News Release

New report evaluates the VA's mental health services, finds substantial unmet need

VA Provides mental health care to veterans of recent Iraq and Afghanistan wars of comparable or superior quality to other providers, yet substantial unmet need remains

Peer-Reviewed Publication

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

WASHINGTON -- While the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides mental health care of comparable or superior quality to care provided in private and non-VA public sectors, accessibility and quality of services vary across the VA health system, leaving a substantial unmet need for mental health services among veterans of the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, says a new congressionally mandated report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. A survey of these veterans developed and fielded by the committee that conducted the study found that approximately half of those who may have a need for mental health care do not use VA or non-VA services, indicating that a large proportion of veterans do not receive any treatment for conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, substance use disorder, or depression. In addition, more than half of veterans who screened positive in the survey for having a mental health care need do not perceive a need for mental health services.

Approximately 4 million U.S. service members took part in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In Afghanistan, Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) began on Oct. 7, 2001, and ended on Dec. 31, 2014. In Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) began on March 20, 2003, and on Sept. 1, 2010, operations there continued under the name Operation New Dawn (OND). To help carry out its charge, the committee conducted site visits and sought input on the use of VA mental health services directly from veterans of these wars, their families and caregivers, health care providers, and others at each of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks across the U.S.

A lack of awareness about how to connect with the VA for mental health care is pervasive among OEF/OIF/OND veterans, the report says. Among veterans who have a mental health care need and who have not sought VA mental health services, their main reasons for not doing so are that they do not know how to apply for VA mental health care benefits, they are unsure whether they are eligible, or they are unaware that VA offers these benefits.

Other barriers to seeking VA mental health care services, the committee found, include lack of transportation options to and convenience of medical facility locations; concerns about taking time off work and potentially harming their careers; and fears that discrimination could lead to a loss of contact with or custody of their children, or lead to a loss of medical or disability benefits.

Many veterans who are aware of these services say that the process of accessing VA mental health services is burdensome. However, a majority of OEF/OIF/OND veterans who use the VA report positive experiences with its mental health services, including the availability of services, privacy and confidentiality of medical records, the ease of using VA mental health care, and the staff's skill, expertise, and courtesy toward patients.

"As the nation's largest provider of mental health care services, the VA system has a unique and unparalleled opportunity to address the mental health care needs of veterans in a truly integrated and strategic manner," said committee chair Alicia Carriquiry, distinguished professor of liberal arts and sciences in the department of statistics at Iowa State University. "The VA needs to make high-quality mental health care consistently and predictably available at every facility for all veterans."

The VA should set a goal of becoming a reliable provider of high-quality mental health care services throughout its system within three to five years, the report says. It should develop a comprehensive strategic plan that addresses ways to enhance and facilitate timely access to patient-centered care, hire and retain diverse, skilled staff, expand the use of virtual care technologies, and overcome facility and infrastructure barriers to access, such as lack of parking. For example, the VA, along with the U.S. Department of Defense, should re-examine the processes for transitioning services from DOD to VA to enhance the coordination and continuation of health care services. The implementation of the strategic plan should be regularly monitored, reviewed, and updated as needed during that time frame.

While evidence-based mental health care services are available to veterans and are mostly concordant with clinical standards and policy mandates, there are significant gaps in care delivery, the report says. Adequate clinical and office space and staffing are necessary to reduce wait times, lessen clinician burnout that may contribute to high staff turnover, improve the reliability of treatment, and increase adherence to clinical practice guidelines.

The VA should take steps to ensure that its diverse patient population -- including racial and ethnic minorities, women, LGBT, rural-dwelling, and homeless veterans -- receives readily accessible, high-quality, integrated mental health care services, the report says. Demographic data show that the OEF/OIF/OND veteran population is more racially and ethnically diverse and has more women than other veteran cohorts. Women veterans who served in OEF/OIF have a higher need for mental health care compared with women veterans from previous conflicts, and also are significantly more likely than men veterans who served in the same wars to believe that they are not entitled to or eligible for VA mental health services.

The report also includes recommendations for examining best practices for VA facilities to forge community partnerships, addressing workforce shortages, and developing and implementing standardized performance measures to assess and improve care for veterans with mental health conditions.

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The study was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, technology, and medicine. They operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln. For more information, visit nationalacademies.org. A committee roster follows.

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Resources:

Download the report at http://www.nationalacademies.org/VAmentalhealthcare

Key Findings and Recommendations

Contacts:

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Andrew Robinson, Media Relations Assistant
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu

Newsroom

Copies of Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services are available from the National Academies Press on the Internet at http://www.nap.edu or by calling 202-334-3313 or 1-800-624-6242. Reporters may obtain a copy from the Office of News and Public Information (contacts listed above).

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES, ENGINEERING, AND MEDICINE

Health and Medicine Division

Board on Health Care Services

Committee to Evaluate the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

Alicia L. Carriquiry* (chair)
Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Department of Statistics
Iowa State University
Ames

F. Jay Breidt
Professor
Department of Statistics
Colorado State University
Fort Collins

Dennis M. Donovan
Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
University of Washington
Seattle

Susan V. Eisen
Professor of Health Policy and Management (retired)
School of Public Health
Boston University
Boston

Constantine Gatsonis
Henry Ledyard Goddard University Professor of Biostatistics
Brown University
Providence, R.I.

Robert C. Gresen
Assistant Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine
Medical College of Wisconsin
Milwaukee

Steven Heeringa
Senior Research Scientist
Institute for Social Research
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor

Kenneth W. Kizer*
Distinguished Professor
School of Medicine and Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing
University of California, Davis; and
Director
Institute for Population Health Improvement
UC Davis Health System
Sacramento

Richard A. Kulka
Expert Consultant,
Statistical, Survey, and Social Research
Raleigh, N.C.

Bruce G. Link*
Distinguished Professor of Public Policy and Sociology
University of California
Riverside

Susan M. Paddock
Senior Statistician
The RAND Corp.
Santa Monica, Calif.

Deborah K. Padgett
Professor of Social Work and Global Public Health
Silver School of Social Work
New York University
New York City

Bethany J. Phoenix
Clinical Professor and Vice Chair
Department of Community Health Systems
School of Nursing
University of California
San Francisco

Robert L. Santos
Chief Methodologist and Director
Statistical Methods Group
The Urban Institute
, DC

Jeannette E. South-Paul*
Andrew W. Mathieson UPMC Professor and Chair
Department of Family Medicine
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Pittsburgh

Thanh V. Tran
Professor
School of Social Work
Boston College
Boston

Peter M. Yellowlees
Professor of Psychiatry
University of California, Davis
Sacramento

STAFF

Laura Aiuppa Denning
Staff Officer

Abigail E. Mitchell
Staff Officer

*Member, National Academy of Medicine


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