Questions and Answers

About the study

1. What is the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study about?
2. Who is doing the study?
3. Why is the study important?
4. How big is the study?
5. Who will benefit from taking part in the study?
6. What research components are in the study?
7. When will results of the study be released?
8. How will DVA know how veterans want the study done?
9. Will the study results be implemented to suit DVA?

Participants

10. Who is eligible to participate in the study?
11. Will only randomly selected people be studied?
12. Can Navy and Air Force personnel participate in the study?
13. Will the study include children under 18 years of age?
14. Can I participate in the study if I am living overseas permanently or temporarily?
15. Can families of deceased veterans participate in the study?
16. Can I participate if I was born before my father was deployed to Vietnam?
17. Why would anyone sign up to be in the control group? What's in it for them?

Taking part

18. I have received an invitation – do I have to take part in the study?
19. How can I take part in the study?
20. What will the study involve for me and my family?
21. What happens after I register?
22. Can I get help if I have a hard time during the study?
23. What will it cost to participate? Will I receive any rewards?
24. Can I register my family members?
25. My family and I are healthy – why should we take part?
26. I am not related to a Vietnam veteran – why should I take part?
27. Will I have to have a blood test or other invasive medical interventions?

My information

28. Will DVA use the information I provide to cut my pension payment?
29. Who will see the information that I give?
30. Can anyone involved in the study access my Defence or DVA medical records and information?
31. What happens to my information once the study is complete?
32. Who can I contact if I have questions about my rights as a participant in this study? 

Keekping in touch

33. What if my details change before I’ve been contacted by the Family Study Program?
34. How can I find out more about the progress of the study?

Background

35. Why do a study on Vietnam Veterans? Isn't it too late?
36. Isn’t the study a waste of time?
37. Why did the random samples include only Army personnel?
38. Why will the study take so long (eight years)?
39. Will the study look at specific effects such as Agent Orange exposure?
40. How does this study compare to the Millennium Cohort Study?

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ABOUT THE STUDY

1. What is the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study about?

The Vietnam Veterans' Family Study will help us to better understand the health and wellbeing of the families of Vietnam veterans. It will look at the physical, mental and social health of veterans’ families and increase our knowledge about the longer term effects of serving in Vietnam for veterans and their family members. An important part of the study will be to compare mortality rates in Vietnam veterans’ families with the families of servicemen who did not go to Vietnam.

2. Who is doing the study?

The study is being managed by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA).  The Family Study Program (FSP) team has been set up to administer the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study and subsequent family studies.

The FSP team is undertaking tasks such as the development of the Study Register and the management of research organisations contracted under the Family Study Research Panel   The actual research work will be done by appropriately skilled and experienced external researcher organisations on the Panel.   These organisations were chosen by competitive tender.

The study is supported by an Independent Scientific Advisor and a Scientific Advisory committee.  A Consultative Forum  provides veteran community input to the study.

3. Why is the study important?

We have much data on how service affects military personnel. What we don’t have is much scientifically rigorous data that tells us what the long-term effects of war service are on the families of veterans.

This study will help in identifying the intergenerational effects of war service.  It will provide an important opportunity for the families of veterans to tell how their husband’s or their Dad’s service has affected their lives.  The study will provide a comprehensive picture on the health and wellbeing of the families of veterans who served in the Vietnam era.  The results of the study will potentially aid those in need from the Vietnam era and help us plan the best support for current and future service personnel and their families.

4. How big is the study?

This is a large scale study with a number of research components. The study has invited two main study groups to participate: 10,000 Army Vietnam Veterans and 10,000 Army personnel who served between 1962-1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam.  In addition to the participants in these groups, family members including partners, ex-partners, children, step children, siblings, nieces and nephews of Vietnam veterans will be involved in the study making it a large study with over 20,000 participants.

As well as the above, people who were not randomly selected can also participate in the study including Vietnam veterans, Air Force and Navy personnel, their families and the families of deceased veterans.  These participants will receive the same survey as the randomly selected groups however for scientific reasons their results will be the considered separately from the main analysis.

