The Defence Medical Welfare Service (DMWS) have received £12,500 for the DMWS Emergency Response Service to help support veterans and their families during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

What is the DMWS Emergency Response Service (ERS)? ERS provides a rapid response phone based welfare service to veterans, service personnel, frontline staff, NHS staff and the Merchant Navy whilst they or their families are in the NHS clinical pathway.

The generous funding from the Veterans Foundation towards ERS will be directed at veterans who are not currently supported by other DMWS projects and will allow DMWS to extend their reach when there is increased need.

During the Covid-19 outbreak many people may be struggling with fears and concerns, lack of contact and lack of food, medical provisions and home adaption support. Social Isolation, social distancing and the unprecedented levels of pressure on our NHS during the current pandemic creates and magnifies a number of direct and indirect concerns and issues for our veterans. Many veterans are unable to source supplies and support online and will be disadvantage as a result. 

DMWS welfare officers identify and resolve welfare, wellbeing, and social care needs, and support the NHS with discharge plans where needed and coordinate on-going support in community health settings or at home whilst the individual is on a treatment pathway. “The Veterans’ Foundation has quickly focused several hundreds of thousand pounds to tackle some of the difficulties faced by veterans and other beneficiaries during the pandemic.  We are delighted to be able to help DMWS in their good work.  Thank you to them and thank you to our supporters.” David Shaw, CEO of the Veterans’ Foundation. Paul Gaffney, Chief Executive, DMWS said: “We’re very grateful to Veterans’s Foundation for their generous grant through the Veterans’ Lottery Fund. Thanks to them we’ll be able to help more military veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic”


For further information about DMWS please contact Harriet Mallinson hmallinson@dmws.org.uk

For further information regarding Veterans’ Foundation please contact: Ben at Bee Ethical: ben@bee-ethical.com  or visit https://www.veteransfoundation.org.uk

Published: 28th May, 2020
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