Forces in Mind Trust awards grant to the University of Chester to help to motivate Ex-Service Personnel to register with GPs

Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT) has awarded £133,150 to the University of Chester to conduct research to examine how an advertising campaign can motivate ex-Service personnel to register with Primary Health Care practices.

This project will build upon earlier reports which show that ex-Service personnel can hold negative attitudes towards registering with GPs. This can lead to low awareness of the support available to them, as well as a limited understanding of their needs by primary health care professionals.

The study aims to identify what motivates veterans to register with a GP and to inform them of their Armed Forces status.  It will look at which parts of an advertising campaign are effective at influencing veterans to register, examine trends relating to the demographic of the ex-Service personnel who do register, and provide detail relating to their physical and mental health profile.  The project will also develop a theoretical model highlighting the primary initiatives that are successful in encouraging ex-Service personnel to register.

The project was awarded under FiMT’s Health Programme and is expected to be conducted over two years.

FiMT are committed to supporting the Armed Forces community throughout and beyond COVID-19 and this includes the continuation of funding to much needed projects such as this grant. The latest FiMT COVID-19 response can be found here.

Ray Lock, Chief Executive of Forces in Mind Trust says,

“This study will build upon the existing research and help to develop a solution by providing a solid evidence base on the health needs of veterans whilst seeking to positively change behaviour.  This will lead to improved recognition of the needs of ex-Service personnel from point of presentation and a better understanding of clinical priorities.”  

Professor Alan Finnegan from the Westminster Centre for Research in Veterans at the University of Chester is Principal Investigator for this study and says,

“Veterans are entitled to a broad range of healthcare benefits, and to maximise the uptake of these services. It is therefore vital that ex-Service personnel and their families register with a Primary Healthcare practice. Equally important is that the Primary Healthcare staff of General Practitioners, nurses and ancillary staff are mindful of the veteran’s status and that this is correctly recorded. This study will explore the factors that can be employed to maximise the Primary Healthcare offered to veterans and present a cost-effective template that can be implemented on a national basis.”  

About the Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT):

FiMT came about from a partnership between the Big Lottery Fund (‘the Fund’), Cobseo (The Confederation of Service Charities) and other charities and organisations. FiMT continues the Fund’s long-standing legacy of support for veterans across the UK with an endowment of £35 million awarded in 2012.http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/.

The mission of FiMT is to enable ex-Service personnel and their families make a successful and sustainable transition to civilian life, and it delivers this mission by generating an evidence base that influences and underpins policy making and service delivery.

FiMT awards grants (for both responsive and commissioned work) to support its change model around 6 outcomes in the following areas: Housing; Employment; Health and wellbeing; Finance; Criminal Justice System; and Relationships. All work is published in open access and hosted on the Forces in Mind Trust Research Centre’s Veterans and Families Research Hub. A high standard of reportage is demanded of all grant holders so as to provide a credible evidence base from which better informed decisions can be made.

Useful links   

Website: www.fim-trust.org   

Reports: www.fim-trust.org/reports/   

Who we have helped: www.fim-trust.org/who-we-have-helped/   

Twitter: @FiMTrust   

 

 

Our Executive Members

By @Cobseo 54 years ago

Afghanistan support

In light of recent events in Afghanistan, please find information and support resources here