5. Who will benefit from taking part in the study?

The study will provide us with an insight into the health of the families of Vietnam veterans. It will look at the factors or characteristics that help build resilience in families of veterans and will also look at risk factors that could affect health and wellbeing of Vietnam veterans and their families.

The results of the study will potentially aid those in need from the Vietnam era and help us plan the best support for current and future defence force personnel and their families.

6. What research components are included in the study?

The study includes a number of research components including:

Tier 1(a) Semi-structured Telephone Interviews – to be undertaken before the Main Survey involving up to 300 participants to obtain an understanding of the health risk and also protective factors for the sons and daughters of Vietnam veterans;

Tier 1(b) Focus Groups – to be conducted after the Main Survey involving 10 groups of 6-8 people with scores that indicate low or very high levels of social, mental and physical resilience. The focus groups will provide an indication of the issues faced and resilience factors unique to the families of Vietnam veterans. Children of Vietnam veterans, of military personnel with no Vietnam service and of siblings of Vietnam veterans who have no military service will participate in these focus groups;

Tier 1(c) Sons & Daughters Re-analysis – to be undertaken before the Main Survey to gain an understanding of issues faced by the children of Vietnam veterans and to inform the Main Survey.  The data to be re-analysed was collected as a part of the Vietnam Veterans’ Sons and Daughters Project between 2000-2005 by the then-named Vietnam Veterans Counselling Service;

Tier 1(d) History of Health – this case study analysis will be undertaken before and to inform the Main Survey.  A total of 30 case histories will be collected with 10 (5 sons and 5 daughters) participants each making up three groups. It is expected to be conducted in an interview format with open ended questions and will provide a comparison between the three sons and daughters groups; and

Tier 1(e) Ethnographic Study – to be undertaken before the Main Survey involving 6 sons and daughters from the Vietnam war era whose fathers had varying service history.  It will involve conversational, casual relaxed interviews exploring the health status risk and protective factors for sons and daughters with no predetermined questions.

Tier 2 Main Survey to compare the effects of service in Vietnam on the families of Vietnam Veterans with a control group of Army personnel (and their families) who served during 1962-1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam.  Participation will involve completion of a questionnaire comprising measures of physical, mental and social health.

Tier 3 Main Survey to compare the effects of service in Vietnam on the families of Vietnam Veterans with a control group of their brothers (and their families) who served in the Army during 1962-1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam.  Participation will involve completion of a questionnaire comprising measures of physical, mental and social health.

Tier 4 Main Survey to compare the effects of service in Vietnam on the families of Vietnam veterans and a control group of their siblings (and their families) who have not served in the defence forces.  Participation will involve completion of a questionnaire comprising measures of physical, mental and social health.

Tier 5 Children of Vietnam Veterans’ Mortality Study to investigate mortality rates and causes of death for the children of Vietnam veterans and compare these to mortality rates and causes of death for the children of appropriate comparison groups. Participation will involve completion of a mortality survey form which asks for details of all children.  This information will be matched to national death records in order to determine mortality rates.

7. When will the results of the study be released?

The results of each research component completed will be released over the course of the study.  The News Update page provides information on the progress of the study. For more information you can call DVA’s Health Study Line on 1800 502 302.

The first research component being undertaken is a Mortality Study of the children of Vietnam Veterans.  These results are likely to be available in late 2009.  For more information on the study’s milestones please see the Research Page.

8. How will DVA know how Veterans want the study to be done?

A Consultative Forum has been established to act as a mechanism for consultation between DVA and the veteran community. The members of the Consultative Forum provide comment to DVA on veterans’ issues in relation to the study and consult with their organisations/constituents to ensure the veteran community perspective is provided on the study.

9. Will DVA interpret the study results to suit itself?

The research components of the study will be undertaken by a number of external research organisations.  The results of each component of the study, including a written report, will be prepared by external researchers who are independent of DVA. 

