Veterans in Care Homes: An International Scoping Review to Inform UK Policy and Practice
In contrast to the mental and physical health needs of veterans, veterans’ social care needs remain relatively neglected by policymakers and researchers. The aim of this study is to inform UK veterans policy and practice by drawing together the expectedly limited international research base on veterans in care homes. An international scoping review of peer-reviewed and grey research literature was conducted, informed by Levac et al.’s (2010) six-stage process. Thirty-three papers were found to meet the inclusion/exclusion criteria. The papers’ contents typically fell into one or more of the following themes: social connection, care preferences and autonomy, and military-related physical and mental health needs. Very little (n = 1) UK-situated research was found, with the majority of retrieved papers (n = 24) being US-based, impeding transferability and relevancy of the findings to a UK context. Veterans’ social care needs were found to be a largely underexplored area of research, especially in the UK. There is a pressing need for UK veterans’ policymakers to redress existing imbalances in the focus of policy and research by raising the status and importance of the social care needs of UK veterans, as has been achieved on the mental and physical health fronts.
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.