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Priority health care for soldiers Fast-track treatment for veterans
(about 3 hours later)
Injured soldiers are to be given fast-track treatment on the NHS when they return home from action, the government is set to announce. Injured soldiers are to be given fast-track treatment on the NHS when they return home from action, the government has announced.
Six special units will also be set up across the UK to provide therapy to soldiers suffering post-traumatic stress disorder, it will say. Six dedicated mental health units will also be set up across the UK to help soldiers suffering post-traumatic stress disorder.
The units will be in Staffordshire, Shropshire, London, Cardiff, Newcastle, Scotland and St Austell in Cornwall. The units will be in Staffordshire, London, Cardiff, Newcastle, Scotland and St Austell in Cornwall.
The move is a joint initiative between the Department of Health and the MoD. The plan was unveiled by the Department of Health and the Ministry of Defence.
The government will also change the current rules for former soldiers who suffer from service-related injuries to speed up their access to care. Priority NHS treatment specifically for injuries linked to military service is already given to the 170,000 war pensioners in the UK.
Priority NHS treatment specifically for injuries linked to their military service is already given to the 170,000 war pensioners in the UK, but will now be extended to all 4.8m men and women who were once in the forces. Under the new rules, this will be extended to all 4.8m men and women who were once in the forces.
'Gratitude' 'Duty of care'
The access to care will be based on level of need. Access to care will be based on level of need but the government said "priority treatment could still be significant for a small number of veterans".
Health Secretary Alan Johnson said: "Our servicemen and women do an outstanding job. We owe them a debt of gratitude." The community health pilots will be staffed by qualified mental health care professionals with an understanding of the military ethos and expertise in veterans' mental health Derek Twigg, Defence Minister
The community health pilots will be staffed by qualified mental health care professionals with an understanding of the military ethos and expertise in veterans' mental health Derek Twigg Health Secretary Alan Johnson said the government wanted to create "an expert service capable of understanding and responding to the particular problems" that veterans can suffer.
The mental health units will specialise in treating psychological injuries sustained in Iraq and Afghanistan. "Our servicemen and women do an outstanding job," Mr Johnson said.
Approximately 7% of all troops deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq have been diagnosed with mental health disorders. "We owe them a debt of gratitude and a duty of care, particularly those who have developed health problems as a result of their military service."
Defence Minister Derek Twigg said: "The community health pilots will be staffed by qualified mental health care professionals with an understanding of the military ethos and expertise in veterans' mental health." Each of the six mental health units will have a trained veterans' therapist to treat psychological injuries sustained in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The move to prioritise military personnel comes after soldiers and their families complained that they were having trouble accessing quality care upon return from battle in Iraq and Afghanistan. Approximately 7% of all troops deployed to these battlefields have been diagnosed with mental health disorders.
Calls for a return to specialised military hospitals were rejected by the government, which argued that better care and expertise were available within the NHS. Veterans will be able to go to the units directly or be referred by their GP, ex-service organisation, the Veterans' Welfare Service or Social Services.
If the pilot is a success, it will be expanded nationwide.
Depression
Defence Minister Derek Twigg said staff at the mental health units would understand "the military ethos" and be able to give veterans the "best standard of care".
There are some people who have problems such as depression, anxiety, substance misuse problems, interpersonal difficulties Mary RobertsonConsultant psychologist
The mental health unit in Stafford is already open with a therapist travelling throughout Staffordshire and Shropshire to visit veterans. The location for the Scotland pilot is still to be confirmed.
The London unit will be run by Camden and Islington Mental Health and Social Care Trust whose Traumatic Stress Clinic has provided expert treatment to survivors of the 7 July bombings.
Consultant psychologist Mary Robertson, who leads the unit, said: "There are some people who have problems such as depression, anxiety, substance misuse problems, interpersonal difficulties and PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder] as a result of experiences during their service.
"The NHS needs to respond better to this."
The move to prioritise military personnel comes after soldiers and their families complained they were having trouble accessing quality care upon returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Seven of the eight military hospitals around the UK have closed since a Conservative government review in the early 1990s and the last in Haslar, Hampshire, will shut in 2009.Seven of the eight military hospitals around the UK have closed since a Conservative government review in the early 1990s and the last in Haslar, Hampshire, will shut in 2009.
The government says military hospitals cannot match NHS "top-quality treatment", although it has announced the creation of dedicated military wards in Birmingham that offer soldiers a chance to recuperate alongside colleagues. Calls for more military hospitals to be created were rejected by this government, which argued that "top-quality treatment" was available within the NHS.
But it has announced the creation of dedicated military wards in Birmingham that offer soldiers a chance to recuperate alongside colleagues.