MEDIA EVENTS

Dr. Frank Bourke and Dr. Denise Potts discuss female study results and recruits for upcoming male studies with KUSI TV in San Diego on May 2nd 2016.

New York State Senator John Bonacic discusses the Research and Recognition Project at Mental Hygiene Budget Hearing.

Research and Recognition Project Gets $800K Grant

Frank Bourke
By Richard J. Bayne

Posted Sept. 3, 2015 at 10:06 PM
Updated Sept. 3, 2015 at 10:28 PM

TOWN OF WALLKILL - Vietnam-era veteran Jerrold Oser Sr. was stationed in Alaska in 1964 when a killer earthquake struck, and he remembers watching people die.

For decades, he had nightmares about watching, helpless, as children slipped into an enormous black hole. Diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, Oser, 71, suffered with mood swings and night sweats, personal relationships were strained, and he ended up divorced.

Finally, last year... Read More

San Diego News Article with Video: Doctor pioneers new ways to treat PTSD

This video and news article announces a new treatment program for PTSD - The Research and Recognition Project is beginning clinical testing for the RTM protocol. This article describes the program and calls out for participants who might want to get relief from their symptoms for a research study finishing in April 2016.

Video: Description of the Research Program in Middletown, New York

Overview and Introduction to the Research and Recognition Project History

This insightful video by Frank Bourke tells Frank's story about his history with the 911 trauma victims, and how he started the R&R project. He states his motivation for the movement, he talks about the history of the R&R project, and he tells you details about who's involved.

Frank gives you a lot of research information and data so that you can understand what's going on with the project both here and abroad. He talks about what's been published in peer reviewed journals, and he discusses further research.

Senator John Bonacic discusses Research Recognition Project Funding for PTS

This speech by Senator Bonacic, Frank Bourke, and a participant of the PTSD program, announces the amazing possibilities and the growing support for the project. This video announces to the world the increasing support by the government and people of America to make the project a full success.

Senator O'Mara's comments supporting the "Research and Recognition Project"

This short video explains Senator O'Mara's and the government's support for the project. According to O'Mara, the 1.6 million dollars that the R&R project is asking for is relatively little money compared to the large benefit that could be done in the community. There is a lot of veterans in the United States that are costing the government large amounts of money and resources for ongoing treatment. The program would actually save the government a lot of money over time since the program is so successful. The Senator calls out to make the world a better place by including the R&R project in their budget.

Rotarians help support creating hope for veterans with PTSD

Published Aug 1, 2014 by The Chronical
Rotarians

GOSHEN — Rotarians in the Hudson Valley are working to spread the word about Post Traumatic Stress and sponsored a recent seminar in Goshen informing them about the Research and Recognition project in Middletown, a center which is confidentially treating those afflicted at no cost thanks to a State grant sponsored by state Sen. William J. Larkin Jr.

Post Traumatic Stress is a silent killer affecting veterans returning from combat, first responders such as firefighters, police and EMTs and others who have experienced a trauma. It also affects their families and friends.

This treatment is drug-free, is part of a pre-pilot research study of a new experimental treatment for traumatic memories, and requires four to six two-hour visits to the Research and Recognition Trauma Center in Middletown.

Dr. Richard Gray

New PTSD Treatment Research Begins in Middletown, New York

By Geri Corey - MIDDLETOWN -July 25, 2014

A PTSD research program, the Road Back Trauma Center, recently opened at 27 Ridge St. in Middletown. Dr. Richard Gray, said therapy at the clinic is a short visualization process — called "Reconsolidation of Traumatic Memories," or RTM — that retrieves and alters memory of war and other stressful experiences. Treatment is normally three to four sessions lasting 45 minutes each.

This therapy is currently in the research stage but has shown early signs of success, noted Gray.

Middletown research program pioneers treatment for PTSD New therapy helps veterans cope

By Nathan Brown Times Herald
Record Published: 2:00 AM - 03/21/14 Last updated: 12:16 PM - 03/21/14 MIDDLETOWN -
Frank Bourke

Psychologist Frank Bourke runs the R and R Trauma Center on Ridge Street in Middletown. The center, which uses a new therapy to treat Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, got a $300,000 state grant.

A study is underway in Middletown that its proponents hope will help change the way Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is treated. So far, 12 military veterans have undergone treatment at the R and R Trauma Center on Ridge Street, six of whom met the criteria to be included in the study, said Richard Gray, the Director of Research. The other six had other serious co-occurring issues with the PTSD. The center gets its name from The Research and Recognition Project, the non-profit it's affiliated with, that supports the controversial, Neuro-Linguistic Programming model of behavioral therapy.

Call for participants: The R and R Trauma Center is still looking for veterans or current service members who are suffering from nightmares of traumatic experiences and flashbacks of traumatic memories to take part in the traumatic memories study. Participants will receive up to $200 and their identities will be protected, including from medical and military authorities. If interested, call 845-207-5178. The plan is to treat about 25 more veterans with PTSD, and wrap up the study of the effectiveness of the technique, called Reconsolidation of Traumatic Memories, by mid-April, said Frank Bourke, the psychologist who runs the center and heads the Research and Recognition Project. After that, the results will be published in a scientific journal. State Sen. Bill Larkin, R-C-Cornwall-on-Hudson, who is a Korean War veteran, sponsored the $300,000 state grant used to open the center.

The men hope to get another $1.5 million in the 2014 budget, which is being hashed out now, so the center can stay open and expand to treat many more veterans. The center has been in talks with local mental health agencies, so it can treat people who have other mental issues as well as PTSD, and offer therapy for marital issues and other problems that are frequent in PTSD sufferers.

The goal, Bourke said, is to turn it into a full-service trauma clinic. Follow-up studies are being developed in conjunction with Bradley University, Emory University, the University of North Carolina, and the University of New Mexico. The therapeutic technique involves having a patient visualize the traumatic events in different ways to disassociate with them and reduce the painful emotions associated with them.

Bourke first used this technique after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when the Aon Corp. hired him to counsel hundreds of its employees who had worked in the south tower of the World Trade Center.

Gray said it has, anecdotally, a much higher effectiveness rate than traditional therapies — and this is usually after just a few sessions. "We believe this is the biggest breakthrough in psychological treatment in 100 years," he said. One of the men the center successfully treated, Gray said, had struggled with PTSD for the past 40 years. "He can talk about it without tearing up (now)," Gray said. "His nightmares have stopped." The clinic is in a former medical office building in the shadow of the old Horton Hospital; it's owned by Tony Danza, the developer of the medical school that's being built in the hospital now. He's letting Bourke use the building rent-free.