UK military helmet design and test methods

The aim of this paper was to provide the military medical community with an expert summary of military helmets used by HM Armed Forces. The design of military helmets and test methods used to determine the fragmentation and non-ballistic impact protection are discussed. The helmets considered are Parachutist, Combat Vehicle Crewman, Mk6, Mk6A, Mk7 and VIRTUS. The helmets considered provide different levels of fragmentation and non-ballistic impact protection dictated by the materials available at the time of the helmet design and the end-user requirement. The UK Ministry of Defence defines the area of coverage of military helmets by considering external anatomical features to provide protection to the brain and the majority of the brainstem. Established test methods exist to assess the performance of the helmet with respect to the threats; however, these test methods do not typically consider anatomical vulnerability.

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High prevalence of pituitary dysfunction following blast traumatic brain injury: results from the UK Blast Injury Outcome Study of Armed Forces Personnel (BIOSAP)

Endocrine Abstracts ◽

10.1530/endoabs.31.p255 ◽

2013 ◽

pp. 1-1

Author(s):

Claire Feeney ◽

David Baxter ◽

David Sharp ◽

Debbie Peters ◽

Timothy Ham ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Traumatic Brain Injury ◽

Brain Injury ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Blast Injury ◽

Outcome Study ◽

Pituitary Dysfunction ◽

Blast Traumatic Brain Injury ◽

High Prevalence ◽

The Uk

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Specialist infantry and defence engagement

BMJ Military Health ◽

10.1136/bmjmilitary-2020-001455 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. bmjmilitary-2020-001455 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jonathan Blair Thomas Herron ◽

K M Heil ◽

D Reid

Keyword(s):

Armed Forces ◽

Short Term ◽

The Future ◽

Uk Government ◽

The Uk ◽

Insight Into

In 2015, the UK government published the National Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) 2015, which laid out their vision for the future roles and structure of the UK Armed Forces. SDSR 2015 envisaged making broader use of the Armed Forces to support missions other than warfighting. One element of this would be to increase the scale and scope of defence engagement (DE) activities that the UK conducts overseas. DE activities traditionally involve the use of personnel and assets to help prevent conflict, build stability and gain influence with partner nations as part of a short-term training teams. This paper aimed to give an overview of the Specialist Infantry Group and its role in UK DE. It will explore the reasons why the SDSR 2015 recommended their formation as well as an insight into future tasks.

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Military Veterans and Welfare Reform: Bridging Two Policy Worlds through Qualitative Longitudinal Research

Social Policy and Society ◽

10.1017/s1474746421000166 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-14

Author(s):

Lisa Scullion ◽

Katy Jones ◽

Peter Dwyer ◽

Celia Hynes ◽

Philip Martin

Keyword(s):

Welfare Reform ◽

Longitudinal Research ◽

Military Veterans ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Veterans Affairs ◽

Civilian Life ◽

Policy And Practice ◽

Policy Makers ◽

The Social ◽

The Uk

There has been an increasing focus in the UK on the support provided to the Armed Forces community, with the publication of the Armed Forces Covenant (2011), the Strategy for our Veterans (2018) and the first ever Office for Veterans’ Affairs (2019). There is also an important body of research – including longitudinal research – focusing on transitions from military to civilian life, much of which is quantitative. At the same time, the UK has witnessed a period of unprecedented welfare reform. However, research focused on veterans’ interactions with the social security system has been largely absent. This article draws on the authors’ experiences of undertaking qualitative longitudinal research (QLR) to address this knowledge gap. We reflect on how QLR was essential in engaging policy makers enabling the research to bridge the two parallel policy worlds of veterans’ support and welfare reform, leading to significant policy and practice impact.

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Military and demographic predictors of mental ill-health and socioeconomic hardship among UK veterans

BMC Psychiatry ◽

10.1186/s12888-021-03296-x ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

H. Burdett ◽

N. T. Fear ◽

S. Wessely ◽

R. J. Rona

Keyword(s):

Socioeconomic Status ◽

Common Mental Disorders ◽

Economic Status ◽

Childhood Adversity ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Sociodemographic Factors ◽

