NHS Veterans Mental Health & Wellbeing Services
Op Courage
NHS Veterans Mental Health & Wellbeing Services
Op COURAGE is an NHS mental health specialist service designed to help serving personnel due to leave the military, reservists, armed forces veterans and their families.
What is Op COURAGE and how can it help? | NHS
How Op COURAGE can help
Op COURAGE can help you and your family with a range of support and treatment, including:
- helping you transition from military to civilian life by providing mental health care with Defence Medical Services (DMS)
- helping you recognise and treat early signs of mental health problems, as well as more advanced mental health conditions and psychological trauma
- providing support and treatment for substance misuse and addictions
- helping you to access other NHS mental health services if you need them, such as finding an NHS talking therapies service and eating disorder services
- liaising with charities and local organisations to support your wider health and wellbeing needs, such as help with housing, relationships, finances and employment
- supporting armed forces families affected by mental health problems, including helping them to access local services
Who will I speak to?
Op COURAGE is an NHS service supported by trained professionals who are from, or have experience of working with, the Armed Forces community.
This service can help if you're finding life difficult after leaving the military. Working together with Armed Forces charities, Op COURAGE will help you get the right type of specialist care, support and treatment for your specific needs.
Who Op COURAGE can help
To receive help and support from Op COURAGE, you must:
- be a resident in England and have served in the UK armed forces for a full day
- be registered with a GP surgery in England, or be willing and eligible to register with a GP
- provide your military service number
It does not matter how long ago you left the armed forces or how long you served for. You can contact Op COURAGE even if you left many years ago.
You can also contact Op COURAGE if you're still serving but have a discharge date.
Contacting Op COURAGE
You can contact the service in many ways, including:
- directly getting in touch yourself, or through a family member or friend
- asking a GP or other healthcare representative to refer you
- asking a charity to refer you
The service will arrange for you to have an assessment, to make sure you get the right care and support.
It's important to contact the Op COURAGE service for your local area. This allows them to give you the best support they can provide.
Mental health support for veterans, service leavers and reservists - NHS