Health Disparities of OEF/OIF Female Military Veterans Living with PTSD: A Literature Review

Date of Award

2011

Document Type

Thesis

College/School

College of Nursing

Degree Name

Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)

Program Concentration

Family Nurse Practitioner

Abstract

"Women represent the fastest growing component of the veteran population, yet little is known about the effects of military service on health status for females. Since the majority of today's women veterans receive all or most of their healthcare outside the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) system, screening for veteran status may be critical to identifying and treating conditions associated with combat such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and military sexual trauma (MST) in order to deliver optimal care for this population. Women who experience combat are susceptible to a myriad of physical and mental health complications including increased suicide risk, major depression, alcohol and drug abuse, long-term sexual dysfunction, disrupted social networks, and employment difficulties. The purpose of this scholarly project is to conduct a literature review to critically analyze and summarize the state of the science regarding health effects related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in women veterans of the recent military conflicts of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). This scholarly project employs electronic searches of PubMED, Medline, CINAHL, and PsycINFO to identify all relevant data based articles that examine the post-deployment health of female veterans who suffer from PTSD. The 7 publications focusing on the post-deployment mental health of OEF/OIF veterans revealed increased risks for new-onset depression, suicide; discrepancy between the mental health needs and utilization of mental health services, and higher risks for mental diagnoses among certain subgroups. General health issues for female veterans explored in 16 additional articles indicate that TBI (traumatic brain injury) primarily occurs in military men, and further evaluation is needed to understand what, if any, gender issues may be important for ongoing care. Alcohol use in female veterans presents greater risk at lower levels of consumption for women with other risk conditions (PTSD MST, combat trauma). Furthermore, single studies also examined a multitude of other potential associations with PTSD including eating disorders, pain, post-deployment distress with date too scarce to draw solid conclusions. The findings from this critical examination will enhance awareness of health issues faced by female veterans to facilitate improved care for this vulnerable population in both the VA system and civilian health centers."

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