DVA will not, in any way, be interpreting or analysing data but will be responsible for drawing together all of the reports from each component to compile the final study report. DVA will be assisted in this task by the study’s Scientific Advisory Committee and will take into account the views of the Consultative Forum. The final report will then be submitted by DVA to the Repatriation Commission which will forward the Report to the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs.

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PARTICIPANTS

10. Who is eligible to participate in the study?

The following groups are eligible to participate in the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study:

• Randomly selected Vietnam veterans, their partners, ex-partners, children and step-children. We will also involve siblings of Vietnam veterans and their families (including children and step-children) in the comparison groups:
• Randomly selected Army personnel who served during 1962 – 1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam and their partners, ex-partners, children and step-children; and
• People who were not randomly selected, including Vietnam veterans, Air Force and Navy personnel, their families and the families of deceased veterans.  These participants will receive the same survey as the randomly selected groups however for scientific reasons their results will be the considered separately from the main analysis.

Participants under 18 will not be able to register personally however information about their health will be provided in the answers given if their parents participate in the main survey.

Persons who are living overseas or spent many of their formative years overseas  may not be eligible (see Q14).   Please contact the Health Study Line on 1800 502 302 if you have any questions regarding your eligibility for the study.

11. Will only randomly selected people be studied?

Anyone who is eligible can register for the study (See Q10) and participate in the main survey; however, only those randomly selected and their families will be part of the main study analysis.  This is being done to maintain the scientific validity of the project involving the study and comparison groups.  The results from the self-selected participant groups will be considered separately from the main analysis.

12. Can Navy and Air Force personnel participate in the study?

Navy and Air Force personnel of the Vietnam era (1962-75) are able to participate in the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study.  These participants will undertake the same survey as Army participants but due to scientific reasons, their results will be the focus of a separate report.

13. Will the study include children under 18 years of age?

Yes.  As an intergenerational study, collecting information on the health and wellbeing of children is vital.  However, children who are under 18 years of age are not able to personally register to participate in the study.  The information on children under the age of 18 years will be provided by their parent/s as part of questions included in the major health survey form.

14. Can I participate in the study if I am living overseas permanently or temporarily?

Yes, if you lived majority of your early life (formative years) in Australia and were therefore raised in the Australian health environment, your are eligible to register for the study and take part in the main survey research component.  All overseas participants are asked to provide a residential address in Australia for mailing purposes.

15. Can families of deceased Vietnam veterans participate in the study?

Yes.  Although deceased veterans were not included as part of the randomly selected sample of veterans for the main study analysis, their family members are still welcome to participate in the study.

Deceased veterans were excluded from the random samples for a number of reasons. The recruitment method outlined in the study’s Research Protocol uses the Vietnam veteran to contact his adult children on behalf of DVA and finding the contact details of all of the randomly sampled partners and ex-partners of deceased veterans would be a difficult process and potentially add years to the study. In addition, there is not a current list of deceased veterans for the comparison group (Army personnel who served during 1962-1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam) and without this group, the study would not be scientifically valid.

Family members of deceased Vietnam veterans’ who take part in the study will receive exactly the same survey questionnaire as the randomly selected group but their results will be reported on  separately from the main study.

If you are a widow, ex-partner or child of a deceased Vietnam veteran, you are encouraged to participate in the DVA Family Study by registering online at Register Now page or contacting DVA’s Health Study Line on 1800 502 302.

16. Can I participate if I was born before my father was deployed to Vietnam?

Yes.  All children of Vietnam veterans, regardless of whether they were born before or after their father went to Vietnam, are eligible to participate in the study.  The study will examine the effect of war service in Vietnam on family members including children born prior to their father’s deployment to Vietnam.

17. Why would anyone sign up to be in the comparison group ‘What's in it for them’?

Australians have a long tradition of mates helping mates, particularly in the military.  Signing up for this study will help your mates and service families long into the future. Having a comparison group (ex-Army personnel who served during 1962-1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam) will allow the researchers to investigate the health effects of military service in Australia.  By comparing the impact of service in Vietnam with service in Australia, health effects on those who did not deploy to Vietnam will be picked up in the study.  Any outcomes will provide important information for anyone serving, including future serving families.

