Veterans Readjusting to Civilian Life

Veterans Readjusting to Civilian Life

Author: Patricia J. Stern

Publisher: Nova Science Publishers

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781634636964

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While many veterans who served in the military after 11 September 2001, have successfully readjusted to civilian life with minimal difficulties in the first few years after they were discharged, others have experienced difficulties. These readjustment difficulties include financial and employment, relationships, legal, homelessness, and substance abuse. According to VA's strategic plan, one of its strategic objectives is to improve veteran wellness and economic security, and it states that the ultimate measure of VA's success is the veteran's success after leaving military service. However, there is limited and incomplete data to assess the extent to which veterans experience readjustment difficulties. Providing support and services for transitioning veterans is a key issue facing the nation. This book examines what is known about the extent to which veterans experience difficulties during their readjustment to civilian life; and how VA assists veterans in their readjustment, as well as what challenges and opportunities exist. This book also addresses the status of the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) implementation; the extent to which elements of effective implementation and evaluation of TAP have been addressed; and any challenges that may remain.


Military Veteran Reintegration

Military Veteran Reintegration

Author: Carl Castro

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2019-08-21

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 012815313X

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Military Veteran Reintegration: Approach, Management, and Assessment of Military Veterans Transitioning to Civilian Life offers a toolkit for researchers and practitioners on best practices for easing the reintegration of military veterans returning to civilian society. It lays out how transition occurs, identifies factors that promote or impede transition, and operationalizes outcomes associated with transition success. Bringing together experts from around the world to address the most important aspects of military transition, the book looks at what has been shown to work and what has not, while also offering a roadmap for best-results moving forward. - Contains evidence-based interventions for military veteran-to-civilian transition - Features international experts from North America, Europe and Asia - Includes how to measure transition outcomes - Outlines recovery programs for the injured and sick - Identifies factors that promote or impede successful transition


Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society

Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2019-10-25

Total Pages: 385

ISBN-13: 0309489539

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The U.S. military has been continuously engaged in foreign conflicts for over two decades. The strains that these deployments, the associated increases in operational tempo, and the general challenges of military life affect not only service members but also the people who depend on them and who support them as they support the nation â€" their families. Family members provide support to service members while they serve or when they have difficulties; family problems can interfere with the ability of service members to deploy or remain in theater; and family members are central influences on whether members continue to serve. In addition, rising family diversity and complexity will likely increase the difficulty of creating military policies, programs and practices that adequately support families in the performance of military duties. Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society examines the challenges and opportunities facing military families and what is known about effective strategies for supporting and protecting military children and families, as well as lessons to be learned from these experiences. This report offers recommendations regarding what is needed to strengthen the support system for military families.


Fields of Combat

Fields of Combat

Author: Erin P. Finley

Publisher: ILR Press

Published: 2011-04-07

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 0801460700

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For many of the 1.6 million U.S. service members who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001, the trip home is only the beginning of a longer journey. Many undergo an awkward period of readjustment to civilian life after long deployments. Some veterans may find themselves drinking too much, unable to sleep or waking from unspeakable dreams, lashing out at friends and loved ones. Over time, some will struggle so profoundly that they eventually are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress Disorder (PTSD). Both heartbreaking and hopeful, Fields of Combat tells the story of how American veterans and their families navigate the return home. Following a group of veterans and their their personal stories of war, trauma, and recovery, Erin P. Finley illustrates the devastating impact PTSD can have on veterans and their families. Finley sensitively explores issues of substance abuse, failed relationships, domestic violence, and even suicide and also challenges popular ideas of PTSD as incurable and permanently debilitating. Drawing on rich, often searing ethnographic material, Finley examines the cultural, political, and historical influences that shape individual experiences of PTSD and how its sufferers are perceived by the military, medical personnel, and society at large. Despite widespread media coverage and public controversy over the military's response to wounded and traumatized service members, debate continues over how best to provide treatment and compensation for service-related disabilities. Meanwhile, new and highly effective treatments are revolutionizing how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides trauma care, redefining the way PTSD itself is understood in the process. Carefully and compassionately untangling each of these conflicts, Fields of Combat reveals the very real implications they have for veterans living with PTSD and offers recommendations to improve how we care for this vulnerable but resilient population.


Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan

Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan

Author: Institute of Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2010-03-31

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 0309152852

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Nearly 1.9 million U.S. troops have been deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq since October 2001. Many service members and veterans face serious challenges in readjusting to normal life after returning home. This initial book presents findings on the most critical challenges, and lays out the blueprint for the second phase of the study to determine how best to meet the needs of returning troops and their families.


