Report: Cliff Caswell
Picture: Graeme Main

WITH Op Herrick’s high tempo placing more demands on Servicemen and women, it is easy to see why Defence chiefs are concerned about the numbers of troops sidelined by injury and illness.
As this issue went to press, some ten per cent of personnel were unable to deploy on operations and a further 13 per cent had limitations on their abilities in the field. In an already-stretched Army, these figures make for unwelcome reading.

But the MoD has been taking action to address the issue and has announced a new scheme designed to return troops to full fitness as soon as possible, whether they are heading back into the ranks or moving onto a new life on civvy street.

Working in partnership with Help for Heroes, The Royal British Legion and other Service charities, the department has set up the Army Recovery Capability, under which several separate medical services will be united under a single umbrella.

The £30 million scheme, which is being underpinned by the creation of new recovery centres staffed by health professionals, will focus on bringing individuals back to fighting fitness as quickly as possible with tailor-made exercise regimes.

Defence Under-Secretary Kevan Jones believes the new capability will further bolster standards of care for soldiers.

“This is another step in the ongoing improvements we have made to welfare support for Service personnel, their families and veterans,” he said. “It underlines the Government’s commitment, outlined in the 2008 Service Personnel Command Paper, to deliver world-class services for our Armed Forces.”

Under the new blueprint, existing Army Absence Management Teams will be restructured, bolstered and moved from divisions to each of the regional brigades. These 12 new Personnel Recovery Units, which will be based throughout the UK, Northern Ireland and Germany, will be headed up by a lieutenant colonel.

In parallel, the new Personnel Recovery Centres, which will be built in partnership with Help for Heroes and maintained by The Royal British Legion and the MoD, are being created in key garrison areas. A trial centre is up-and-running in Edinburgh and others will follow in Colchester and Bulford.

Those in charge of the scheme also hope to create a specialist Battle Back centre, which will have staff and equipment available to provide adventurous training, while the newly-formed Army Personnel Recovery Branch will oversee the whole process.

According to an MoD spokesman, there will be a decision point in each recovery plan as to whether the soldier can continue their service or will face discharge.

“The earlier that this can be identified, the better it will be to deliver the right support,” he said. “The decision will be informed by a medical board assessment.

“If the decision is to return to duty, then the recovery plan will be focused on that. Likewise if leaving the Army is the decision, then everything will be done to concentrate on delivering the support necessary to the individual and their family.

“The Personnel Recovery Branch will also track individuals throughout the process whether they are staying in the Army or leaving,” he added.

The new capability should certainly give the military a more efficient way of assisting injured soldiers while bolstering numbers of troops available for duty.

And for those on the discharge list, there is now a more comprehensive package available to help them with their return to civilian life.

The recovery plan is also a potent tool in an increasingly-robust line-up of medical assets. With superb care available at the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine in Birmingham and the world-class Headley Court Rehabilitation Centre in Surrey, injured personnel can be assured that they are in very good hands.