Evaluating an Enhanced Veteran Sponsorship Program Using Precision Medicine to Support High-Risk Transitioning Servicemembers and Veterans

What this Trial Is About

Young Veterans in the U.S., especially those aged 18 to 34, face a significantly increased risk of suicide during the first year after leaving military service, often called the deadly gap. This research evaluates the Veteran Sponsorship Initiative VSI, which connects transitioning Servicemembers and Veterans TSMVs with trained peer sponsors to ease their transition and improve access to VA care. The study expands VSI with enhanced predictive analytics to identify high-risk individuals before discharge and adds targeted VA mental and health care services in a hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial. The trial compares three groups Transition as Usual no additional services, VSI Base peer sponsorship and community support, and VSI VSI Base plus VA stepped care services. The VSI includes approximately five telehealth video sessions with social workers before and after discharge, assisting with VA registration, benefits applications, sponsor contact, and connections to primary care. Peer sponsors maintain regular contact with TSMVs over about six months post-discharge. The study enrolls 2,700 high-risk TSMVs across four military installations from 2026 to 2027. Participants join about six months before discharge and provide data at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months after leaving service. Researchers assess reintegration difficulties using the Military to Civilian Questionnaire and measure depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and VA healthcare use. The study also tracks implementation feasibility, adoption, and healthcare costs. The primary outcome is change in reintegration difficulties over time, helping to evaluate the impact of VSI and VSI compared to usual transition support.

Expanding Veteran Sponsorship Initiative+ to Support High-Risk Transitioning Servicemembers and Veterans: A Precision Medicine Approach