This 1 hour 23-minute webinar is designed to assist GPs to better support veterans by understanding the challenges and health impacts associated with military service.
General Practitioners are central to the provision of healthcare to former serving members of the Australian Defence Force.
The webinar provided information on the unique impacts of military service, common veteran mental health presentations and new referral pathways to provide support to veterans. It also provided an overview of the innovative Stress, Resilience and Functioning (SRF) Program, designed to help reduce the impacts of stress and PTSD. Initial SRF programs are available in Hobart, Burnie and Launceston.
This session also included practical information on billable items specific to veterans and veteran care.
Learning outcomes:
- Identify the unique experiences and mental health needs of veterans and their families, including the impact of military culture and service.
- Recognise and assess mental health presentations and co-morbidities commonly experienced by veterans.
- Recognise the role GPs play in streamlining and enhancing access to health services for veterans and their families.
- Understand how to access pathways between primary care and Open Arms.
- Use a trauma-informed approach in the management of conditions related to military service.
Speaker Information:
Dr Jonathan (Jon) Lane is a Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. He has a long history of Army service and has a keen interest in Military, Veteran and Emergency Services mental health. He was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2015 and went to the US looking at interventions for military and veterans, and subsequently developed culturally specific, peer led group programs for emotional regulation and interpersonal relationships to manage the effects of chronic stress and trauma.
He completed his medical degree in 2004 at the University of Tasmania (UTAS) and then spent five years in acute care and general practice medicine with the Army before returning to Hobart to commence his Psychiatry training. He gained his Fellowship in 2014 and has been lecturing with UTAS since 2015. He completed his PhD at the University of Adelaide in 2023 in this field in conjunction with Military and Emergency Services Health Australia (MESHA), He is the discipline Lead for Psychiatry and teaches into the TSOM MD program. He is an Honorary A/Prof at the Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, University of Queensland, and a Senior Research Fellow at Gallipoli Medical Research Foundation. Dr Lane was also the coach for the Australian Invictus Games Team for 2018, 2020 and 2022.
Dr Lane currently does clinical and a range of other strategic, policy and consultancy work with organisations in the fields of military, veteran and emergency services work including the Tasmanian Department of Police and Emergency Services and The Hobart Clinic. He currently holds the position of Senior Psychiatrist at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Dr Dan Corkery FRACGP is a general practitioner in regional NSW. Prior to obtaining his GP Fellowship, he served in the Australian Army, deploying on multiple operations as a Regimental Medical Officer. Dr Corkery has recently rewritten the RACGP syllabus/curriculum for military and veterans' health. He currently works for the Australian Government on veterans' health matters and continues to serve as an army reservist.
Dr Anna Seth is a GP with a mental health interest, originally from the UK. She graduated from Newcastle Upon Tyne in 2003, completed RACGP fellowship in 2010 in Far North Queensland, and has worked in Tasmania since 2011, initially in the Huon Valley then Kingston and now in North Hobart. Anna has worked for Primary Health Tasmania since 2021 as a clinical editor for HealthPathways and as clinical trainer for the IAR (initial assessment and referral project).
Elaine Devlin is a Psychologist and Director of Open Arms Veterans and Families Counselling Service in Tasmania. She completed a Master of Psychology (Clinical) from the University of Tasmania in 2014 and has held various clinical and leadership roles in the Australian Government and clinical settings. She is an advocate for strong leadership in the health sector and has a special interest in trauma informed service delivery and practice.