a specific type of reaction. Maybe they want to be less jumpy or irritable or maybe they’d like to communicate better with loved ones.
The overall aim is providing the veteran with long-term benefits.
“It’s more in the line of recovery and getting back to their lives rather than relying on ongoing care for the rest of their lives,” he said.
Combat-related PTSD is the top reason veterans seek out care, but Monroe said the clinic is open for veterans with all types of trauma.
“Sexual trauma is a very close second” to combat-related trauma, he said.
He and his staff also see trauma related to child abuse, domestic violence and motor vehicle accidents.
Some veterans handle the combat trauma well, but they experience something stateside that they didn’t expect, he said.
Monroe said he’s proud of his team and the recognition shows the approach is working.
What sets Augusta’s VA at the top Is based on Strategic Analytics for Improvement and Learning (SAIL) Metrics, the system of standards used in rating the quality of VA health care facilities, which show a higher proportion of patients with PTSD in the VA Augusta coverage area have engaged in proven therapies than at any other VA health care facility over the past three quarters, according to a news release.
“In addition, VA Augusta ranks third in the nation for maintaining veteran engagement once treatment has been initiated, reflecting its commitment to offering treatments that not only have been validated through research but have also been shown effective in keeping veterans engaged in their care,” the release continued.
“Engaging Veterans in proven PTSD therapies is a key component in VA Augusta’s strategy to improve mental health outcomes and prevent veteran suicide,” it said.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years. She’s won multiple Georgia Press Association awards, is the recipient of the 2018 Greater Augusta Arts Council’s media award and was named Augusta Magazine’s best local writer in 2024 and 2025. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
