Count Us In: The Experiences of Female War,Peacemaking,and Peacekeeping Veterans

Abstract

This article reports the findings of a qualitative study that explores the linkages between female veterans’ experiences in warlike, peacemaking, peacekeeping, and humanitarian operations and their perceived health support needs over the long term. It is based on the experiences of Australian female veterans who had deployed overseas. The findings suggest that a woman’s emotional well-being over the long term and ability to fully reintegrate back into civilian life after deployment is diminished when there is a significant disparity between her expectations of deployment and her actual operational experiences. A major implication from these findings is that civilian health and support services should develop a better understanding of the distinctive needs of the female veteran population and develop stronger linkages with the military community so as to facilitate ongoing deployment-related support for female veterans.