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TAKING PART

18. I have received an invitation – do I have to take part in the study?

No, participating in the study is entirely voluntary. If you decide to register for the study then change your mind at any time, you can withdraw from the study by calling DVA’s Health Study Line 1800 502 302.

19. How can I take part in the study?

If you received an invitation to participate in the study, you can register by filling out the registration forms and mailing them back to DVA, calling 1800 502 302 or registering online . You can also help by discussing the study with family members and encouraging them to participate.  We need registrations from:

• Vietnam veterans’ families:  Partners, Ex- partners, Children, Step-children, Brothers, Sisters, Nieces and nephews; and
• Ex-Army personnel families: Partners, Ex- partners, Children, Step-children.

If you or the veteran that you are related to did not receive an invitation, you can still register for the study as outlined above.

20. What will the study involve for me and my family?

If you or your family members decide to take part in the study, you will be asked to:

• Register for the study online, over the phone or by post. The registration process involves providing information (such as your name, date of birth, address and telephone number) so that we can contact you in the future. When registering, Vietnam veterans will also be asked for brief family details such as number of children and number of siblings. Family members will be asked to provide brief details of the veteran they are related to;
• Fill out a health and wellbeing survey. This will be a comprehensive questionnaire for each participant;
• For veterans and the siblings of veterans, complete the Children of Vietnam Veterans’ Mortality Study form; and
• For a small number of participants, participate in telephone interviews or focus groups.

If the study raises unpleasant memories for you and you would like to discuss any issues with a counsellor, you may wish to contact the VVCS – Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling Service. VVCS provides counselling services to all Australian veterans, their partners and children. In particular sons and daughters of Vietnam veterans, of any age, can access the VVCS. This is a confidential and free service and may be accessed by calling 1800 011 046.

Remember, you can withdraw from the study or any particular research component at any time. Just ring DVA’s Health Study Line 1800 502 302.

21. What happens after I register?

Some time after you have registered for the study you will receive an acknowledgement letter. Veterans and the siblings of veterans will also receive a Children of Vietnam Veterans’ Mortality Study form. After the registration process is complete and the study proper commences, you will be asked to complete the main survey. A small number of participants may also be involved in telephone interviews or focus groups. There will be a separate consent process for participating in each component of the study.

As it may be some time before we contact you, it is important that you keep us informed of any changes to your contact details once you have registered.

22. Can I get help if I have a hard time during the study?

If the study raises unpleasant memories for you and you would like to discuss any issues with a counsellor, you may wish to contact the VVCS - Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling Service. VVCS provides counselling services to all Australian veterans, their partners and children. In particular sons and daughters of Vietnam veterans, of any age, can access the VVCS. This is a confidential and free service and may be accessed by calling 1800 011 046.

23. What will it cost to participate in the study? Will I receive any rewards?

The study is free for all participants. There are no financial rewards for taking part. Although you may not receive direct benefit from your participation, others may ultimately benefit from the knowledge we obtain.

Participating in the study will not in any way affect your pension, benefits or any health services you are entitled to from DVA. Any information you provide will be used only for the purposes of the research.

24. Can I register my family members?

You can only register yourself. You cannot nominate other family members or provide their contact details to the Family Study Program. Each person must register separately.

If you would like to invite your family members to take part in the study, DVA can provide you with information and registration forms or you can refer them to DVA’s website or DVA’s Health Study Line - 1800 502 302 for more information.

25. My family and I are healthy – why should we take part in the study?

The study will aim to identify what factors affect the health and wellbeing in families of veterans. To do this, we need a broad and representative group of participants – not only those who feel they have suffered because of Vietnam service, but also those who feel they haven’t suffered.

The study will help DVA to provide suitable programs and services for the Vietnam veteran community and other veteran groups. You might not directly benefit from taking part, but the knowledge we obtain could help others.

