Person-centered older military veteran care when there are consequences

Older Military Veteran Care: Many Still Believe They Are Forgotten

“…In order to better holistically serve and effectively assist the older veteran, nurses within civilian health care centers, outpatient facilities, and/or home health agencies will need to know more about the culture and experiences of those with military service (Coll, Weiss, & Yarvis, 2012;Conard, Armstrong, Young, Lacy, & Billings, 2016). Using the Korean War (1950)(1951)(1952)(1953) as a backdrop to illustrate the interconnectiveness of physical, emotional, and spiritual concerns that can be present with older veterans, the purposes of this article are to provide a brief historical snapshot of the war (Figure 1), and discuss prior-era military environmental situations that are now producing the current lingering effects of combat exposure.…”

“…For a long time, it was considered to be an isolated problem, so some of these Korean veterans had limited interventional care for almost 50 years. Now, these veterans may be experiencing higher rates of infectious hepatitis consequences (T. Baker, 2008;Conard et al, 2016). Today, it is estimated that 10% of Korean and Vietnam Theater veterans are now HCV infected (T. Baker, 2008).…”

“…To identify a military veteran, every man and woman entering the health care arena should be asked the universal assessment question: Have you ever served in the military? (Allen et al, 2013; Conard et al, 2016). Then, for further information The Military Health History Pocket Card for Clinicians (https://www.va.gov/OAA/pocketcard/) provides validated, helpful questions to obtain more information about their service history and possible associated medical problems.…”

“…Now, these veterans may be experiencing higher rates of infectious hepatitis consequences (T. Baker, 2008; Conard et al, 2016). Today, it is estimated that 10% of Korean and Vietnam Theater veterans are now HCV infected (T.…”

“…Older women and men veteran holistic assessments for suicide variables should be conducted frequently, as their risks can change depending on the veteran’s life events (Conard et al, 2016). A quick introductory valid screening tool is the two-item Likert-type scale (Patient Health Questionaire–2) asking whether the veteran has been bothered by “little interest or pleasure in doing things” and “feeling down, depressed, or hopeless” in the past 2 weeks (Kroenke, Spitzer, & Williams, 2003, p. 1285).…”