Improving the awareness and care of veterans in healthcare services
Intended for healthcare professionals
Evidence and practice    

Improving the awareness and care of veterans in healthcare services

Hilary Engward Senior research fellow, Veterans and Families Institute for Military Social Research, Anglia Ruskin University, Essex, England
Kristina Fleuty Research assistant, Veterans and Families Institute for Military Social Research, Anglia Ruskin University, Essex, England

Why you should read this article:
  • To recognise the unique healthcare needs of veterans of the armed forces

  • To understand how you can provide evidence-based healthcare for veterans

  • To remain aware of the changing demographics of the armed forces, which will ensure that healthcare remains relevant

This article aims to raise awareness of veterans (people who have served in the UK military) who are receiving nursing care. Nurses will often provide care and treatment for veterans, so they should be aware of the potential health needs of this patient group to provide optimum care. Veterans should receive priority treatment where it relates to a condition that results from their service in the armed forces. Therefore, it is important for healthcare professionals to recognise if patients may be veterans and if their conditions are attributable to military service. Increased awareness of veterans is required in primary care services, as well as in healthcare professionals’ education and training, to ensure that they gain access to appropriate care and support.

Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2019.e11190

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

@happeehil

Correspondence

hilary.engward@anglia.ac.uk

Conflict of interest

None declared

Engward H, Fleuty K (2019) Improving the awareness and care of veterans in healthcare services. Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2019.e11190

Published online: 12 August 2019

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