Military Transition Theory

Military Transition Theory

Author: Carl Andrew Castro

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-11-07

Total Pages:

ISBN-13: 9783319438436

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This book explores the process through which service members transition from military to civilian life, and the implications of that transition on their mental and physical well-being and functioning. The authors present a theoretical framework that helps conceptualize the process of military transition. The theory is broken into three overlapping components: approaching military transition, which outlines the personal, cultural and transitional factors that create the base of the transition trajectory; managing the transition, which explores the factors impacting the transition's trajectory; and assessing the transition, which describes the outcome of the transition in the realms of work, family, health, and general well-being. The authors then demonstrate how this framework can be applied to practice, providing an opportunity to redefine how we help veterans.


Treating Young Veterans

Treating Young Veterans

Author: Diann Cameron Kelly, PhD, LMSW

Publisher: Springer Publishing Company

Published: 2011-04-22

Total Pages: 375

ISBN-13: 0826107109

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"The editors of Treating Young Veterans and the authors of the individual chapters [provide] practitioners with essential information about the needs, desires, and possibilities for veteransÖand their families. This book represents a thoughtful, sensitive, and sensible approach to working with military personnel and veterans who have been deployed to wars in the Persian Gulf, Iraq, and Afghanistan." From the Foreword by Peter B. Vaughan Dean, Graduate School of Social Service () Fordham University, New York, NY Many veterans unsuccessfully attempt to self-manage their mental and physical health needs. This volume examines the multiple challenges awaiting the new generation of young veterans returning to civilian life, and provides strategies for mental health professionals to assist them in the process of readjustment. It incorporates multidisciplinary, state-of-the-art research to present practice and advocacy opportunities that facilitate a healthy and socially engaged reintegration into society for both traditional veterans (enlisted and career military personnel) and nontraditional veterans (reservists, national guardsmen, and women) aged 18 to 40 years. The volume is divided into three sections: Assessment and Practice Approaches to Promote Resilience; Outreach and Practice With Special Communities, and Advocacy Practice to Promote Young Veterans' Well-Being. Each section includes an introduction highlighting the chapters, and an epilogue delineating important steps in practice, outreach, and advocacy. Key Features: Targets the specific needs of veterans of the Iraqi and Afghani conflicts Includes chapters on women and sexual trauma in the military and homeless combat veterans Addresses the special needs of children of veterans and the nature of ambiguous loss as "veteran-by-proxy," employment issues, and equity issues related to reservists Authored by recognized experts including military officers, attorneys, and Veterans Affairs administrators Designed for both general and scholarly readers


Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2018-03-29

Total Pages: 467

ISBN-13: 0309466601

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Approximately 4 million U.S. service members took part in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Shortly after troops started returning from their deployments, some active-duty service members and veterans began experiencing mental health problems. Given the stressors associated with war, it is not surprising that some service members developed such mental health conditions as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use disorder. Subsequent epidemiologic studies conducted on military and veteran populations that served in the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq provided scientific evidence that those who fought were in fact being diagnosed with mental illnesses and experiencing mental healthâ€"related outcomesâ€"in particular, suicideâ€"at a higher rate than the general population. This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the quality, capacity, and access to mental health care services for veterans who served in the Armed Forces in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn. It includes an analysis of not only the quality and capacity of mental health care services within the Department of Veterans Affairs, but also barriers faced by patients in utilizing those services.


Care of Military Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families

Care of Military Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families

Author: Stephen J. Cozza

Publisher: American Psychiatric Pub

Published: 2014-01-23

Total Pages: 344

ISBN-13: 1585625310

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Care of Military Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families serves a critical need, which has been highlighted by recent reported rates of combat-related stress disorders and traumatic brain injury, as well as increases in suicide rates among service members and veterans over the past decade and the distress and challenges faced by their children and families. More than 2.5 million Americans currently serve in the U.S. military on active duty, in the Reserves, or in the National Guard, and more than 20 million civilians are veterans. Although patients are viewed here in the context of military service, they seek health care in military, veteran, and civilian settings, and their mental health concerns are as diverse as those encountered in the civilian population. This book is designed for clinicians in all care settings and provides thorough coverage of U.S. military structures and cultures across the armed services, as well as detailed material on the particular mental health challenges faced by service members and their families. A full overview of the military lifestyle is provided, including the life cycle of the military (recruitment to retirement), service subcultures (Navy, Army, Marines, Air Force, and Reserve and Guard components), challenges of military life for service members and families (moves, deployments, etc.), and military mental health. Material on military culture provides insight for practitioners who may not be familiar with this population. The book focuses on collaborative care, particularly between the military health care system and the Veterans Administration, providing clinicians with strategies to mitigate stigma and other barriers to care through mental health service delivery in primary care settings. The incidence of traumatic brain injury among service members has increased because of the use of improvised explosive devices, and an entire chapter is devoted to diagnosing and treating these injuries as well as educating patients and their families on the condition. The families of service members face significant challenges, and several chapters are devoted to the needs of military children, the families of ill and injured service members and veterans, deployment-related care, and caring for the bereaved. The book's comprehensive review of resources available to military service members, veterans, and families both ensures high-quality care and reduces the workload for treating physicians. Care of Military Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families is an authoritative and much-needed addition to the mental health literature.