Support for Professionals
Whilst post traumatic stress disorder is probably the best known veterans’ mental health disorder, research has confirmed that depression, personality disorder and alcohol-related issues equally impact on military veterans. An individual’s housing and employment situation will also have an affect on their mental health. However, the actual circumstances surrounding an individual’s condition and the military culture and context through which some of these issues have developed is unique to this segment of the population. With a strong military presence in the region and a retired service population in the South West of over 400,000 (concentrated in Wiltshire and Plymouth) there was a clear case for the current range of veterans’ mental health services to be enhanced.
At the behest of NHS SW and the Department of Health (DH), AWP has lead the way in establishing a new Veterans’ Mental Health Service for the South West – a groundbreaking national initiative between AWP and Combat Stress (the veterans mental health charity). The new service, which was launched in October 2011, delivers:
- a dedicated clinical service, which will ensure that veterans mental health care is coordinated through a single integrated, care pathway; underpinned by
- a set of core activities to gather comprehensive data, improve veterans access to mental health services, and provide professional training and awareness to GPs, social services and other stakeholders.
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Partnership work continues beyond that of the immediate Service, including liaison with the Royal British Legion (RBL), the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) and the Services Personnel & Veterans Agency (SPVA).
The new team will:
- Provide an outreach and assessment service and, in more severe cases, therapeutic interventions to those veterans with post traumatic stress disorder, depression, personality disorder and drug and/or alcohol related dual diagnosis issues.
- Balance clinical commitments with the need to be the focal point for supporting activity across the whole of the South West.
- Use volunteer networks from SSAFA and RBL to extend their outreach and signposting activities, allowing permanent staff to concentrate on clinical or educational activities.
- Act as the ‘Veterans’ Mental Health Champions’ for the region.
If you are in contact with a veteran, who you believe that would benefit from receiving a dedicated, tailored assessment of their mental wellbeing, then please contact via our Contact Page. In addition, as workload dictates, we will also take referrals from affected family members or carers. We will normally follow up your query or referral within 2 working days, with the aim of completing a first assessment within 4 weeks after that. The wait times for treatment are being carefully monitored but, if appropriate, our aim is for the time from first contact to first clinical intervention to be minimised ideally within 6 weeks. If a clinical intervention is not indicated, we are able to signpost appropriately to our network of other suitable services around the South West and nationally. Alternatively you may wish to refer to our ‘Useful Links’ page, where you will be able to search for services in your area.
The idea of the Military Covenant is that those who have served for at least one day in HM UK Armed Forces (or Allied Forces during specific time periods) should not be disadvantaged by having volunteered to have served their country. It should be noted that to be termed a veteran, the individual involved does not have to have served in a combat zone. We do not restrict access to the Service to those who have been involved in particular war zones over or since particular times. All are welcome.
If you would like to receive further advice and/or face-to-face training on veterans’ mental health matters in your area, then please do not hesitate to call or email us, again via the Contact page.
In the meantime, if you already have feedback about a service or intervention that you or your patient has received from us then please do leave a message and we will follow that up as soon as we are able, but no later than within two weeks.
