What Did We Miss? Analysis of Military Personnel Responses to an Open-Ended Question in a Post-Deployment Health Survey

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine E Runge ◽  
Katrina M Moss ◽  
Judith A Dean ◽  
Michael Waller
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Air Force ◽  
Military Personnel ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Health Surveys ◽  
Descriptive Statistics ◽  
Organizational Issues ◽  
Institutional Review ◽  
Australian Defence Force ◽  
Response Biases

ABSTRACT Introduction Post-deployment health surveys completed by military personnel ask about a range of deployment experiences. These surveys are conducted to determine if there are links between experiences and poor health. Responses to open-ended questions in these surveys can identify experiences that might otherwise go unreported. These responses may increase knowledge about a particular deployment and inform future surveys. This study documented deployment experiences described by Australian Defence Force personnel who were deployed to the Middle East. Materials and Methods A survey completed by 14,032 personnel examined health outcomes and over 100 experiences relating to their Middle East deployment. Responses to two open-ended questions captured additional experiences. Descriptive statistics reveal the characteristics of those who did and did not describe additional experiences, and a content analysis details the nature and frequency of the experiences reported. The study was approved by an Institutional Review Board. Results Five percentage (n = 692) of personnel who completed the survey described additional deployment experiences. The most frequently reported experiences were specific Navy experiences; experiences of poor leadership; administrative or organizational issues; the anthrax vaccine; and traumatic events/potentially morally injurious experiences. Conclusions The findings suggest that post-deployment health surveys should have questions about certain deployment experiences tailored by military service (i.e., Air Force, Army, and Navy). Researchers could consider including questions about personnel experiences of leadership for its impact on health and about potentially morally injurious experiences that may help explain adverse mental health. Clear wording of open-ended questions and participant instructions may improve response rates and reduce response biases.

Prevalence and pattern of helmet-induced headache among Danish military personnel

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-183
Author(s):  
Z. Rahmani ◽  
A. Kochanek ◽  
J.J. Astrup ◽  
J.N. Poulsen ◽  
P. Gazerani
Keyword(s):  
Military Personnel ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Descriptive Statistics ◽  
Construction Workers ◽  
Moderate Intensity ◽  
External Compression ◽  
Military Helmet ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
The Military

Abstract Aims Headache is a leading reason to seek medical care. Several subtypes of headaches have been defined, one of which is external compression headache. This headache is due to an external physical compression applied on the head. It affects approximately 4% of the general population; however, certain populations for example construction workers and military personnel with particular needs of headwear or helmet are at higher risk for development of this type of headache. Generally, external compression headache is poorly studied and there is no report on helmet-induced headache among Danish military personnel. This survey-based study was designed to investigate prevalence and pattern of helmet-induced external compression headache among these personnel. Methods Questionnaires were carefully developed and delivered to a total of 279 participants who use helmets in the Danish military service. The military of the Northern Jutland region of Denmark facilitated recruitment of study participants. Questionnaires were delivered on paper and anonymous answers were collected and used for further analysis. Data were handled using descriptive statistics. Results Up to 30% of the participants reported headache in relation to wearing the military helmet. Headache was defined as moderate intensity with pressing pain quality mostly located in front of the head. Two types of helmets in this study were different in the weight and padding of the inner part and delivered different pattern of pressure; while one evenly delivered pressure on multiple head regions, the other delivered pressure mostly on the sides and top of the head. This suggests that helmet pressure and headache location might be associated. Conclusions This study was first to demonstrate prevalence and pattern of helmet-induced headache among military personnel in North Jutland, Denmark. Findings of this study call for further attention to helmet-induced headache and strategies to minimize the burden, for example by design of appropriate helmets.

scholarly journals Differences in problem alcohol drinking by military service type among male professional military personnel in South Korea using Military Health Survey data

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. e045279
Author(s):  
Jeongok Park ◽  
Eunyoung Jung ◽  
Eunkyoung Bae
Keyword(s):  
Family Support ◽  
Air Force ◽  
Military Personnel ◽  
Alcohol Drinking ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Problem Drinking ◽  
Military Health ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Service Type ◽  
Sleep Satisfaction