26. I am not related to a Vietnam veteran. Why should I take part?

We need a broad and representative group of participants to act as a comparison group so we can get comprehensive and scientifically valid results. To assess the impact of military service in Vietnam, we need Army personnel who served during 1962-1975 but did not deploy to Vietnam, together with their partners and children to participate.

This will help us to work out whether the health of Vietnam veterans’ families is different to other military families in the community.

Your participation in this study will be greatly appreciated. Although you may not receive direct benefit, the knowledge we obtain could help others.

27. Will I have to have a blood test or other invasive medical interventions to participate?

Participants in the study will not be required to undergo a medical examination or give blood or urine samples.  Your main participation will be the completion of the main survey questionnaire.

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MY INFORMATION

28. Will DVA use the information I provide to cut my pension payment?

Participating in the study will not in any way affect your pension, benefits or any entitlements you receive from DVA. Any information you provide will only be used for the purposes of the research.

29. Who will see the information that I give?

Only a small number of DVA staff will have access to the information you provide.

DVA will keep confidential all personal records related to the study in accordance with the confidentiality provisions in the Privacy Act 1988. Information will be stored securely on an electronic database with access limited to staff of the Family Study Program.

The final results of the study will be the combined information we have gathered from all participants and no individuals will be identified.

30. Can anyone involved in the study access my medical records and information?

No one involved in the study will have access to either Defence or DVA medical records.  The Independent Scientific Adviser and the Scientific Advisory Committee will not have access to any individual records, information or questionnaires.  Their role is to ensure the processes followed by the research organisation are scientifically sound and will achieve the stated purpose of the study.

The only information made available to researchers will be the completed questionnaires.  These will only be provided to those organisation that submit a successful proposal for the individual tiers of research.  They will then only receive the questionnaires needed to carry out that particular research project.  All research organisations have agreed to privacy conditions in the Deed of Standing Offer they have signed.  This agreement will prevent members of the panel sharing information that they receive.

31. What happens to my information once the study is completed?

All research data must be maintained in compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) guidelines.  As such, DVA, and any members of the Research Panel contracted to carry out any research component of the study, must ensure that the research material collected during the study is appropriately stored/archived to comply with the Act and guidelines.

32. Who can I contact if I have questions about my rights as a participant in this study?

DVA Human Research Ethics and Welfare Committee Coordinator
PO Box 21
Woden ACT 2606
Telephone: (02) 6289 6204
Fax: (02) 6289 6173
Email: ethics.committee@dva.gov.au

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare Ethics Committee
Secretariat
GPO Box 570
CANBERRA  ACT  2601
Telephone: (02) 6244 1123
Fax: (02) 6244 1111
Email: ethicssec@aihw.gov.au

Australian Defence Human Research Ethics Committee
Executive Secretary
CP2-6-104
Department of Defence
CANBERRA  ACT  2600     
Telephone: (02) 6266 3837
Fax: (02) 6266 3881
Email: adhrec@defence.gov.au

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KEEPING IN TOUCH

33. What if my details change before I’ve been contacted by the Family Study Program?

It may be some time before you are contacted again to take part in the research components of the study. It is crucial that your contact details remain up to date, so that we can contact you in the future. To change your contact details call DVA’s Health Study Line on 1800 502 302, email healthstudy@dva.gov.au or send your new details by post to:

Family Study Program
Department of Veterans' Affairs
PO Box 21
WODEN  ACT  2606

34. How can I find out more about the progress of the study?

The first release of study results will occur in 2009. The News Update page. For more information call DVA’s Health Study Line on 1800 502 302.

BACKGROUND

35. Why do a study on Vietnam Veterans? Isn't it too late?

The Vietnam veteran community has for some time been asking for a study of their children’s health.  This study responds to those concerns and will provide a comprehensive picture about the wellbeing of the family unit. 

Yes, the Vietnam conflict was many years ago, but some effects take time to emerge. Information from this study will be extremely valuable – not only to identify potential health issues but also to help plan the  services and programs that will meet the needs of families of our defence force personnel now and into the future. 

The Family Study Program will also conduct research that will look at the effects of more recent service.

