This impact report, focusing on activities and change against its theory of change during its 2019 - 2022 strategy period. The report, by Tiller Research Ltd, highlights outcomes and changes under the Alliance's four linked areas of impact, partnership, practice, research and policy. These areas were identified in the Alliance's 2018 consultation, which recommended that the Alliance focus on connecting practitioners, policy makers and researchers with each other, with evidence and with support. The report celebrates the Alliance's impact on policy developments and its achievements in building and supporting a thriving UK-wide network of research-practice Hubs, connecting 891 professionals in 12 Hubs hosted by 21 partners working to do together for Service children what they cannot do alone.
Abstract: Background: Enactment of the Veterans Choice Act (VCA) in 2014 and expansion of Medicaid programs led to greater options for Veterans to receive health care outside of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). However, little is known about how much care women Veterans receive in VA or non-VA settings paid by VA or other insurance types. We explore trends in inpatient care received by women Veterans before and after implementation of the VCA, focusing on hospitalizations, as these patients are often higher risk. Methods: Data for women Veterans were linked to hospital discharge data for 2013-2017 from 11 diverse states. Patient and hospital characteristics by VA and non-VA payer and age group (less than 65 years and 65 years and older) were compared for acute hospitalizations in Pearson's chi-square and analysis of variance tests. We compared the odds of a hospitalization occurring before and after VCA implementation for each specific setting/payer using separate logistic regressions. Results: Our sample included 117,177 acute medical/surgical hospitalizations. For younger women, the most common hospital setting/payer was VA hospitals (36%); older women most frequently received hospital care in non-VA hospitals covered by Medicare (61%). After the VCA, the probability of receiving VA-purchased care increased significantly for older women only. Younger women saw a significant decrease in VA hospitalizations post-VCA. Conclusions: We found that after multiple expansions in non-VA health care options, women Veterans sought more VA-purchased community hospital care.