{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]],"date-time":"2026-05-29T19:01:54Z","timestamp":1780081314419,"version":"3.54.0"},"reference-count":16,"publisher":"Oxford University Press (OUP)","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>Military and Veterans health research has substantially advanced in recent decades, particularly in terms of analytic sophistication aimed at characterizing the biopsychosocial complexity of health through biomarkers, neuroimaging, and predictive modeling. However, formal models (e.g., governance structures) for including individuals with lived experiences to guide this work have not evolved at the same pace. Drawing on our collective perspectives as Veterans, Caregivers, and academic partners, this commentary examines the structural limitations of current engagement processes. Although community advisory boards or similar mechanisms have become increasingly common, engagement often occurs after key design decisions have been established, limiting meaningful influence on investigative topics, hypothesis formation, confounder identification, endpoint prioritization, and analytic strategy. Caregivers, including those supporting service members with traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder, remain even less integrated, despite their critical role in long-term recovery. Here, we propose a Patient-Researcher model characterized by upstream integration, sustained engagement, and structured mentorship. Embedding individuals with lived experiences throughout the research process strengthens construct validity, improves translational relevance, and better aligns research with the realities of military and Veteran life.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1093\/milmed\/usag257","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,18]],"date-time":"2026-05-18T11:18:47Z","timestamp":1779103127000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Embedding Lived Expertise into Military and Veteran Medical Research"],"prefix":"10.1093","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5371-9049","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"James","family":"Hentig","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Public Health, Brown University , Providence, RI 02912,","place":["United States"]},{"name":"School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, MD 21205,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Laura","family":"Hentig","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Sciences, University of Colorado-Colorado Springs , Colorado Springs, CO 80918,","place":["United States"]},{"name":"Department of Public Health, Yale University , New Haven, CT 06510,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jonathan","family":"Lu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Independent Researcher, HardHat Wellness, LLC , Dayton, OH 45402,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Thomas","family":"Murphy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Medicine, Duke University , Durham, NC 27710,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Caitlin","family":"Russell","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania , Philadelphia, PA 19104,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"suffix":"Jr","given":"Ricky","family":"Ditzel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rush University Medical College , Chicago, IL 60612,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Michelle","family":"Patch","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, MD 21205,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jessica M","family":"Gill","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, MD 21205,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lisa A","family":"Brenner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Psychiatry, and Neurology, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, CO 80045,","place":["United States"]},{"name":"VA Brain Health Coordinating Center, Rocky Mountain Regional Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Eastern Colorado Health Care System , Aurora, CO 80045,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"MaryJo","family":"Pugh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Informatics, Decision-Enhancement, and Analytic Sciences Center of Innovation, Veterans Affairs Salt Lake City Health Care System , Salt Lake City, UT 84148,","place":["United States"]},{"name":"Division of Epidemiology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Utah School of Medicine , Salt Lake City, UT 84113,","place":["United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"286","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"2026052914121483400_usag257-B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1507","DOI":"10.1038\/s41591-020-1080-4","article-title":"Patient researchers\u2014the missing link?","volume":"26","author":"Riggare","year":"2020","journal-title":"Nat Med"},{"key":"2026052914121483400_usag257-B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"578","DOI":"10.1332\/17442648y2025d000000060","article-title":"Disability lived experience and expertise: recognising the expert contributions of people with disability","volume":"21","author":"Clifton","year":"2025","journal-title":"Evid Policy"},{"key":"2026052914121483400_usag257-B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"S191","DOI":"10.1097\/MLR.0000000000002264","article-title":"Patient voices leading change: a call to action for careful, kind, and connected Patient-Partnered research in PCORnet\u00ae","volume":"64","author":"Merritt","year":"2026","journal-title":"Med Care"},{"key":"2026052914121483400_usag257-B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"519","DOI":"10.1097\/MLR.0000000000001728","article-title":"Caregiver engagement enhances outcomes among randomized control trials of transitional care interventions: a systematic review and meta-analysis","volume":"60","author":"Levoy","year":"2022","journal-title":"Med Care"},{"key":"2026052914121483400_usag257-B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"957","DOI":"10.1377\/hlthaff.2019.00012","article-title":"Including family caregivers in seriously ill veterans\u2019 care: a Mixed-Methods study","volume":"38","author":"Sperber","year":"2019","journal-title":"Health Aff (Project Hope)"},{"key":"2026052914121483400_usag257-B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"295","DOI":"10.1093\/geroni\/igae098.0962","article-title":"Underrepresented family caregivers: building trust to strengthen recruitment and 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