36. Isn’t the study a waste of time?

DVA has over a long period of time undertaken various health studies of veterans including Korean veterans, Vietnam veterans and Gulf War veterans. Many different health studies have been undertaken of the Vietnam veteran population including mortality, cancer incidence and morbidity. Questions relating to the veterans’ children’s health have been asked but were limited in number as the focus of the health study remained on the veteran. Some of the outcomes of these health studies have resulted in services and benefits being provided to children of Vietnam veterans as well as to veterans.

The Vietnam veteran community has for some time been asking for a study of their children’s health.  This study responds to the concerns about the health of their children and will provide a comprehensive picture about the wellbeing of the family unit.

Information from this study will not only identify potential health issues but will also assist in the development of services to more accurately meet the needs of families of defence force personnel. The study will provide much needed information on the impact of military service on family functioning and the health and well-being of children of military families. The outcomes of this study will inform and assist in the development of government policy.

The study outcomes will be published in a written report which will also be available on DVA’s website. All information will be published in an aggregate form and will be de-identified. The final outcomes will then be considered by the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and the Government. It is possible that outcomes from this health study will assist in the targeting of services and benefits provided by DVA and the Australian Defence Force for military families.

37. Why did the random samples include only Army personnel?

The reasoning behind the selection of Army personnel for the random sample for the study was deliberated during the development of the research protocol for the study.  It was considered that the selection of Army personnel only would result in a more robust sample and would ensure the highest probability of obtaining scientifically valid results about the effects of Vietnam service on the children of veterans. 

We are not saying Army veterans are sicker than the other veterans.  Nor are we saying that the children of Army veterans are sicker than other children.  The study is about gathering a large enough study group to give statistically valid results.  The Army group is the one large enough from which we are most likely to get valid results.

There were also a number of logistical reasons for restricting the random sample to Army only:

a) there are larger numbers of Army veterans;
b) list of Army veterans who did not go to Vietnam is already available for a comparison group; and
c) he consistency of the nature and length of deployment in Vietnam by Army personnel.

The significant service of Navy and Air Force Vietnam veterans is recognised and these veterans are welcome to register to participate in the study. People registering as part of this group will receive the same main survey but the results will be considered separately from the main analysis.  This will ensure that the health and wellbeing of families of particular groups such as Navy and Air Force veterans will be considered.

38. Why will the study take so long?

A family study is complex which is necessary in order to obtain a comprehensive picture of the health and wellbeing of the families of veterans.  The study includes a number of research components, some which involve large numbers of participants and it will take time to collect and analyse the results.  Some of the smaller research components will be completed more quickly and the results will be released as they become available.

39. Will the study look at specific effects such as Agent Orange exposure?

While not directly examining the effects of Agent Orange, the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study will be looking at all the health issues raised by the participants. This study will look at a broad range of health impacts and seek to establish if they are linked to service in Vietnam.  One of the main reasons for this study is to establish what additional services and support may be helpful for families of deployed personnel.

In relation to the potential effects of Agent Orange on children of Vietnam veterans, there is some evidence of an association between exposure to Agent Orange and specific health conditions in the children of exposed individuals. 

Under the Vietnam Veterans Children Support Program, DVA provides treatment-related benefits and assistance to eligible children of Vietnam Veterans who have spina bifida manifesta, cleft lip, cleft palate, adrenal gland cancer or acute myeloid leukaemia.  These conditions were shown to have a higher prevalence in children of Vietnam veterans than in the general community in the Vietnam Veterans' Morbidity (Health) Study (1998) .

40. How does this study compare to the Millennium Cohort Study?

The Millennium Cohort Study is designed to evaluate the long-term health effects of military service, including deployments.  The US Department of Defense recognised after the 1991 Gulf War that there was a need to collect more information about the long-term health of service members to evaluate the health of service personnel throughout their military careers and after leaving military service.

By contrast, the Vietnam Veterans’ Family Study is specific to Vietnam service and evaluates the intergenerational health effects of war on the families of serving members, rather than the effects of war on members themselves.