ArticlePloS one2023
Development and cross-validation of a veterans mental health risk factor screen.
Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundVA primary care patients are routinely screened for current symptoms of PTSD, depression, and alcohol disorders, but many who screen positive do not engage in care. In addition to stigma about mental disorders and a high value on autonomy, some veterans may not seek care because of uncertainty about whether they need treatment to recover. A screen for mental health risk could provide an alternative motivation for patients to engage in care.
methodData from samples of veterans and traumatic injury survivors were analyzed to identify mental health risk factors that are characteristics of individuals or stressors or of post-trauma, post-deployment, or post-military service resources, experiences, or responses. Twelve risk factors were strongly related to PTSD (r > .50): current PTSD, depression, dissociation, negative thinking, and emotional lability symptoms, life stress, relationship stress, social constraints, and deployment experiences of a difficult environment, concerns about life and family, perceived threat, and moral injury. Items assessing each of these risk factors were selected and their validity to prospectively predict PTSD and/or depression 6 months later was assessed in a new sample of 232 VA primary care patients.
resultsTwelve items assessing dissociation, emotional lability, life stress, and moral injury correctly classified 86% of those who later had elevated PTSD and/or depression symptoms (sensitivity) and 75% of those whose later symptoms were not elevated (specificity). Performance was also very good for 110 veterans who identified as members of ethnic/racial minorities.
conclusionsMental health status was prospectively predicted in VA primary care patients with high accuracy using a screen that is brief, easy to administer, score, and interpret, and fits well into VA's integrated primary care. When care is readily accessible, appealing to veterans, and not perceived as stigmatizing, information about mental health risk may result in higher rates of engagement than information about current mental disorder status.
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