Living in our Shoes: Understanding the Needs of UK Armed Forces Families
Summary: This review was commissioned by the Ministry of Defence to explore the needs and concerns raised by Armed Forces families, as well as make recommendations for change. The responses to the Call for Evidence were extremely detailed and thoughtful, and concerns about various issues were tempered with positive comments about the exciting experiences and considerable opportunities that military life offers to members of the Armed Forces community. During the analysis of written submissions, face-to-face discussions, and our own observations at military bases, a number of key themes emerged about the challenges experienced by military families today. Across all three Services, the key issues raised were: accommodation, mobility, deployment and the amount of time, Serving personnel spend apart from their families, the impact of Service life on children and young people, the employment and careers of spouses/partners, the health and well-being of Serving personnel and family members and the impact of military life on personal relationships.
Abstract: The U.S. Army’s Ask, Care, Escort (ACE) suicide gatekeeper training has been the annual requirement for all personnel since 2009; however, this training has never been formally evaluated. The present study evaluated three updated versions of ACE: a training for Army leaders (ACE-Suicide Intervention), a training for basic combat trainees (ACE for Basic Combat Training and One Station Unit Training), and a standard training for all personnel (ACE for the Force). Self-report surveys measured pre- to posttraining changes in objective and subjective knowledge and stigma, as well as preparedness, self-efficacy, and likelihood to engage in gatekeeper behaviors. Implementation outcomes, such as training acceptability, suitability, and usability were also assessed. Across these evaluations, participants reported that knowledge and gatekeeper behaviors significantly improved from pre- to posttraining. Implementation metrics revealed a high degree of acceptability and relevance for all three ACE trainings. Overall, the findings of these evaluations suggest important changes in key suicide prevention outcomes following the ACE suite of trainings. Further longitudinal assessment is needed to establish the full effectiveness of gatekeeper interventions in the Army.