Restore and Rebuild: pilot Moral Injury treatment enters second phase of testing
A research team at Combat Stress and King’s College London has received £260,000 funding from the Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT) to conduct more trials into the newly developed clinical treatment, ‘Restore and Rebuild’, for veterans with Moral Injury.
Following a successful trial of the treatment, the team can now conduct further research to evaluate it through a randomised control trial. ‘Restore and Rebuild’ was created by subject matter experts in consultation with veterans. It was successfully trialled with twenty veterans and in the second phase the treatment will be tested with a larger group of former armed forces personnel with Moral Injury – related mental disorders.
The research team is led by Dr Victoria Williamson and Professor Neil Greenberg at King’s College London, and Professor Dominic Murphy at Combat Stress and King’s College London.
Professor Dominic Murphy, Combat Stress & King’s College London, said “Moral injury affects people from all walks of life, veterans but also people working in emergency services, healthcare, social work and the media. The sense of guilt, shame, anger and despair can make it difficult for people to talk about what they are going through.
Our research shows that the most effective treatment is to help people make sense of their experiences and with this trial we hope to be able to roll out the ‘Restore and Rebuild’ treatment programme to support veterans but also other people suffering from Moral Injury.”
Dr Victoria Williamson, King’s Centre for Military Health Research (KCMHR), said “Our extensive research into experiences of moral injury has shown the significant toll it can take on people’s lives. Our Restore and Rebuild treatment has shown very promising evidence in improving veterans' quality of life and recovery from Moral Injury related mental health difficulties. With further testing, Restore and Rebuild may be able to help veterans and other occupational groups at high risk of Moral Injury.”
With the support from FiMT, the team can formally evaluate the effectiveness of this new treatment. Following this trial, the aim is that ‘Restore and Rebuild’ will be rolled out to support veterans across the UK
What is Moral Injury?
Moral Injury is defined as ‘psychological distress which results from actions, or lack of actions, which violate an individual’s moral or ethical code’. It is not unique to one profession, but can occur in the Armed Forces when an individual is adhering to the rules of engagement, or is following orders which result in challenging situations, such as witnessing human suffering or having a role in the deaths of civilians. For more information on what Moral Injury is, watch the short animation below.