Well-being of Canadian Armed Forces Veterans and Spouses of Veterans during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Protocol for a Prospective Longitudinal Survey (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Callista A Forchuk ◽  
Anthony Nazarov ◽  
Rachel A Plouffe ◽  
Jenny JW Liu ◽  
Erisa Deda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Longitudinal Survey ◽  
Lifestyle Changes ◽  
Baseline Data ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal

BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant changes to everyday life, including social distancing mandates, changes to health care, and a heightened risk of infection. Previous research has shown that Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Veterans are at higher risk of developing mental and physical health conditions. Veterans and their families may face unique social challenges that can compound with pandemic-related disruptions to negatively impact well-being. OBJECTIVE This study aims to longitudinally characterize the mental health of CAF Veterans and spouses of CAF Veterans throughout the pandemic and to understand the dynamic influences of pandemic-related stressors on psychological health over time. METHODS We employed a prospective longitudinal panel design using an online data collection platform. Study participation was open to all CAF Veterans and spouses of CAF Veterans residing in Canada. Participants were asked to complete a comprehensive battery of assessments representing psychological well-being, chronic pain, health care access patterns, physical environment, employment, social integration, and adjustment to pandemic-related lifestyle changes. Follow-up assessments were conducted every three months over an 18-month period. This study was approved by the Western University Health Sciences and Lawson Health Research Institute Research Ethics Boards. RESULTS Baseline data were collected between July 2020 and February 2021. Three population segments participated in the study: 1047 Veterans, 366 spouses of Veterans, and 125 Veterans who are also spouses of Veterans completed baseline data collection. As of November 2021, data collection is ongoing, with participants completing the 9 or 12-month follow-up surveys depending on their date of self-enrollment. Data collection across all timepoints will be complete in September 2022. CONCLUSIONS This longitudinal survey is unique in its comprehensive assessment of domains relevant to Veterans and spouses of Veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic, ranging from occupational, demographic, social, mental and physical domains, to perceptions and experiences with health care treatments and access. The results of this study will be used to inform policy for Veteran and Veteran family support, and to best prepare for similar emergencies should they occur in the future.

scholarly journals Rationale and Methodology of the 2018 Canadian Armed Forces Members and Veterans Mental Health Follow-up Survey (CAFVMHS): A 16-year Follow-up Survey: Raison D’être Et Méthodologie De L’enquête De Suivi Sur La Santé Mentale Des Membres Des Forces Armées Canadiennes Et Des Anciens Combattants, 2018 (ESSMFACM)

2020 ◽  
pp. 070674372097483
Author(s):  
Tracie O. Afifi ◽  
Shay-Lee Bolton ◽  
Natalie Mota ◽  
Ruth Ann Marrie ◽  
Murray B. Stein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Health Survey ◽  
Military Personnel ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces ◽  
Statistics Canada ◽  
Health And Well Being

Objective: Knowledge is limited regarding the longitudinal course and predictors of mental health problems, suicide, and physical health outcomes among military and veterans. Statistics Canada, in collaboration with researchers at the University of Manitoba and an international team, conducted the Canadian Armed Forces Members and Veterans Mental Health Follow-Up Survey (CAFVMHS). Herein, we describe the rationale and methods of this important survey. Method: The CAFVMHS is a longitudinal survey design with 2 time points (2002 and 2018). Regular Force military personnel who participated in the first Canadian Community Health Survey Cycle 1.2—Mental Health and Well-Being, Canadian Forces Supplement (CCHS-CFS) in 2002 ( N = 5,155) were reinterviewed in 2018 ( n = 2,941). The World Mental Health Survey–Composite International Diagnostic Interview was used with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition ( DSM-IV) criteria. Results: The CAFVMHS includes 2,941 respondents (66% veterans; 34% active duty) and includes data on mental disorder diagnoses, physical health conditions, substance use, medication use, general health, mental health services, perceived need for care, social support, moral injury, deployment experiences, stress, physical activity, military-related sexual assault, childhood experiences, and military and sociodemographic information. Conclusions: The CAFVMHS provides a unique opportunity to further understand the health and well-being of military personnel in Canada over time to inform intervention and prevention strategies and improve outcomes. The data are available through the Statistics Canada Research Data Centres across Canada and can be used cross-sectionally or be longitudinally linked to the 2002 CCHS-CFS data.

