Panel from the University of Manitoba: 

Jitender Sareen MD 

Tracie Afifi PhD 

Murray Enns MD 

Natalie Mota PhD 

Shay-Lee Bolton PhD 

Background: Historically there has been great interest in the mental health of our Canadian Armed Forces. Much of this research has been based on clinical databases of help-seekers, with very few studies based at a population level. In 2002, this team of researchers from the University of Manitoba began working with an epidemiologic dataset of actively serving CAF soldiers when Statistics Canada released the CCHS-CFS, a ground-breaking representative dataset collected in collaboration with CAF, which informed policy and planning for many years. After lengthy discussions between researchers, CAF, Statistics Canada, CIMVHR and others, a collaborative team agreed to re-survey the soldiers, many of whom had transitioned to civilian life. 

Learning Objectives: Participants will learn about the 2018 Canadian Armed Forces Members and Veterans Mental Health Follow-up Survey (CAFVMHS) from members of the original team who designed the longitudinal survey. The process behind key stakeholder engagement, the design and methodology of the data collection, and important new findings from the data will be discussed