Contrasting Beliefs About Screening for Mental Disorders Among Uk Military Personnel Returning from Deployment to Afghanistan

Keeling, Mary; Knight, Terry; Sharp, Douglas; Fertout, Mohhamed; Greenberg, Neil; Chesnokov, Melanie; Rona, Roberto J.

doi:10.1258/jms.2012.012054

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The unwillingness to see the tailored advice might be due to lack of interest, mistrust of health services, fear of receiving bad news and a conviction that mental health issues are not personally relevant. 32,33 One of the criteria for introducing screening for a condition is that the natural history of the condition should be adequately understood. Screening may not work for PTSD in particular because of the diversity of trajectories of the condition over time, 34,35 even over a short period.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Post-deployment screening for mental disorders and tailored advice about help-seeking in the UK military: a cluster randomised controlled trial

et al. 2017

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Post-deployment screening for mental disorders and tailored advice about help-seeking in the UK military: a cluster randomised controlled trial

et al. 2017

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“…Although InDEx was acceptable, most participants felt that they would need an explicit incentive to download the app as they did not perceive themselves to be problem drinkers. It is a common perception that individuals believe others have drinking problems rather than themselves [45,46], even if they are drinking at the same level. This may be particularly relevant for the UK Armed Forces, where previous research indicates that those with alcohol problems are the least likely to recognize themselves as having a problem compared with other mental health issues [8,47].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Qualitative Evaluation of the Acceptability of a Tailored Smartphone Alcohol Intervention for a Military Population: Information About Drinking for Ex-Serving Personnel (InDEx) App

Puddephatt¹,

Leightley²,

Palmer³

et al. 2019

JMIR Mhealth Uhealth

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Background Alcohol consumption in the UK Armed Forces is higher than in the general population, and this pattern continues after leaving the service. Smartphone apps may be useful to increase ex-serving personnel’s awareness of their alcohol consumption, support self-monitoring, and prompt a change in behavior. Objective The study aimed to explore the acceptability of Information about Drinking in Ex-serving personnel (InDEx), a tailored smartphone app, combined with personalized short message service (SMS) text messaging designed to target ex-serving personnel who meet the criteria for hazardous alcohol use. Methods The InDEx intervention included 4 key modules: (1) assessment and normative feedback, (2) self-monitoring and feedback, (3) goal setting and review, and (4) personalized SMS text messaging. A semistructured telephone interview study was conducted with ex-serving personnel after using the app for a 28-day period. Interviews were used to explore the acceptability of app modules and its functionality and the perceived changes in participant’s drinking. Interview transcripts were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Results Overall, 94% (29/31) participants who used InDEx agreed to take part in a telephone interview. Overall, 4 themes were identified: Credibility , Meeting their needs , Simplicity , and Helpful for ex-serving personnel . The importance of credibility, functionality, and meeting the individual needs of ex-serving personnel was emphasized. Acceptability and engagement with specific modules of the app and text messages were influenced by the following: (1) if they felt it provided credible information, (2) whether the content was appropriately personalized to them, (3) the ease of use, and (4) beliefs about their own drinking behaviors. Participants recommended that the app would be most suitable for personnel about to leave the Armed Forces. Conclusions InDEx was an acceptable smartphone app for ex-serving personnel for monitoring alcohol consumption and in providing meaningful feedback to the individual. Pages that met the participant’s interests and provided real time personalized, credible feedback on their drinking and text messages tailored to participant’s interactions with the app were particularly favored.

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“…There is considerable evidence that suggests a screening tool should remain anonymous to encourage honesty in responses. Perception of confidentiality has a measurable impact on responses to mental health questions, [ 22 , 23 ] and the qualitative study of service personnel views on screening reported the confidentiality of results as a positive aspect of the tool [ 15 ]. Perceived confidentiality has also been found to increase acceptability of mental health screening programmes in paediatric care [ 24 , 25 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A pilot study for the RCT included qualitative interviews exploring the views of service personnel recently returned from deployment to Afghanistan towards post-deployment screening. Whilst participants displayed positive attitudes towards screening, they also expressed a reluctance to follow health advice due to beliefs that military personnel should be seen as strong [ 15 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Medical and Welfare Officers beliefs about post-deployment screening for mental health disorders in the UK Armed Forces: a qualitative study

et al. 2015

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BackgroundThis study aimed to examine currently serving United Kingdom (UK) military Medical and Welfare Officers views on the potential introduction of post-deployment screening for mental ill health.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 Medical and Welfare Officers. Interview transcripts were analysed using data-driven thematic analysis.ResultsFour themes were identified: positive views of screening; reliability of responses; impact on workload; and suggestions for implementation. Interviewees viewed the introduction of screening post-deployment as likely to increase awareness of mental health problems whilst also reporting that service personnel were likely to conceal their true mental health status by providing misleading responses to any screening tool. Concern over reliability of responses may provide one explanation for the reluctance of service personnel to seek help for problems, as they could feel they will not be taken seriously. Welfare Officers felt they would not have the knowledge or experience to respond to help-seeking. Although participants were concerned about potential impact on their personal workload, they indicated a desire to positively engage with the screening programme if research showed it was an effective tool to improve mental health care.ConclusionsWelfare and healthcare providers are well disposed towards a screening programme for mental health but highlight a few concerns in its implementation. In particular Welfare Officers appear to require more training in how to respond to mental ill health. Concerns about available funding and resources to respond to increased workload will need to be addressed should post-deployment screening for mental health be introduced in the UK military.

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Contrasting Beliefs About Screening for Mental Disorders Among Uk Military Personnel Returning from Deployment to Afghanistan

Abstract: Although respondents were positive about a screening programme for mental illness, the barriers to seeking help for mental illness appear deep rooted and reinforced by the value ascribed to hardiness.

Cited by 6 publications

References 16 publications

Post-deployment screening for mental disorders and tailored advice about help-seeking in the UK military: a cluster randomised controlled trial

Post-deployment screening for mental disorders and tailored advice about help-seeking in the UK military: a cluster randomised controlled trial

A Qualitative Evaluation of the Acceptability of a Tailored Smartphone Alcohol Intervention for a Military Population: Information About Drinking for Ex-Serving Personnel (InDEx) App

Medical and Welfare Officers beliefs about post-deployment screening for mental health disorders in the UK Armed Forces: a qualitative study

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