Military medicine and veterans’ health
Advertising
Unit 621
April 2025
The purpose of this activity is to help general practitioners ensure that veterans and their families/carers receive the appropriate mental health support.
As of 2021, there were 581,000 ex-serving or current serving members of the Australian Defence Force. The 2021 Australian Census for the first time asked questions about people’s service with the Australian Defence Force, allowing for valuable new demographic insights and research.
The 2024 Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide made over 100 recommendations aimed at improving the support systems, clinical care and compensation available to both current serving members of the Australian Defence Force and veterans. Most of the recommendations have been accepted (in full or in principle) by the government but have not yet been implemented.
Veterans are becoming increasingly diverse, with a recruiting focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, non-English speaking Australians and women. Current members of the Australian Defence Force and veterans have a high representation of people identifying as having Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origins.
After discharge, veterans are more likely to work in government, emergency and security services. They are more likely to volunteer. Most veterans are men, but the percentage of female veterans grows year on year. Female veterans may have specific health concerns.
Veterans are eligible for a range of wraparound funding, services and supports, which differ from those available to the general population. They are much more generous than most compensation schemes. Some of these supports extend to family members and former intimate partners.
Veterans may be eligible for funding under multiple schemes, including Medicare, Closing the Gap, the National Disability Insurance Scheme and Department of Veterans’ Affairs arrangements. Knowledge of these services and supports, and their differences, allows veterans to be linked to appropriate care.
At the end of this activity, participants will be able to:
Yuliana, a firefighter aged 29 years, presents to your clinic complaining of fatigue, low energy, persistent low mood, tearfulness and heart palpitations. She also requests a whooping cough vaccination as her sister has recently had a baby. Yuliana had been keenly anticipating the arrival of the baby, but now she can barely get out of bed.
Yuliana appears slouched and dishevelled. She is wearing a well-worn tracksuit with a coffee stain on one leg. Her running shoes have mud on them. Her eye makeup is smudged from crying.
Patrick presents to your clinic requesting ’those tablets that block adrenaline’. He has struggled with feeling on edge and stressed since his discharge from the Navy three years ago. He is neatly presented, wearing ironed chinos, polished shoes and a pressed polo shirt. He maintains good eye contact but blinks rapidly and fidgets while talking to you. By the end of the consult, he has sweat-stained armpits and is visibly anxious and ‘wide eyed’.
Scott, aged 52 years, works as a defence industry contractor. He presents requesting help with his short temper. Scott says that in his younger days he was ‘a lover, not a fighter’. He tells you that in the past few years, he has been ‘a bit scared of how angry’ he can get. ‘I have a two-second fuse, which is dangerous in my old line of work.’ He is worried that his anger outbursts could one day lead to violence. He tells you his teenage daughter ‘knows exactly how to push my buttons and make me livid. She probably learnt that from her mum, the ex-missus’.
Each unit of check comprises approximately five clinical cases, and the choice of cases will cover the broad spectrum of the unit’s topic. Each unit will be led by a GP with an interest and capability in the topic, and they will scope the five different cases for that unit in collaboration with the check team.