Experts gather to discuss future of veterans' mental health
Leading experts in the field of veterans' mental health gathered at King's College London yesterday (Thursday 10th March 2016) to explore how services for Veterans and Service Families could be improved. The one-day event, 'Veterans' Mental Health - the Road Ahead', followed the great success of the inaugural 'Veterans' Mental Health - Fact, Fiction and Future' conference of March 2015. Hosted by the King's Centre for Military Health Research and sponsored by Forces in Mind Trust , the aim of the event was to promote and encourage contributions to understanding and supporting the mental health needs of veterans based on robust research, evidence and fact, rather than the hearsay and anecdote that too often obscure the topic. More than 200 guests heard speakers with global reputations from a broad range of leading UK and international organisations spanning the political arena, the NHS, the Metropolitan Police, academia and the Service charities sector. Speakers offering insights included Johnny Mercer, MP for Plymouth Moor View, on the view of veterans' mental health needs from inside the House of Commons; Professor Edgar Jones, Institute ofPsychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, on how the treatment of veterans with psychological disorders in former conflicts can inform current thinking; and DS John Arnold, National Counter Terrorism Policing HQ, on the relationship between veterans and radicalisation. Johnny Mercer MP Neil Greenberg , Professor of Defence Mental Health at King's College London, said: 'The King's Centre for Military Health Research aims to generate high quality evidence in order to improve the understanding of the health of service and ex-service personnel and their families.
