New mental health service for armed forces veterans in crisis for the North of England

A new NHS service for former armed forces personnel experiencing severe mental health problems has launched ahead of Remembrance Day this November.

The Veterans’ Mental Health High Intensity Service (HIS) provides care and treatment for veterans who are experiencing a mental health crisis and need urgent help. It will do this by working with local mental health services that are already treating a veteran, to improve their experiences and ultimately their health and lives.

The HIS is part of a new national service being rolled out across England. In the North of England, the service is being delivered in partnership between the NHS and well-established veterans’ support charities. Together, they will work with local mental health services to provide:

  • Support to crisis care services for veterans presenting in a mental health crisis
  • Support during an inpatient unit stay – including access to a clinician advice line 24 hours a day, seven days a week
  • Care navigation – helping veterans and their carers find the local services best suited to their needs, and
  • Support and care for family members and carers where they need it.

This new service is part of the NHS Long Term Plan to expand support for all veterans and their families, helping them from their transition out of the armed forces and beyond. This includes the already-established Veterans’ Mental Health Transition, Liaison and Intervention Service (TILS) and the Veterans’ Mental Health Complex Treatment Service (CTS).

The HIS is provided by a collaborative of four expert organisations, including:

The HIS consists of clinical staff with the skills to support veterans and the local mental health services treating them when they are in crisis or admitted to an inpatient ward. This includes a team of psychologists, mental health professionals and Veteran Liaison and Support Officers – some of whom are veterans themselves.

David Rowley, Head of Operations for Regional and Specialist Services at Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I am personally really proud about being able to provide this new service.

“We’ve developed this through a strong collaboration between the NHS, support charities and, most importantly, veterans who have experienced services first hand. It is their stories that have shaped what we offer – notably around supporting their journey through treatment which can include their families.

“Military service is very close to my heart as I have family members and friends who’ve served. I am therefore passionate about being able to ensure that our veterans can receive the care and support they require, especially when they need it most.

“Getting this service up and running during a pandemic is nothing short of incredible. I would like to thank all those involved across our partnership for their dedication and hard work during these difficult circumstances in getting us to a position to be able to offer the service as planned and on time.

“We are confident that working with local services we will improve the experience of ex forces personnel in crisis, helping them to receive the treatment they require and to support their recovery.”

Samantha Hannar-Hughes, Clinical Team Manager for the North of England Veterans’ Mental Health High Intensity Service, said: “We’re really excited to be launching this new service with our partners.

“We know that veterans can struggle to engage with health services, particularly mental health, and sometimes it can take years for them to seek help. This means they can present in crisis to local services that might not have experience of dealing with veterans with complex mental health problems.

“That’s where we can really help. We have an expert team of clinicians and support officers, some of whom are veterans themselves. We’ll get involved really quickly and support veterans and their families through their immediate crisis and into longer term recovery.”

Find out more about the Veterans’ Mental Health High Intensity Service.

 

Mark’s story – how a former Private branded a “waste of space” has recovered

This new service is being supported by veteran Mark Foster. Mark, now based in Northumberland, served as a Private in the Army’s Royal Logistic Corp (RLC) between 2008 and 2012. He has struggled with physical injury, homeless, alcohol addiction and (undiagnosed) post-traumatic distress disorder (PTSD) following the death of a close friend in the Afghanistan conflict.

Read Mark’s full story on our website.

 

How veterans can seek help in the first instance

The Veterans’ Mental Health High Intensity Service is a new NHS service that provides rapid and enhanced mental health support when veterans are in crisis. It works alongside existing specialist mental health services for former armed forces personnel to stop them from becoming as ill as Mark did.

If you are an armed forces veteran (with at least one day’s service), or know someone who is, and need support for mental health, substance misuse or other social issues, you can speak to your GP or contact the NHS Veterans’ Transition Intervention and Liaison Service (TILS) in the first instance on 0303 123 1145 or email vwals@nhs.net.

 

Background information

The need for dedicated and specialist veterans’ mental health services

The veteran population in Great Britain in 2017 was estimated to be 2.4 million, 5% of household residents (aged 16 and over). In the North East this is around 6% of population, whilst in Yorkshire and Humber and North West regions, this is 9-11% of the population.

Research published by the British Medical Journal in 2018 highlighted that serving military personnel are approximately twice as likely to suffer from common mental disorders than the general working population. It also pointed out there is a wide range of research that suggests mental health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are associated with a higher risk of suicide in veterans.

Veterans can take an average of 11 years to seek help for mental health issues, which has also been linked to suicide. Other factors highlighted include being unemployed and being an early service leaver (having less than four years’ service).

This reflects the findings of a 2009 University of Manchester study conducted on veteran suicides. It found that early service leavers below the age of 24 were three times more likely to take their own lives than their civilian counterparts.

A House of Commons Defence Committee report published 2018/19 identified difficulties for veterans accessing services, and that a lack of understanding of the veteran community negatively impacts on them engaging with services and maintaining that engagement. The importance of military understanding from the health care profession was identified as a key aspect to successful interventions and confidence from a veteran that they will be understood. The need for support for families and carers of veterans was also highlighted.

Dedicated specialist mental health support for veterans is a commitment of the NHS Long Term Plan. It aims to expand support for all veterans and their families as they transition out of the armed forces regardless of when people left the service. This includes the already well-established Veterans’ Mental Health Transition, Liaison and Intervention Service (TILS) and the Veterans’ Mental Health Complex Treatment Service (CTS), and the implementation of the Veteran Aware Accreditation Scheme for GPs.  The aim is for every practice in England to join this in the next 5 years.