Perceptions of Canadian Armed Forces Health Services health care professionals on cognitive assessment processes

2021 ◽  
pp. e20200066
Author(s):  
Chelsea Jones ◽  
Lorraine Smith-MacDonald ◽  
Suzette Brémault-Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Brain Injuries ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces ◽  
Qualitative Thematic Analysis ◽  
Cognitive Screen ◽  
And Function

Lay Summary Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Service Members (SMs) experience mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI), which can affect cognitive functioning. Adequate cognitive functioning is needed to perform military duties safely and function in all aspects of life. A standardized process that includes cognitive screen/assessment within a mTBI rehabilitation strategy is not widely used within Canadian Forces Health Services (CFHS). A qualitative thematic analysis nested within an implementation science approach was used to explore the experiences of 17 CFHS health care professionals who perform cognitive screens/assessments. Perceived facilitators, barriers, and recommendations for improving cog-nitive assessment practices for injured CAF-SMs were identified within 5 themes. Development and implementation of cognitive screen/assessment policies and protocols will enable CFHS to best assess and treat cognitive dysfunction among CAF-SMs.

Sex and gender: More than just demographic variables

2021 ◽  
pp. e20210027
Author(s):  
Callaghan Walter
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Demographic Variables ◽  
Sex And Gender ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Published Research ◽  
Health And Well Being

LAY SUMMARY Taking as a starting point that sex and gender are not the same thing, a principal understanding of Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+), this article reviews research published in 2020 on the health and well-being of Veterans and currently serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces. The purpose of this review was to see how sex and gender were referred to in this published literature. The published research tended not to differentiate between sex and gender, often using the two terms as though they referred to the same thing. Possible reasons for why this has happened are explored, as is the importance of treating sex and gender as fundamentally different things.

Retrospective cohort study of outpatient mental health visits in children and youth in Canadian military families

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alyson L. Mahar ◽  
Heidi Cramm ◽  
Isabel Garces ◽  
Alice B. Aiken ◽  
Simon Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
General Population ◽  
Military Families ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children And Youth ◽  
Health Services Use ◽  
Physician Visits ◽  
Outpatient Mental Health ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces

LAY SUMMARY This study tried to answer the question “Do children and youth in military families have a greater risk of emotional and behavioural problems than children and youth in the general population?” The authors used routinely collected health data from children and youth in Canadian Armed Forces families who relocated to Ontario, matched to data from children and youth in non-military families. They compared outpatient mental health services use, such as physician visits, and the reasons for those visits, such as depression. They found that children and youth in military families were more likely to visit a physician for specific mental health diagnoses than children and youth in the general population. More programming and resources supporting the mental health and well-being of children and youth in military families may be needed.

scholarly journals The Design and Development of the Father-Child Instrument (FCI) for Assessing the Characteristics of Fathers’ Availability and Engagement With Their Preschool Children

2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina Halme ◽  
Marja-Terttu Tarkka ◽  
Eija Paavilainen ◽  
Tapio Nummi ◽  
Päivi Åstedt-Kurki
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Preschool Children ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Health Care Research ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Design And Development ◽  
Care Research ◽  
The Family ◽  
Child Involvement ◽  
Health And Well Being

Despite the fact that father—child involvement has extensive effects on the health and well-being of the family, there is a paucity of research on fathers’ presence in health care research. The design and development of an instrument for assessing the characteristics of fathers’ availability and engagement with their preschool-aged children in Finland is presented. Data collection was undertaken in two separate periods involving 263 and 821 fathers. Results indicate that the father—child instrument (FCI) is ready for use in research seeking to assess fathers’ availability and engagement with their preschoolers. Further research is nonetheless required to assess the potential for a more sensitive interaction and for the generalization of the FCI.

scholarly journals Digitalizing a Brief Intervention to Reduce Intrusive Memories of Psychological Trauma for Health Care Staff Working During COVID-19: Exploratory Pilot Study With Nurses (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Singh ◽  
Marie Kanstrup ◽  
Katherine Depa ◽  
Ann-Charlotte Falk ◽  
Veronica Lindström ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Mixed Method ◽  
Traumatic Events ◽  
Psychological Trauma ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Health Care Staff ◽  
Intrusive Memories

BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the worldwide need for simple remotely delivered (digital) scalable interventions that can also be used preventatively to protect the mental health of health care staff exposed to psychologically traumatic events during their COVID-19–related work. We have developed a brief behavioral intervention that aims to reduce the number of intrusive memories of traumatic events but has only been delivered face-to-face so far. After digitalizing the intervention materials, the intervention was delivered digitally to target users (health care staff) for the first time. The adaption for staff’s working context in a hospital setting used a co-design approach. OBJECTIVE The aims of this mixed method exploratory pilot study with health care staff who experienced working in the pandemic were to pilot the intervention that we have digitalized (for remote delivery and with remote support) and adapted for this target population (health care staff working clinically during a pandemic) to explore its ability to reduce the number of intrusive memories of traumatic events and improve related symptoms (eg, posttraumatic stress) and participant’s perception of their functioning, and to explore the feasibility and acceptability of both the digitalized intervention and digitalized data collection. METHODS We worked closely with target users with lived experience of working clinically during the COVID-19 pandemic in a hospital context (registered nurses who experienced intrusive memories from traumatic events at work; N=3). We used a mixed method design and exploratory quantitative and qualitative analysis. RESULTS After completing the digitalized intervention once with remote researcher support (approximately 25 minutes) and a brief follow-up check-in, participants learned to use the intervention independently. All 3 participants reported zero intrusive memories during week 5 (primary outcome: 100% digital data capture). Prior to study inclusion, two or more intrusions in the week were reported preintervention (assessed retrospectively). There was a general pattern of symptom reduction and improvement in perceived functioning (eg, concentration) at follow-up. The digitalized intervention and data collection were perceived as feasible and rated as acceptable (eg, all 3 participants would recommend it to a colleague). Participants were positive toward the digital intervention as a useful tool that could readily be incorporated into work life and repeated in the face of ongoing or repeated trauma exposure. CONCLUSIONS The intervention when delivered remotely and adapted for this population during the pandemic was well received by participants. Since it could be tailored around work and daily life and used preventatively, the intervention may hold promise for health care staff pending future evaluations of efficacy. Limitations include the small sample size, lack of daily intrusion frequency data in the week before the intervention, and lack of a control condition. Following this co-design process in adapting and improving intervention delivery and evaluation, the next step is to investigate the efficacy of the digitalized intervention in a randomized controlled trial.

scholarly journals The Effect of Improved Access to Family Planning on Postpartum Women: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahesh Karra ◽  
David Canning
Keyword(s):  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Family Planning ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Contraceptive Use ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Birth Spacing ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Causal Impact

BACKGROUND The World Health Organization recommends that a woman waits at least 24 months after a live birth before getting pregnant again; however, an estimated 25% of birth intervals in low-income countries do not meet this recommendation for adequate birth spacing, and the unmet need for postpartum family planning (PPFP) services is high. Few randomized controlled trials have assessed the causal impact of access to PPFP services, and even fewer evaluations have investigated how such interventions may affect postpartum contraceptive use, birth spacing, and measures of health and well-being. OBJECTIVE This protocol paper aims to describe a randomized controlled trial that is being conducted to identify the causal impact of an intervention to improve access to PPFP services on contraceptive use, pregnancy, and birth spacing in urban Malawi. The causal effect of the intervention will be determined by comparing outcomes for respondents who are randomly assigned to an intervention arm against outcomes for respondents who are randomly assigned to a control arm. METHODS Married women aged 18-35 years who were either pregnant or had recently given birth were randomly assigned to either the intervention arm or control arm. Women assigned to the intervention arm received a package of services over a 2-year intervention period. Services included a brochure and up to 6 home visits from trained family planning counselors; free transportation to a high-quality family planning clinic; and financial reimbursement for family planning services, consultations, and referrals for services. Two follow-up surveys were conducted 1 and 2 years after the baseline survey. RESULTS A total of 2143 women were randomly assigned to either the intervention arm (n=1026) or the control arm (n=1117). Data collection for the first follow-up survey began in August 2017 and was completed in February 2018. A total of 1773 women, or 82.73% of women who were eligible for follow-up, were successfully contacted and reinterviewed at the first follow-up. Data collection for the second follow-up survey began in August 2018 and was completed in February 2019. A total of 1669 women, or 77.88% of women who were eligible for follow-up, were successfully contacted and reinterviewed at the second follow-up. The analysis of the primary outcomes is ongoing and is expected to be completed in 2021. CONCLUSIONS The results of this trial seek to fill the current knowledge gaps in the effectiveness of family planning interventions on improving fertility and health outcomes. The findings also show that the benefits of improving access to family planning are likely to extend beyond the fertility and health domain by improving other measures of women’s well-being. CLINICALTRIAL American Economics Association Registry Trial Number AEARCTR-0000697; https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/697 Registry for International Development Impact Evaluations (RIDIE) Trial Number RIDIE-STUDY-ID-556784ed86956; https://ridie.3ieimpact.org/index.php?r=search/detailView&id=320 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT DERR1-10.2196/16697

scholarly journals Yoga and Canadian Armed Forces members' well-being: an analysis based on select physiological and psychological measures

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 53-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dianne Groll ◽  
Danielle Charbonneau ◽  
Stéphanie Bélanger ◽  
Samantha Senyshyn
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Psychological Measures ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces
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