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25 Mar 24. More than half of England’s veterans ‘suffer mental or physical health issues.’
More than half of Army veterans in England have experienced mental or physical health issues since leaving the Armed Forces, a survey suggests.
The survey of 4,910 veterans, commissioned jointly by the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) and the Office for Veterans’ Affairs (OVA), found that 55% have experienced a mental or physical health issue potentially related to their service since returning to civilian life.
More than four in five of those stated that their condition had deteriorated during this time.
Despite this, one in seven said they had not sought help from a healthcare professional, with the most common reasons given they “prefer to manage their issues on their own” and believe a civilian health professional “won’t understand their experiences”.
Some 63% of veterans said they would be more likely to seek help if they knew their GP practice was signed up to the Veteran Friendly Accreditation scheme.
In light of the findings, a new initiative has been launched by the RCGP with NHS England and the OVA to encourage more GP practices to become “veteran friendly”.
Army veteran Jon Lynn, a patient at Orchard Surgery, Bromborough, said he had benefited from being able to access the right support with a veteran friendly accredited GP practice.
“After I left the military, I really struggled with both my mental and physical health and was at my lowest ebb when I eventually decided to seek help from my GP practice and share my service experiences,” he said.
“They immediately understood my needs and issues and were able to quickly refer me to the specialist health services that exist for veterans, where I was diagnosed with PTSD and given help and support to confront and manage both my mental and physical conditions.
“I firmly believe that having access to a veteran friendly accredited GP practice and sharing my status as a veteran saved my life as well as my marriage, enabling me to quickly and easily get the help and support I desperately needed.
“There are lots of veterans like me who are silently struggling with health issues, and I’d encourage all practices to sign up to the scheme, it could make a life-saving difference to your patients who have served in the Armed Forces.”
To date, more than 3,000 of England’s 6,313 GP practices are accredited.
Practices that sign up will be provided with a “simple process” for identifying, understanding and supporting veterans and, where appropriate, referring them to dedicated veterans physical and mental health and wellbeing services.
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Johnny Mercer said that providing veterans with access to world class healthcare is “fundamental” to making the UK “the best country in the world to be a veteran”.
“As this new research shows, veterans are more likely to seek help if they know their practice is veteran friendly accredited,” he said.
“I’m therefore urging those practices that are yet to sign up to ensure our veterans access the support they need.
“This quick and simple step will help encourage more veterans to contact their GP and say they served.
“Doing so will help to ensure that they receive the care that’s right for them, which includes access to veteran-specific NHS health services, such as Op Courage.” (Source: forces.net)
25 Mar 24. Ex-military personnel losing out on six figures in under settled claims. Thousands of ex-military personnel could be owed six-figure lump sums for having previously under settled personal injury claims against the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
Many soldiers’ careers end abruptly due to injuries that could have been prevented – commonly either noise-induced hearing loss or cold injuries.
It is beginning to dawn on increasing numbers of ex service personnel that they have significantly under settled claims due to the negligence of their former lawyers or professionals who have failed to take into account the long-term compensation ex service personnel are owed.
Under settlement of military claims is a common mistake and occurs for a variety of reasons. Usually, full consideration has not been given to the service person’s earning potential post-injury to include any change to their pension entitlement or other benefits. The financial consequences of under settled claims are wide reaching, ranging from the loss of a military career and military pension, military benefits and reduced earning potential in civilian life.
Many injured service personnel are now taking action against their former solicitors for having failed to settle their claim fairly. Figures showed that, in the last 5 years, over 4,000 military claims had been settled, only a small handful of which went to trial. This raises concern that some claimants may have been wrongly advised to under settle their claim in order to bring their matter to an end quickly.
If a claimant has concerns that their solicitor may have been negligent and their case may have been under settled, they usually have six years from the date of the negligence to issue a professional negligence claim at court. In certain circumstances that time scale can be extended, but it is recommended that anyone who is concerned that their case may have under settled seek independent legal advice as soon as possible.
Abigail Flanagan, partner at Hugh James Solicitors, explains: “It is often not until years later that ex-service personnel realise their claims were significantly undervalued by solicitors who did not understand the complexities of such compensation.
What may have seemed like a big lump sum at first does not in fact take into account the lifelong career they would have had in the military, were it not for their injury, and does not reflect the salary and benefits, including pension entitlement, that they would have accrued over the years.
We’re observing a growing number of cases among veterans who are becoming increasingly aware of their circumstances. This realisation often happens through conversations with fellow servicemen who have received substantially higher compensation. For many injured ex-soldiers, who may not have pursued alternative educational or vocational paths, the prospect of a financially challenging future looms. They find themselves in a limited job market and sometimes have to seek low-paying jobs with limited career prospects.”
Pursuing undersettled claims against a negligent solicitor could result in their being awarded significant compensation to reflect what they were entitled to when the claim was initially brought, making all the difference to their futures”.
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SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity, has been providing lifelong support to our Forces and their families since 1885. In 2020, our teams of volunteers and employees helped more than 79,000 people in need, the currently serving (both regulars and reserves), veterans from the Second World War and those who have served in more recent conflicts, as well as their families. SSAFA understands that behind every uniform is a person. And we are here for that person – any time they need us, in any way they need us, for as long as they need us.
https://www.ssafa.org.uk/about-us
https://www.ssafa.org.uk/support-us
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