Airborne hazards: A Veteran toolkit for respiratory health

A toolkit co-designed by Veterans to address respiratory health concerns

For Army Veteran Freddy Allen, making sure Veterans know about airborne hazards and have the resources they need is top priority. Allen served overseas for 13 months with a field artillery unit. He understands why Veterans would be concerned about exposure to airborne hazards after experiencing environmental exposures himself and knowing how they can affect health.

It wasn’t uncommon for soldiers to “burn everything to eliminate trash or waste of any kind” when serving overseas. His experience motivated him to help in the creation of a toolkit for Veterans about Deployment-Related Respiratory Disease (DRRD). This toolkit was developed through an innovative co-design process by Veterans and VA professionals.

DRRD is any long-term breathing problem related to exposure to airborne hazards during military service, and includes conditions such as asthma, sinusitis and rhinitis.

“Veterans are rightfully concerned about how exposure to airborne hazards during their service can impact them,” said Dr. Anays Sotolongo, co-director of the Airborne Hazards and Burn Pits Center of Excellence (AHBPCE). “We had already created a toolkit for doctors to evaluate and treat DRRD. We knew it was important to create resources for Veterans. Veterans need to be able to understand what DRRD is and what they can expect from an evaluation.”

The DRRD Toolkit for Veterans was commissioned by VA’s AHBPCE. It was created by Veterans and VA professionals from VA’s Exposure-Related Care Transformation (EXPRT) Center and VA’s Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research (CHOIR).

A collaboration with Veterans

Seven Veterans, including Allen, worked with VA professionals to design the DRRD toolkit. They met for two hours each week for four months in fall 2024. They talked about what to include in the toolkit and shared ideas on content, copy and design.

“As we develop resources to address Veterans’ military exposure concerns, their perspectives must be integrated and at the center of everything we do,” said Dr. Lisa McAndrew, director of VA’s EXPRT Center.  

“The co-design process ensures the end product resonates with other Veterans,” explained Dr. Gemmae Fix, the team lead from CHOIR. “Working with Veterans makes our products better and demonstrates VA’s commitment to learning from Veterans to improve their care.” 

Allen agreed that co-designing this product with Veterans makes the toolkit more credible.

“It’s huge,” he said, “because it’s not just information coming from some scientists or someone who’s never worn a uniform. It is coming from the opinions and experiences of those that survive and have had these things resonate through their households.”

The toolkit

The toolkit has three parts: a webpage, a brochure and a poster. It’s available online and as a printed brochure on VA’s website.

The toolkit includes:

• Information about airborne hazards.
• How to identify breathing symptoms that may be related to airborne hazard exposure.
• What to expect from a VA medical appointment for DRRD.
• Recommended treatments for DRRD.
• Latest research on airborne hazard-related conditions.
• Checklists and worksheets for Veterans to fill out about their symptoms or to prepare for an appointment.

The toolkit also lists other tools and resources for Veterans, like how to file a disability claim and information about other VA health programs.

Allen wants Veterans to know they’re not alone in dealing with airborne hazard symptoms. He hopes knowing the toolkit was created by other Veterans “may lend some credence to… [understanding that] someone on the other side of this thing experienced the same things that I’m experiencing… and perhaps it’s worth listening to or reading. Others need to know that they’re not alone in their experiences, and there is help.”

Access the Veteran Deployment-Related Respiratory Disease toolkit.

Access the companion Provider Deployment-Related Respiratory Disease toolkit.