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Well-Being of Canadian Veterans during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Cross-Sectional Results from the COVID-19 Veteran Well-Being Study
Research has highlighted the negative impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the general health and well-being of Canadians. Lifestyle changes associated with the pandemic such as stay-at home orders and changes to healthcare delivery can be particularly challenging for at-risk populations such as Veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).
What is this Research About?
This research looks at if and how COVID-19 impacted the mental health of Canadian Veterans. The study also asked Veterans their thoughts on and satisfaction with changes in healthcare treatments and delivery during the pandemic.
What did the Researchers Do?
The researchers developed an online survey to ask Veterans about topics such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), generalized anxiety disorder, alcohol use and access to healthcare. The survey, available in English and French, was open to all CAF Veterans over the age of 18 residing in Canada during the baseline data collection period (July 7, 2020 to February 1, 2021). Follow-up surveys were also conducted but this paper only examines the baseline data associated with the larger initiative.
What did the Researchers Find?
Of the 1,136 CAF Veterans who completed the baseline assessment:
- the mean age was 55.3 years
- 76% were male
- 92% self-identified as white
- the average length of military service was 20.2 years
- 77% were married, or in a common-law or long-term relationship
Most Veterans (56%) reported that their mental health and/or mental health symptoms got worse as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Among Veterans who reported mental health symptoms, many noted their symptoms were either directly related to or made worse by the pandemic, including symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (53%); major depressive disorder (48%) and PTSD (39%)
48% of Veterans surveyed reported difficulty accessing healthcare
18% of Veterans were using telehealth services to access mental healthcare during the pandemic. Among these individuals, 73% said they would recommend telehealth to a friend, and 73% indicated that they would choose to continue with telehealth services in the future if in-person is inconvenient.
Almost half (44%) of employed Veterans expressed concerns about employment stability during the pandemic and some faced changes such as reduced hours (19%), reduced income (14%) and layoffs (5%). Many transitioned to telework (46%) and over two-thirds (69%) of these workers said that this increased their stress.
These results show how important it is to reach out and support Veterans during the pandemic, especially those with pre-existing mental health conditions. The use of virtual care services (telehealth) for mental health services was widely endorsed by those Veterans who used this service during the pandemic. The findings suggest that program administrators should maintain and enhance virtual care options even after the pandemic is over.
Source
J. Don Richardson, Kate St Cyr, Callista Forchuk, Jenny J. W. Liu, Rachel A. Plouffe, Tri Le, Dominic Gargala, Erisa Deda, Vanessa Soares, Fardous Hosseiny, Patrick Smith, Gabrielle Dupuis, Maya Roth, Andrew Bridgen, Michelle Marlborough, Rakesh Jetly, Alexandra Heber, Ruth Lanius & Anthony Nazarov (2022) Well-being of Canadian Veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross-sectional results from the COVID-19 Veteran well-being study, European Journal of Psychotraumatology 13:1, January 2022.