ObjectivesAlcohol drinking prevalence in Korea is higher than in other countries and is associated with various social and health problems. Korean culture tends to be tolerant of alcohol drinking and to regard it as an important medium for maintaining good interpersonal relationships in one’s social life. Although alcohol drinking is a means of relieving stress, especially among soldiers, who engage in more binge drinking than civilians, there is lack of research focused on problem drinking among soldiers. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the extent of problem drinking across all military services and to identify factors associated with problem drinking by military service type.DesignSecondary data analysis.SettingDataset of the Military Health Survey in 2015.ParticipantsAltogether, 2252 male professional military personnel were included in this study.Main outcome measureProblem drinking in this study was defined as at-risk drinking and alcohol abuse or dependence with an Alcohol Use Disorders Identification-Korean (AUDIT-K) score of 10 points or higher.ResultsThe average AUDIT-K score was 7.38±4.10 points. The prevalence of problem drinking was 16.4% for the Army, 34.5% for the Navy and 32.1% for the Air Force. Factors associated with problem drinking for each military service type were sleep satisfaction (OR 2.33, 95% CI 1.284 to 4.236) and family support (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.487 to 0.904) in the Army, smoking status (OR 1.85, 95% CI 1.130 to 3.039) and sleep satisfaction (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.142 to 4.574) in the Navy and marital status (OR 0.60, 95% CI 0.382 to 0.951), smoking (past smokers and non-smokers OR 2.81, 95% CI 1.593 to 4.973, current smokers and non-smokers OR 1.68, 95% CI 1.114 to 2.544), subjective oral health (OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.011 to 3.297) and family support (OR 0.63, 95% CI 0.45 to 0.88) in the Air Force.ConclusionWhen implementing health projects to address drinking problems, it is necessary to ensure that service-type-specific factors are considered for integrated management.

scholarly journals Military Personnel Ratings of a Deployment and Their Positive and Negative Deployment Experiences

2020 ◽  
Vol 185 (9-10) ◽  
pp. e1615-e1623
Author(s):  
Catherine E Runge ◽  
Michael J Waller ◽  
Katrina M Moss ◽  
Judith A Dean
Keyword(s):  
Military Personnel ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Military Leadership ◽  
East Timor ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Negative Experience ◽  
Intrinsic Rewards ◽  
Institutional Review ◽  
Australian Defence Force ◽  
New Finding

Abstract Introduction There is limited investigation of how military personnel evaluate their deployment experiences. An understanding of their perceptions would help unit psychologists to advise commanders on ways to improve the deployment experience (and therefore mental well-being) of personnel. This study examined the interplay between deployment overall ratings, personnel characteristics and positive and negative deployment experiences in aid of such understanding. Materials and Methods The participants were 1,226 Australian Defence Force personnel who deployed to East Timor and (through a survey) provided an overall rating of their deployment and comments on major positive and negative deployment experiences. Descriptive statistics detail ratings by personnel characteristics, and a hybrid content/thematic analysis details the positive and negative experiences. The study was approved by an Institutional Review Board. Results Over 80% of the participants rated their overall East Timor deployment experience as positive, with 13% rating it as neutral and 7% as negative. Intrinsic rewards (eg, ability to use skills) were the most commonly expressed major positive experiences of the deployment, with deployment administration and military leadership the most common negatives. Most intrinsic rewards were reported more often in participants with a positive deployment rating, while poor leadership was most frequent in those with a negative rating. Conclusions Military leadership is corroborated as a negative experience of military deployment, while a new finding indicates that intrinsic rewards are a common feature in positive evaluations of deployment. Leadership is a factor that Defence Forces can address to improve the deployment experience. The study strength is the range and size of the sample, with a limitation the potential for recall bias (the data were collected, on average, 5 years postdeployment). Future research should replicate this type of analysis to build a picture of the experiences and evaluations of personnel from a range of different deployments.

scholarly journals Associations between earplug use and hearing loss in ROK military personnel

2020 ◽  
pp. jramc-2019-001378
Author(s):  
Hwi Jun Kim ◽  
S Y Oh ◽  
S Y Won ◽  
H J Kim ◽  
T K Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Air Force ◽  
Logistic Regression Analysis ◽  
Military Personnel ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Military Health ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Military

