Abstract
Reproductive-age women are a fast-growing component of active-duty military personnel
who experience deployment and combat more frequently than previous service-era women
Veterans. With the expansion of the number of women and their roles, the United States
Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have prioritized development and integration
of reproductive services into their health systems. Thus, understanding associations
between deployments or combat exposures and short- or long-term adverse reproductive
health outcomes is imperative for policy and programmatic development. Servicewomen
and women Veterans may access reproductive services across civilian and military or
Veteran systems and providers, increasing the need for awareness and communication
regarding deployment experiences with a broad array of providers. An example is the
high prevalence of military sexual trauma reported by women Veterans and the associated
mental health diagnoses that may lead to a lifetime of high risk-coping behaviors
that increase reproductive health risks, such as sexually transmitted infections,
unintended pregnancies, and others. Care coordination models that integrate reproductive
healthcare needs, especially during vulnerable times such as at the time of military
separation and in the immediate postdeployment phase, may identify risk factors for
early intervention with the potential to mitigate lifelong risks.
Keywords
women Veterans - reproductive health - deployment
