O5C.3 The mental health impact of deployment to iraq and afghanistan: what does the current data show?

Abstract

The longer term mental health outcomes of UK serving and ex-serving personnel have been the subject of much speculation. The latest research findings from the third phase of a longitudinal study will be presented, which is the only military cohort study of its kind in the UK. Data was collected among 8093 personnel between 2014 and 2016. The study examined the prevalence of mental disorders and alcohol misuse, whether rates differed between serving and ex-serving regular personnel and the impact of various deployment exposures. The prevalence of probable posttraumatic stress disorder was 6.2% (95% confidence interval (CI) 5.5–6.9), 21.9% (95% CI 20.8–23.0) for common mental disorders and 10.0% (95% CI 9.2–10.9) for alcohol misuse. Deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan and self-reported role during deployment were associated with significantly worse mental health outcomes and alcohol misuse in ex-serving regular personnel but not in currently serving regular personnel. There was no association with number of deployments for any outcome. The findings highlight the importance of the continued monitoring of following personnel throughout their military career and beyond. The implications of the study outcomes will be discussed in the light of the mental health provision for serving and ex-serving personnel.