Multiple deprivation in help-seeking UK veterans

Abstract: Aims: The aim of this report is to provide an overview on the experiences of deprivation in a national sample of veterans with mental health difficulties. As such, we hope that this will aid service development and planning by informing on how to best target specialised military support to veterans. It is also hoped that the overview will serve as a guide to other service providers and charitable organisations working with veterans. The UK Government routinely collects data on a range of deprivation indices which are combined to be called the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD). The IMD is a relative measure of the different social and economic types of deprivation; including financial, health, education and crime rates. Being a relative measure allows for an individual’s score to be compared nationally. In this study we linked the IMD to a sample of veterans who were engaged with Combat Stress. Combat Stress is the largest provider of community and residential multidisciplinary evidence-based mental health interventions in the United Kingdom, after the NHS. It is the leading specialist clinical service provider for veterans with some services commissioned by the NHS. Method: This report explored demographics, multiple deprivation (using the IMD), military history and help-seeking from a national sample of UK veterans who were at all stages of treatment at Combat Stress. The sample comprised of 3,120 veterans who were all active clients of Combat Stress as of 1 February 2016 and had had an appointment with the charity in the preceding year.