title: A clinical follow-up study of reserve forces personnel treated for mental health problems following demobilisation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The Reserves Mental Health Programme (RMHP) provides a clinical service for members of the United Kingdom's Reserve Forces deployed to combat operations since 2003.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess whether mental health and occupational functioning changed after treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined a treatment group with operationally attributable mental health problems and a non-intervention group with non-operationally attributable problems. A self-report, repeat measures study design examined post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), common mental disorders, alcohol use and occupational functioning at follow up delivered by either telephone or post.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred three reservists were offered an initial assessment. Adjusted response rates were 66.7% (n=16) for the no treatment group and 62.7% (n=37) for the treatment group. The treatment group were more likely to be cases at baseline on all mental health outcome measures other than PTSD, but at follow up, they were no more likely to be so. A one-way ANCOVA was conducted to evaluate treatment outcome. This was not significant for all measures except for PTSD. On completion of treatment, three quarters of serving personnel returned to full occupational fitness.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The RMHP appears to offer a clinically and occupationally effective intervention to recently de-mobilised reservists with operationally attributable mental health problems.
authors.affiliation: Academic Centre for Defence Mental Health, Department of Psychological Medicine, King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK. norman.jones@kcl.ac.uk
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wink
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Berrecloth
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Abson
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Doyle
authors.forename: N T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Fear
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wessely
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Greenberg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D008603:Mental Health; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D012066:Relief Work; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000628:therapy; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D006113:United Kingdom