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The presentation of depression in the British Army
Finnegan, Alan Finnegan, Sara Thomas, Mike Deahl, Martin Simpson, Robin Ashford, Robert
Finnegan, Alan
Finnegan, Sara
Thomas, Mike
Deahl, Martin
Simpson, Robin
Ashford, Robert
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2013-03-26
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Abstract
Background
The British Army is predominately composed of young men, often from disadvantaged backgrounds, in which Depression is a common mental health disorder.
Objectives
To construct a predictive model detailing the presentation of depression in the army that could be utilised as an educational and clinical guideline for Army clinical personnel.
Method and Participants
Utilising a Constructivist Grounded Theory, phase 1 consisted of 19 interviews with experienced Army mental health clinicians. Phase 2 was a validation exercise conducted with 3 general practitioners.
Results
Depression in the Army correlates poorly with civilian definitions, and has a unique interpretation.
Conclusion
Young soldiers presented with symptoms not in the International Classification of Disorders and older soldiers who feared being medically downgraded, sought help outside the Army Medical Services. Women found it easier to seek support, but many were inappropriately labelled as depressed. Implications include a need to address the poor understanding of military stressors; their relationships to depressive symptoms and raise higher awareness of gender imbalances with regard to access and treatment. The results have international implications for other Armed forces, and those employed in Young Men's Mental Health. The results are presented as a simple predictive model and aide memoire that can be utilised as an educational and clinical guideline. There is scope to adapt this model to international civilian healthcare practice
Citation
Finnegan, A., Finnegan, S., Thomas, M., Deahl, M., Simpson, R., & Ashford, R. (2014). The presentation of depression in the British Army. Nurse Education Today, 34(1), 83-91.
Publisher
Elsevier
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Nurse Education Today
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Article
Language
en
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ISSN
0260-6917
EISSN
1532-2793