April Kapu, DNP: Treating Mental Health During the Ukraine War

War has always had a toll on the collective mental health of the world.

And it is crucial today more than ever to really try to limit the psychiatric impact the current events in Ukraine might have on people across the globe.

Luckily, we can lean on history and learn from past wars on how to limit the psychiatric damage that it may cause.

In an interview with HCPLive®, April Kapu, DNP, APRN, ACNP-BC, FAANP, FCCM, FAAN, Associate Dean for Clinical and Community Partnerships, Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, explained how learning from past mistakes could be crucial in limiting the psychiatric damage, particularly after 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kapu said we can learn a lot about the mistakes made from past events, particularly some of the mistakes made during the Cold War.

“We need to even more open to mental health services and not attach that stigma,” Kapu said. “I think after the Cold War you saw prisoners; you saw people sent to mental health facilities more as a punishment. That is what we need to move away from.”

She also said the advancements made in therapy and medications could pay dividends when treating patients dealing with the acute stress of the circumstances.