Dr.Carolyn Williams-Orlando (Saybrook Ph.D. ’08) PROUDLY JOINS
GIVE AN HOUR™ NETWORK
Provides Free Counseling to Troops & Families
Boulder, Colorado November 30 2011– Dr. Carolyn Williams-Orlando announces that she has joined Give an Hour™, a nonpartisan, nonprofit national network of mental health professionals providing free counseling services to returning troops and their families.
Give an Hour™ offers services to veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and their family members. Family members are loosely defined to include married or unmarried partners, parents, siblings, aunts/uncles—anyone connected to this veteran who is suffering a psychological effect related to the veteran’s service.
Dr.Williams-Orlando (aka Dr. Willow) has an office located in Boulder and is trained to provide treatment for post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, and attention-deficit hyperactivity. People interested in receiving services through Give an Hour™ are encouraged to call 720-352-7891 or log on to www.giveanhour.org to determine availability or to locate another provider in your area.
“Currently, we have more than 5,200 licensed mental health professionals on our Give an Hour™ network,” notes Founder and President, Dr. Barbara Van Dahlen. “What our veterans and their families and loved ones are experiencing as a result of deployments, traumatic brain injuries, and other devastating physical injuries, post-traumatic stress and more, is incomprehensible to the general population. The sheer number of people being affected makes it virtually impossible for the very competent but overtaxed military health care system to provide help to everyone who needs it,” says Dr. Van Dahlen. “We are so proud that Dr.Williams-Orlando has joined our efforts.”
Give an Hour™ hopes to recruit to its network 10 percent, or 40,000, of the approximately 400,000 licensed mental health professionals in the United States. With an average fee of $100 an hour, this would save the military and the taxpayer $4 million per week in mental health services costs. Mental health professionals agree to donate one hour per week for a minimum of a year when joining out network.
www.giveanhour.org – A nonprofit 501(c)(3), founded in September 2005 by Dr. Barbara Van Dahlen, a psychologist in the Washington, D.C., area. The organization’s mission is to develop national networks of volunteers capable of responding to both acute and chronic conditions that arise within our society. Currently, GAH is dedicated to meeting the mental health needs of the troops and families affected by the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Give an Hour™ currently has more than 5,200 providers across the nation—in all 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, and Guam—and continues to recruit volunteer mental health professionals to its network.