Chronic Health Conditions Among US Veterans Discharged From Military Service for Misconduct

Veterans who are discharged from military service due to misconduct are vulnerable to negative health-related outcomes, including homelessness, incarceration, and suicide. We used national data from the Veterans Health Administration for 218,608 veterans of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan that too...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Preventing chronic disease 2018-10, Vol.15, p.E122-E122, Article 180238
Main Authors: Brignone, Emily, Fargo, J D, Blais, R K, Gundlapalli, A V
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Afghan Campaign 2001
Brief
Chronic Disease - epidemiology
Chronic Disease - psychology
Databases, Factual
Female
Health Status
Humans
Iraq War, 2003-2011
Male
Retrospective Studies
United States - epidemiology
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans - psychology
Veterans - statistics & numerical data
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Summary:Veterans who are discharged from military service due to misconduct are vulnerable to negative health-related outcomes, including homelessness, incarceration, and suicide. We used national data from the Veterans Health Administration for 218,608 veterans of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan that took place after the events of September 11, 2001, to compare clinical diagnoses between routinely-discharged (n = 203,174) and misconduct-discharged (n = 15,433) veterans. Misconduct-discharged veterans had significantly higher risk for all mental health conditions (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] range, 2.5-8.0) and several behaviorally linked chronic health conditions (AOR range, 1.2-5.9). Misconduct-discharged veterans have serious and complex health care needs; prevention efforts should focus on behavioral risk factors to prevent the development and exacerbation of chronic health conditions among this vulnerable population.
ISSN:1545-1151
1545-1151
DOI:10.5888/pcd15.180238