Improving Functioning Among Aging Women Veterans With Major Mental Illness
VA Office of Research and Development
Summary
Women are the fastest-growing group of U.S. Veterans. Over half of those using VA care are 45 or older, with more age-related health concerns than civilian women. The VA urgently needs gender-informed strategies to ensure women Veterans receive tailored care that addresses their intersecting mental, physical, and age related health concerns, as well as gender-linked stressors. One prominent example is menopause, a health transition period that, for many women, can be associated with negative physical and mental health concerns that can worsen their functioning and quality of life. This project will: (1) integrate stakeholder feedback to tailor Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Menopause (CBT-Meno) for women Veterans with menopause concerns; and (2) refine and evaluate tailored CBT-Meno as a treatment to address these intersecting needs in a clinical trial.
Description
Anticipated Impact on Veteran's Healthcare: The VA's commitment to serving all Veterans must include effective, gender-informed services that address the needs of women Veterans. This application will address this need by exploring one method of offering gender-informed care by tailoring an existing intervention to optimize functioning among mid-life and older women Veterans. Background: Women are the fastest-growing cohort of Veterans. They have higher rates of age-related health concerns than non-Veteran women, experiences that are further complicated by intersecting mental, physical, and g…