Post Traumatic Stress ◽

Length Of Service ◽

Socioeconomic Outcomes ◽

The Uk

Abstract Background Around 8% of the UK Armed Forces leave in any given year, and must navigate unfamiliar civilian systems to acquire employment, healthcare, and other necessities. This paper determines longer-term prevalences of mental ill health and socioeconomic outcomes in UK Service leavers, and how they are related to demographic factors, military history, and pre-enlistment adversity. Methods This study utilised data from a longitudinal sample of a cohort study UK Armed Forces personnel since 2003. A range of self-reported military and sociodemographic factors were analysed as predictors of probable Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, common mental disorders, alcohol misuse, unemployment and financial hardship. Prevalences and odds ratios of associations between predictors and outcomes were estimated for regular veterans in this cohort. Results Veteran hardship was mostly associated with factors linked to socio-economic status: age, education, and childhood adversity. Few military-specific factors predicted mental health or socio-economic hardship, except method of leaving (where those leaving due to medical or unplanned discharge were more likely to encounter most forms of hardship as veterans), and rank which is itself related to socioeconomic status. Conclusion Transition and resettlement provisions become increasingly generous with longer service, yet this paper shows the need for those services becomes progressively less necessary as personnel acquire seniority and skills, and instead could be best targeted at unplanned leavers, taking socioeconomic status into consideration. Many will agree that longer service should be more rewarded, but the opposite is true if provision instead reflects need rather than length of service. This is a social, political and ethical dilemma.

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Exploring positive pathways to care for members of the UK Armed Forces receiving treatment for PTSD: a qualitative study

European Journal of Psychotraumatology ◽

10.3402/ejpt.v5.21759 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 21759 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

Dominic Murphy ◽

Elizabeth Hunt ◽

Olga Luzon ◽

Neil Greenberg

Keyword(s):

Qualitative Study ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Pathways To Care ◽

The Uk

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The Development of Non-Religious Pastoral Support in the UK

Religions ◽

10.3390/rel12100812 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (10) ◽

pp. 812

Author(s):

David Savage

Keyword(s):

Religious Beliefs ◽

Adult Population ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Support Network ◽

Active Listening ◽

Carl Rogers ◽

Inclusive Language ◽

Set Up ◽

Pastoral Support ◽

The Uk

In UK society today, over half of the adult population identify as ‘non-religious’. Of those, about three quarters describe themselves as very or extremely non-religious. The ‘non-religious’ can be seen not merely as those without religion but as people with seriously and sincerely held non-religious beliefs. Responding to this situation, Humanists UK set up the Non-Religious Pastoral Support Network to meet the need for non-religious pastoral care. In healthcare and prisons, they have trained hundreds of volunteers to offer an active listening service based on a humanistic Carl Rogers approach, conduct ceremonies, improve education, and provide advocacy, all grounded in non-religious worldviews. Those completing an appropriate Master’s degree have been successfully recruited by the National Health Service into paid professional roles. However, the Prison Service and Armed Forces still restrict such recruitment to people with religious beliefs. Further progress will be enhanced by using more respectful and inclusive language (rather than ‘nones’ and ‘chaplaincy’), promoting equality in recruitment, and adopting a person-centred approach where service users determine their pastoral and spiritual care priorities.

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Stability of recall of military hazards over time

The British Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1192/bjp.183.4.314 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 183 (4) ◽

pp. 314-322 ◽

Cited By ~ 88

Author(s):

S. Wessely ◽

C. Unwin ◽

M. Hotopf ◽

L. Hull ◽

K. Ismail ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Health ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Significant Rise ◽

Self Report ◽

Psychological Status ◽

Post Traumatic Stress ◽

Post Traumatic ◽

The Uk ◽

Changes Over Time ◽

Over Time

BackgroundWartime traumatic events are related to subsequent psychological and physical health, but quantifying the association is problematic. Memory changes over time and is influenced by psychological status.AimsTo use a large, two-stage cohort study of members of the UK armed forces to study changes in recall of both traumatic and ‘toxic’ hazards.MethodA questionnaire-based follow-up study assessed 2370 UK military personnel, repeating earlier questions about exposure to military hazards.ResultsThe κ statistics for reporting of hazards were good for some exposures, but very low for others. Gulf veterans reported more exposures over time (no significant rise in the Bosnia cohort). In the Gulf cohort only, reporting new exposures was associated with worsening health perception, and forgetting previously reported exposures with improved perception. We found no association between physical health, psychological morbidity or post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and endorsement or non-endorsement of exposures.ConclusionsReporting of military hazards after a conflict is not static, and is associated with current self-rated perception of health. Self-report of exposures associated with media publicity needs to be treated with caution.

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