Canadian Military Begins Using New Version of Polaris’s Mental Health Assessment System

Langhorne, PA (May 9, 2011)- The Canadian Department of National Defence now has access to a host of new features standard to the latest version of Polaris’s mental health outcomes assessment system, as well as additional components tailored specifically for the Canadian military, including an expanded measure of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 

Polaris implemented the upgraded Polaris-MH last month at the Stadacona clinic, a medical facility in Halifax, N.S., that serves the Canadian Forces. Stadacona has been using the system since 2006. 

The new Polaris-MH offers an Expected Treatment Response graph to enhance the ability of providers to determine the best course of treatment for each patient and evaluation of patient progress in relation to an evidence-based criterion. Other enhancements include scales from the Addiction Severity Index to screen for and assess the severity of substance abuse, a resilience scale to assess a patient’s ability to “bounce back” from life crises, and an inconsistency index score to alert providers to responses that may be unreliable. 

For Stadacona, Polaris customized the system to address the specific needs of the Canadian Forces. Most significantly, Polaris added the PTSD checklist, also known as PCL, which screens military personnel for PTSD symptoms and monitors changes in symptomology during and after treatment. The Polaris-MH assessment can also now be administered in French. 

For more information on Polaris-MH, send an e-mail to moreinfo@polarishealth.com. Follow us on Facebook.