title: Early psychosocial intervention following operational deployment: analysis of a free text questionnaire response.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  United Kingdom Armed Forces personnel currently undertake arduous operational tours that can make homecoming psychologically challenging. To assist them in this transition, they undergo a process of "decompression" before returning to their base unit. This article reports their subjective impression of the process.
  
  
  METHODS
  Personnel completed a brief survey at the end of the decompression process conducted in Cyprus in 2008 and this study reports the analysis of the free text element of the questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  6,734 comments were available for analysis from a total of 11,304 questionnaires. Although responses were largely positive, significant numbers indicated that decompression could be improved by allowing personnel more choice, improving air transport out of theatre, and greater flexibility in harmonizing decompression activities with the operational role and military characteristics of decompressing units.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although decompression is generally viewed positively by participants, elements of the process could be further developed to improve acceptability.
authors.affiliation: Academic Centre for Defence Mental Health, Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Howard
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Burdett
authors.forename: Norman
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Nicola T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Fear
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wessely
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Greenberg
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom