Leaving armed services early may mean '˜greater mental health risk'

The risk of military personnel developing mental health problems is greatest in veterans who have served for the shortest timescale and becomes less with longer service, a study by the University of Glasgow has revealed.

Picture: MoD

Previous research showed that overall military personnel were more likely to suffer mental illness than civilians, with combat believed to be the biggest risk factor.

However, this new study analysed the long-term risks of hospital admission for common mental health problems – including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and psychotic illness – in veterans by length of service.

Lead researcher Dr Beverley Bergman said she believed adverse childhood events could make some people more likely to be both an early service leaver and more predisposed to mental health problems. But others from similar backgrounds could be resilient, benefitting from the camaraderie in the services.

Researchers found those who left earliest had a 50 per cent higher risk than people with no record of service: that also included people who left before completing training.

Longer service was associated with better mental health outcomes with people who completed at least four years’ service being at no greater risk than civilians, while people with the longest service had a 40 per cent reduction in risk.

Dr Bergman said the findings could help target resources for support more effectively.

“The early service leavers are a particularly vulnerable group. That’s where we should be targeting our resources.

“This is an important study which has confirmed that although there was an increased risk of developing mental illness in military veterans, it was highest in people who left before they finished their initial military training.

“These individuals cannot have been deployed or seen combat. We believe pre-service vulnerabilities contribute to both early separation from service and long-term mental health problems.

“In this study longer service, which often means more deployments, was associated with better mental health in most veterans.”

Dr Walter Busuttil, director of medical services at Combat Stress, said: “While the study gives us an opportunity to better understand the veteran population in Scotland, it is not representative of the unique needs of ex-servicemen and women who seek support for mental health difficulties.

“Combat Stress is conducting research on the particular needs of help-seeking veterans, which will enable us to design appropriate clinical services.”