MoD expands veterans' healthcare

Critics say the MoD does not look after mental health sufferers

More armed forces veterans will get free mental health assessments under plans due to be announced by the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The government's Medical Assessment Programme, set up in 1993, has provided services only for veterans of the first Gulf War and the current Iraq conflict.

Now it will be extended to all veterans with operational service since 1982.

Mental health charity Combat Stress warned earlier this year that it was in danger of being overwhelmed.

MoD figures show that more than 2,100 troops of the 100,000 who served in Iraq between 2003 and September 2006 have suffered psychiatric problems.

Reluctant recognition

The new move will extend the government's assessment programme to those fighting in Afghanistan, as well as Falklands War veterans.

Veterans' minister Derek Twigg will announce the plans, which will aim to investigate veterans' concerns and recommend treatment.

But according to the BBC's Rob Watson, some ex-service personnel complain that the MoD is often reluctant to recognise mental health problems.

He says those who do admit that they have a problem often feel discarded and unwanted.

One of the most common illnesses suffered by combat veterans is post-traumatic stress disorder.

Symptoms include restlessness, insomnia, aggression, depression, emotional detachment and nightmares.

Another illness related to veterans is Gulf War Syndrome, which has been described by some experts as a form of post-traumatic stress.

However, the MoD has long denied the existence of the syndrome, arguing there is no single cause of the illnesses reported by veterans.