IntroductionThe easiest way to prevent noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is to wear earplugs. The Republic of Korea (ROK) Ministry of National Defense (MND) is supplying earplugs to prevent NIHL, but many patients still suffer from this. We speculated that earplugs would have a high NIHL rate, depending on the rate of use of earplugs, regardless of the rate of supply. Therefore, we conducted this study to investigate the relationship between the use of earplugs and hearing loss by ROK military personnel.MethodsThe study used data from the Military Health Survey conducted in 2014–2015, which included 13 470 questionnaires completed by ROK military personnel. Hearing loss and earplug use were self-reported. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess associations between earplug use and hearing loss.ResultsThe study sample included 13 470 ROK military personnel (response rate of 71.2%) (Army, 8330 (61.8%); Navy/Marines, 2236 (16.6%); and Air Force, 2904 (21.6%)). Overall, 18.8% of Korean military personnel reported that they always wore earplugs, and 2.8% reported hearing loss. In logistic regression analysis, there were significant differences in the rates of hearing loss associated with wearing earplugs sometimes (OR=1.48, 95% CI 1.07 to 2.05) and never wearing earplugs (OR=1.53, 95% CI 1.12 to 2.10). In subgroup analysis, in Air Force, non-combat branch, forward area and long-term military service personnel increased hearing loss was associated with not wearing earplugs.ConclusionOur study confirmed that within the ROK military, there is an association between hearing loss and lack of earplug use. In the ROK MND, Army, Navy/Marines and Air Force headquarters must provide guidelines for the use of earplugs during field training to protect military personnel’s hearings and, if necessary, need to be regulated or institutionalised.

scholarly journals The Impact of NORTH STAR on Suicidality, Substance Problems, Intimate Partner Violence, and Child Abuse

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy M Smith Slep ◽  
Richard E Heyman ◽  
Michael F Lorber ◽  
David J Linkh
Keyword(s):  
Intimate Partner Violence ◽  
Child Abuse ◽  
Air Force ◽  
Partner Violence ◽  
Absolute Risk ◽  
Intimate Partner ◽  
Institutional Review Board ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Institutional Review ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Introduction We evaluated the effectiveness of New Orientation for Reducing Threats to Health from Secretive-problems That Affect Readiness (NORTH STAR), a community assessment, planning, and action framework to reduce the prevalence of suicidality, substance problems, intimate partner violence, and child abuse. Materials and Methods One-third of U.S. Air Force bases worldwide were randomly assigned to NORTH STAR (n = 12) or an assessment-and-feedback-only condition (n = 12). Two Air Force-wide, cross-sectional, anonymous, web-based surveys were conducted of randomly selected samples assessing risk/protective factors and outcomes. This study was reviewed and approved by the institutional review board at the investigators’ university and by the institutional review board at Fort Detrick. Results NORTH STAR, relative to control, bases experienced a 33% absolute risk reduction in hazardous drinking rates and cumulative risk, although, given the small number of bases, these effects were not statistically significant. Conclusions Given its relatively low cost, use of empirically supported light-touch interventions, and emphasis on sustainability with existing resources, NORTH STAR may be a useful system for prevention of a range of adult behavioral health problems that are difficult to impact.

scholarly journals Making dialogue with an existential voice in transition from military to civilian life

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 832-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Grimell
Keyword(s):  
Military Personnel ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Longitudinal Research ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Identity Work ◽  
Civilian Life ◽  
Self Identity ◽  
Dialogical Self ◽  
Dialogical Self Theory

Dialogical Self Theory has contributed to the endeavors to map and grid self-identity work in transition from military to civilian life throughout an empirical and longitudinal research project which focuses on existential dimensions. This article is based on a case study from this project and centers upon Sergeant Jonas, who, upon his return from deployment in Afghanistan, struggled with his transition as a new existential position was vocalized throughout the following annual interviews. This voice narrated feelings of meaninglessness, emptiness, and of having been deceived. In turn, this existential voice required an answer to a question which apparently had no answer. The meaning-making eventually evolved into an acceptance which enabled Jonas to proceed with his life. Dialogical processes between positions are important in order to go on with life amid existential concerns in the aftermath of military service since dialogicality of the self opens up a complex of dynamics of meaning-making processes, negotiations, and transformations. Based on the findings, it is suggested that the Personal Position Repertoire could potentially be strengthened by the addition of an internal existential position to its standard repertoire, at least when working with military personnel and/or veterans.

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