Women Veterans' Healthcare Needs, Utilization, and Preferences in Veterans Affairs Primary Care Settings.

Content Provider	Europe PMC
Author	Sheahan, Kate L. Goldstein, Karen M. Than, Claire T. Bean-Mayberry, Bevanne Chanfreau, Catherine C. Gerber, Megan R. Rose, Danielle E. Brunner, Julian Canelo, Ismelda A. Darling MSHS, Jill E. Haskell, Sally Hamilton, Alison B. Yano, Elizabeth M.
Abstract	BackgroundThe Veterans Health Administration (VA) is the largest integrated health system in the US and provides access to comprehensive primary care. Women Veterans are the fastest growing segment of new VA users, yet little is known about the characteristics of those who routinely access VA primary care in general or by age group.ObjectiveDescribe healthcare needs, utilization, and preferences of women Veterans who routinely use VA primary care.Participants1,391 women Veterans with 3+ primary care visits within the previous year in 12 VA medical centers (including General Primary Care Clinics, General Primary Care Clinics with designated space for women, and Comprehensive Women’s Health Centers) in nine states.MethodsCross-sectional survey (45% response rate) of sociodemographic characteristics, health status (including chronic disease, mental health, pain, and trauma exposure), utilization, care preferences, and satisfaction. Select utilization data were extracted from administrative data. Analyses were weighted to the population of routine users and adjusted for non-response in total and by age group.Key ResultsWhile 43% had health coverage only through VA, 62% received all primary care in VA. In the prior year, 56% used VA mental healthcare and 78% used VA specialty care. Common physical health issues included hypertension (42%), elevated cholesterol (39%), pain (35%), and diabetes (16%). Many screened positive for PTSD (41%), anxiety (32%), and depression (27%). Chronic physical and mental health burdens varied by age. Two-thirds (62%) had experienced military sexual trauma. Respondents reported satisfaction with VA women’s healthcare and preference for female providers.ConclusionsWomen Veterans who routinely utilize VA primary care have significant multimorbid physical and mental health conditions and trauma histories. Meeting women Veterans’ needs across the lifespan will require continued investment in woman-centered primary care, including integrated mental healthcare and emphasis on trauma-informed, age-specific care, guided by women’s provider preferences.
ISSN	08848734
Journal	Journal of General Internal Medicine
Volume Number	37
PubMed Central reference number	PMC9481772
Issue Number	suppl 3
PubMed reference number	36042076
e-ISSN	15251497
DOI	10.1007/s11606-022-07585-3
Language	English
Publisher	Springer International Publishing
Publisher Date	2022-08-30
Publisher Place	Gewerbestrasse 11, Cham, Ch 6330, Switzerland
Access Restriction	Open
Rights License	Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. © The Author(s) 2022
Subject Keyword	primary care mental health women’s health Veterans trauma
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Internal Medicine