Publication year
2015
Citation Title
Multi-site programming offered to promote resilience in military veterans: A process evaluation of the just roll with it bootcamp
Journal Name
Californian Journal of Health Promotion
Journal Volume
13
Issue Number
2
Page Numbers
15-24
Summary
Veterans often experience a lot of physical and mental health problems. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a peer-led resilience program offered to Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan"Just Roll With It Bootcamp"ù. After the program, participants completed an online survey, and results indicated that all respondents regarded the content of the intervention program as valuable and useful.
Key Findings
Participants rated the Just Roll With It Bootcamp content as “very useful” (82.1%) or “somewhat helpful” (17.9%).
The following three themes were regarded as most helpful: health practices, social support, and quality of life or satisfaction.
Participants requested more support in the physical environment because of their disability, pain, or injury.
Implications for Program Leaders
Collaborate with civilian programs so that Service members would have more opportunities to access services not available on base
Continue to offer recreational activities to Services members such as yoga and meditation
Provide additional support to Service members and their families to increase their resilience by offering family activities and workshops
Implications for Policy Makers
Encourage awareness campaigns regarding the importance of social support and physical environment for military families
Continue to support programs for Service members that promote resilience
Recommend that all Veterans be offered an individual consultation with a health professional during the transition to civilian life
Methods
Participants were recruited from the non-profit organization Team Red, White, and Blue.
Online surveys were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the Just Roll With It Bootcamp.
Participants’ feedback was assessed with four close-ended questions (e.g., rate the usefulness of the material covered) and four open-ended questions (e.g., their favorite content).
Participants
The participants included 108 Veterans from three different cities.
Of all the Veterans that participated in the intervention, 52 completed the survey (response rate = 48%).
Participants’ information about their age, gender, and race was absent from the article.
Limitations
The survey used in the study was short, therefore only a limited amount of information was collected.
The results were solely based on self-report; no objective measure of participants’ well-being was used.
No demographic data were available, so it was difficult to generalize the results.
Response rate was low, therefore the participants who responded may not represent the whole sample, and the results may be subject to self-selection bias.
Avenues for Future Research
Include both objective and subjective measures of participants’ resilience after the intervention program
Collect the demographic information of the participants in order to examine which types of participants benefit most from the intervention
Implement retention strategies to increase participants’ response rate
Focus
Multiple Branches
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Branch
Abstract
Background and Purpose: Military and veteran suicide rates exceed those found in the general population. Veterans often reject patient identities, creating barriers to care for mental health within the clinical sector and a mandate for prevention programs. The purpose of this study was to offer a post-intervention process evaluation of one peer-led resilience program offered to military veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan at three sites in 2013. Methods: Secondary analysis of survey data collected involved mixed-methods analysis of open and closed-ended questions. In total, the research team reviewed 52 electronic survey responses, participant response rate was 48.1%. Results: Descriptive data analysis found that all participants rated Just Roll With It Bootcamp content as "somewhat useful" (17.9%) or "very useful" (82.1%). Qualitative analysis of open-ended questions found that content was perceived as valuable by participants. Emergent themes included: health practices, social support, and participant quality of life or satisfaction. Comments also informed four subthemes which included: meditation/mindfulness, nutrition, physical practice, and the seminars' physical environment. Conclusion: Culturally-informed prevention programs that emphasize social support, physical movement, and peer-leadership have a vital role to play in working to prevent suicide by promoting quality of life for veterans
Abstract Document
Attach