Caregivers of Veterans with "Invisible" Injuries: What We Know and Implications for Social Work Practice

Abstract

Today, as a result of the longest volunteer-fought conflict in U.S. history, there are many wounded coming home not only with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but also with traumatic brain injury (TBI), which together have been called the "signature" or "invisible" injuries of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Caregivers are an important part of their recovery, yet little is known about them, as previous research on caregivers mostly focused on geriatric populations. According to one estimate 275,000 to 1 million people are currently caring or have cared for loved ones who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan. These caregivers are unique in that they are younger, some with children, and they are caring for a unique under-studied population for longer periods of time. This article summarizes literature on caregivers of veterans who suffer from PTSD, TBI, or both; provides a theoretical framework; and discusses implications for social workers in assisting caregivers and their families.

Operation family caregiver: Problem‐solving training for military caregivers in a community setting

“…It is worth noting that our statistical analysis did not see a significant difference between the male and female military caregivers. This is not consistent with previous findings that female caregivers report more stress as a result of caregiving than male caregivers (National Alliance for Caregiving, ; Patel, ). The major reason for this inconsistency, we believe, is that among the initial 370 participant military caregivers, 352 (96%) were female caregivers and only 15 (4%) were male.…”

“…Children of deployed veteran and service members may have increased anxiety that persists after the deployed parent returns home (Lester et al., ). Generally, female caregivers report more stress and experience greater morbidity as a result of caregiving than male caregivers (National Alliance for Caregiving, ; Patel, ). The wives or partners of veterans with PTSD are particularly likely to have symptoms of secondary traumatic stress and health issues (Dekel, Goldblatt, Keidar, Solomon, & Polliack, ; Dirkzwager, Bramsen, Ader, & Ploeg, ; Franciskovic et al., ; Yambo et al., ).…”

“…Other research demonstrates that social support is an important concept for satisfaction of life in caregivers dealing with traumatic brain injury. Patel () found that caregiver life satisfaction and perceived social support were highly correlated. REACH (Resources Enhancing All Caregivers Health) VA is a national program that provides VA caregivers disease‐specific knowledge and skill training, which increases their caregiving efficiency and decreases perception of burden and depression.…”

Implementation and feasibility considerations of an avatar‐based intervention for military family caregivers

“…While male MFCGs were not excluded from the study, few elected to participate. Although male caregivers represent a smaller portion of MFCGs (approximately 4%), they experience similar challenges as caregivers and, based on other research, can benefit from interventions (Harris, ; National Alliance for Caregiving, ; Patel, ). Future research should include male MFCGs and analyses of data by gender (Houde, ).…”

How eLearning Can Decrease Challenges of Informal Family Caregivers of Service Members & Veterans with Invisible Injuries

“…The need for family members to suddenly take on the job of caring for their loved ones injured in service has become a mounting concern and problem across America. An even more growing interest has been that these individuals have been tasked to take on responsibilities to provide care for an injured service member or veteran, after notification of a loved one's injury during military service (Patel, 2015;Ramchand et al, 2014;Van Houtven, Oddone, & Weinberger, 2010;Zernial, 2015). Researchers have reported that in the United States of America, 5.5 million family caregivers provided care to those who served (Ramchand et al, 2014).…”