The Health Status of Veteran Employees Compared to Civilian Employees in Veterans Health Administration

Abstract

Introduction Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is undergoing changes in the practice of health care focusing on approaches that prioritize veteran well-being. Given transformation efforts, opportunities exist to enhance the health and well-being of patients and employees alike – a significant proportion of whom are veterans. To date, differences in health status between veteran and civilian employees within VHA have not been examined. Materials and Methods Data from an annual organizational census survey with health promotion module conducted in 2015 were analyzed to estimate the prevalence of health risk behaviors, mental health, and chronic health conditions by veteran status within genders (n = 86,257). To further examine associations by gender between veteran status and health measures controlling for covariates, multivariate logistic regression analyses were utilized. Results Prevalence estimates generally indicated veterans have worse health status and health risk behaviors than their civilian counterparts. Results from multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated many significant associations between veteran status and health by gender controlling for other important demographic variables and a total comorbidity score. Compared to civilian employees within respective genders, both male and female veteran employees have increased odds of being a current smoker. Both male and female veteran employees have decreased odds of physical inactivity compared to civilian employees. For mental health and chronic health conditions, there are several conditions that veteran employees have increased odds for when compared to civilian employees of like gender; these include low back problems, arthritis, anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders. Conclusions Veteran employees in VHA have worse health status than their civilian counterparts on a number of measures of health risk behaviors, mental health, and chronic health conditions. Given current organizational priorities aimed at cultural transformation, the present time is an optimal one to work collaboratively to enhance the health and well-being services that are available for patients and employees alike. All employees, particularly our unique population of veteran employees, will benefit from such an approach.

Longitudinal Analysis of Neighborhood Food Environment and Diabetes Risk in the Veterans Administration Diabetes Risk Cohort

“…Follow-up frequency was not constant across all cohort participants. The study may also not be generalizable to nonveteran populations; US veterans have substantially greater financial and health burdens than the civilian population and are at an increased risk of disability, obesity, and other chronic conditions . Although most of the cohort was composed of non-Hispanic White men, it did also include a sizable number of women and participants of other races and ethnicities, which were included in our models.…”

“…The study may also not be generalizable to nonveteran populations; US veterans have substantially greater financial and health burdens than the civilian population and are at an increased risk of disability, obesity, and other chronic conditions. 29,30 Although most of the cohort was composed of non-Hispanic White men, it did also include a sizable number of women and participants of other races and ethnicities, which were included in our models. We were unable to account for participants' individual household income; however, a low-income or disability flag was used as a proxy for socioeconomic status, and we further adjusted for neighborhood-level socioeconomic factors.…”

Prostate Cancer Lesions by Zone and Race: Does Multiparametric MRI Demonstrate Racial Difference in Prostate Cancer Lesions for African American Men?

“…Lastly, veterans themselves may have unique risk factors that would preclude generalizability to the rest of the non-veteran populations. There is evidence that those who utilize Veterans Affairs facilities for their care have different socioeconomic and medical problems than veterans who opt for community medical care; it would be reasonable to propose that there are differences between veterans and non-veterans as well [ 19 , 20 , 21 ].…”

Sex-Related Disparities in Cardiovascular Health Care Among Patients With Premature Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease

“…Likewise, a large VA employee health study demonstrated similar rates of physical activity, diabetes, and hypertension between women veterans and civilians. However, women veterans reported more depression, PTSD, sleep disorders, and tobacco use . Henceforth, compared with nonveterans, women veterans likely represent a high-risk group .…”