Occupational Outcome in Military Aviators After Psychiatric Hospitalization.
Abstract
This study examined whether psychiatric hospitalization precluded a return to the highly demanding occupational setting of flight duties in the USAF. A 7 year retrospective review of two computerized databases was joined by individual identifiers. One database contained psychiatric hospitalization information and the other confirmed occupational responsibilities. This is one of the first studies with the capability to join psychiatric hospitalization to longitudinal occupational follow-up. All USAF aviators (N = 214) were on flying status the quarter prior to psychiatric hospitalization between January 1986 and December 1990. Flying Status was evaluated for a minimum of 2 years after hospitalization to determine occupational outcome. By 2 years after admission, 138 aviators had returned to flying status. An affective disorder diagnosis was a significant predictor of poor occupational outcome (95% C1 1 .94- 17.33 pi 0.0001). The impact of depression remained after factoring out length of hospitalization and the other univariate significant predictor of not returning to flying status. This study documents that nearly two/thirds (65.9%) of USAF aviators returned to flying status after psychiatric hospitalization. An affective disorder diagnosis significantly influences an aviator's occupational outcome. It is unclear whether this is due to institutional policy or a reflection of poor prognosis of these individuals.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1994
- Accession Number
- ADA293402
Entities
People
- Christopher Flynn
- Ralph E. Miles
- Suzanne Mcglohn
Organizations
- United States Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine