UK service personnel medical discharges: financial year 2023/24
This official statistic provides information on medical discharges among UK regular service personnel. The bulletin focuses on medical discharges within the most recent financial year including demographic factors and the medical causes leading to the discharge, as well as providing time trends for the last ten years.
When a medical condition or fitness issue affects a member of the UK armed forces, their ability to perform their duties is assessed. If they are unable to perform their duties and alternative employment within the armed forces is not available, personnel may be medically discharged. Medically discharged personnel leave the armed forces prior to the completion of their contract and may be entitled to additional payments as part of their military pension.
The medical reason for the discharge is recorded and categorised. It is possible for personnel to be medically discharged for multiple reasons
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.