Walking With The Wounded Support New NHS Veteran Mental Health and Wellbeing Service
Leading Military Charity, Walking With The Wounded, have partnered with 3 NHS Trusts across England to support the roll-out of ‘Op COURAGE’, a new veterans’ mental health pathway which launched on Thursday 4 March 2021.
The new pathway was announced by Sir
Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England and NHS Improvement, Johnny
Mercer, Minister for Defence People and Veterans and Kate Davies CBE, Director
of Health and Justice, Armed Forces and Sexual Assault Services Commissioning and
officially launched the new NHS Veterans’ Mental Health High-Intensity Service
(HIS), at the Veterans’ Mental Health Conference organised by Kings College
London Centre for Military Health Research.
From October 2020, the HIS started to mobilise
across England, providing a much-needed service for veterans who are struggling with their mental health, are
in a mental health crisis and/or need urgent and emergency care and
treatment.
Over
the last three years, NHS England and NHS Improvement has launched the
Veterans’ Mental Health Transition, Intervention and Liaison Service (TILS),
the Veterans’ Mental Health Complex Treatment Service (CTS) and more recently
the Veterans’ Mental Health High Intensity Service (HIS). Together these form a complete mental health
care pathway.
Informed by feedback from veterans and their
families, all NHS specialist veterans mental health services will now come
under one new name: Op COURAGE: The Veterans Mental Health and
Wellbeing Service.
Fergus
Williams, CEO of WWTW, said: “Walking With The
Wounded is honoured to be part of NHS England's Op COURAGE’ mental health care
pathway. ‘Op COURAGE’ shows the NHS’s continued commitment to support those who
served. We welcome this new evolving approach to Armed Forces veteran
mental health pathways. The service demonstrates an integrated, whole-person
approach and importantly includes families too. This is a fantastic step
forward for Armed Forces veteran mental health support.”
Simon Lock, NHS Business Manager
for WWTW, said: “WWTW are extremely excited to be working with 3 NHS Trusts.
The new mental health care pathway will add real value to the existing services
such as Transition Intervention Liaison Service and the Complex Treatment
Service.”
Op COURAGE is part of a nine-point NHS plan to support the Armed Forces community. The new name makes NHS veterans' mental health services easier to find and access; a name that inspires hope and bravery and is inclusive and relevant to both the NHS and military life. The change provides a simplified name with a clear front door’ to care and support.
For more information, visit the NHS website.