RICHMOND, Va. –
James O. Parker IV assumed the role of Virginia Army National Guard director of psychological health Feb. 26, 2024.
“I am very excited to be begin my role as the new director of psychological health,” Parker said. “I've had the pleasure of working with the full-time behavioral health team as an M-day behavioral health officer, so I'm looking forward to continuing to build the program and identifying areas for growth from a different perspective. I feel very confident in my team's ability to support the overall behavioral health for the Soldiers in the VARNG.”
Parker, who is a licensed clinical social worker, replaces Jonathan Goldwire, who started the state’s behavioral health program in 2018.
“Serving in this role has been the highlight of my career as a behavioral health clinician,” Goldwire, who is also a licensed clinical social worker, said. “Helping Soldiers, advising leaders and cultivating relationships with our community-based providers has been rewarding.
“When I started, it was just me, attending medical readiness events, triaging phone calls, making hospital visits and traveling throughout the state to provide care. Four years later, we’ve grown by adding contracted providers and during the last fiscal year, we had over 13,000 encounters on behalf of our Soldiers; this is an increase from 2,000 encounters when the program started in 2019. This number may sound alarming but it speaks to the growth of the program, the reduction of stigma, the demand for education, and leaders looking for consultation. It’s been a remarkable thing to see an organization that I care for deeply embrace health and wellness when it comes to mental health.”
Parker, who currently serves as a captain and behavioral health officer in the Virginia Army National Guard’s Fort Barfoot-based Medical Command, comes from a family with a deep military background.
“I've been surrounded by the Army my entire life and have witnessed the impact behavioral health can have within a family,” he said.
His grandfather was a Vietnam veteran who served in the Army and his father served 17 years in the Virginia Army National Guard and 27 years total in the Army, including a deployment to Iraq in 2007.
“I've always had a strong desire to support service members, as I often felt that they were a population that not many people could relate to given the uniqueness of the culture,” Parker said. “I'm extremely proud of my lineage and eager to utilize my skills and experience for the betterment of the Army community.”
“James and I have had the opportunity to work alongside each other and coordinate care for some time now,” Goldwire said. “He has roots within the organization, is admired by his peers, and he has vision to enhance the program in new and exciting ways. I really believe that James has the competency and the capabilities to make the Virginia Army National Guard’s Behavioral Health program a model for other states to follow.”
As he assumes his position, two of Parker’s goals are to ensure Soldiers have access to behavioral health resources and continue to build partnerships within the communities to increase behavioral health visibility.
“Many Soldiers are unaware of the vast resources at their disposal and either never utilize them, or wait until there is a crisis,” he explained. “I believe that if we can intervene earlier, we can prevent many behavioral health crises, which will ultimately instill greater confidence in behavioral health among our Soldiers.
“Additionally, there are many Soldiers who decline behavioral health support due to its stigma,” Parker added. “My goal is to normalize behavioral health, thus making it more inviting for Soldiers to accept, what could potentially be life-saving support.”