The government has launched a campaign to help improve veterans’
access to healthcare services, along with opening applications
for the £2.52 million Veteran Mobility Fund, as part of its
commitment to drive better veteran health and recovery.
The Veterans Mobility Fund gives veterans with physical
disabilities grants for mobility equipment that is not
usually available on the NHS, such as specialist wheelchairs, and
mobility scooters, to improve their quality of
life. The fund - which is administered by Help for Heroes and
Blesma - is open to veterans across the UK and can be accessed
through Op RESTORE: The Veterans Physical Health and Wellbeing
Service, an NHS service available across England.
The government’s new campaign will help GPs identify which
patients are veterans to ensure they receive the
right diagnosis and referral to veteran mental and physical
healthcare such as Op RESTORE and Op COURAGE: The Veterans Mental
Health and Wellbeing Service.
Veterans will benefit from specialist care from clinicians
who understand the armed forces community through these
services. Op COURAGE provides specialist care and
support for people who have served in the UK Armed Forces and are
experiencing mental ill health. Available across England, the NHS
service also works with a range of charities and local
organisations to provide help with wider health and wellbeing
needs, such as for substance misuse and addictions. Op
RESTORE provides specialist care and support for individuals
who have served in, or are leaving, the UK Armed Forces, and have
continuing physical health injuries and related medical problems
attributed to their time in the Armed Forces.
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, , said:
It is really important to tell your GP that you served so you can
access all the veteran specific support services you are entitled
to.
I want to encourage any veterans to come forward and to seek
help. We stand ready to support our veterans.”
At the same time, The Office for Veterans’
Affairs (OVA) is working with NHS England and the Royal
College of General Practitioners (RCGP) to encourage more GP
practices to become ‘Veteran Friendly’ accredited. Currently,
83.9% of Primary Care Networks in England now include an
accredited practice.
Accredited practices have a clinical lead for veterans’
issues; take steps to identify and record patients as veterans;
undertake dedicated training to better understand the health
needs of veterans and, where appropriate, refer them to
specialist healthcare services designed especially for
them.
Kate Davies, National Director for Armed Forces Health,
NHS England, said:
It’s really important that veterans who need treatment and
support get the help they need and the best way to do this is to
register with a GP practice and tell them you’ve served.
Along with helping to ensure that veterans get the support that’s
right for them, this means that GPs and other healthcare
professionals can better understand any health problems,
particularly those related to a person’s time in the Armed
Forces.
My message to veterans is that it’s never too late to tell your
GP practice you’ve served; it doesn’t matter how long you served
for or when you left the Armed Forces, sharing this information
may be relevant to your health and care, now or in the future,
and the NHS is here for you.
Dr Emily Brookes, the RCGP’s Veterans Clinical Champion,
said:
The Veteran Friendly Accreditation Scheme is designed to help GPs
understand what medical issues are most common in veteran
patients, and can help save time in diagnosing and treating them.
Getting accredited only takes 20 minutes, and sends a strong
signal to veteran patients that you are dedicated to supporting
them, making it more likely that they will feel comfortable to
seek help when they need it.
This follows the news last week that the Government is providing
£26 million to support our bid to host the 2027 Invictus Games
here in the UK.
As part of the cross-government Strategy Action Plan 2022-2024,
the OVA has outlined improved access to healthcare support as a
key strand in delivering a step change in support for
veterans.
