22 July 2025

Dr. Amanda Staudt Assesses Global Health Metrics for U.S. Military Readiness

Geneva-supported study explores how disability data can better inform force health policies

Measuring What Matters for Readiness

Traditional health metrics often fall short when applied to military populations, where physical and mental demands differ significantly from those of the public. To address this gap, Dr. Amanda Staudt led a Geneva-supported study to evaluate whether standard global disability weights accurately reflect the health burden of U.S. service members.

Published in Military Medicine, the study titled “U.S. Military Burden of Disease Study: Disability Weights Using a Web-based Survey Among Military Service Members” surveyed active, reserve, and National Guard personnel to assess how they perceive the severity of various health conditions, ranging from trauma injuries to chronic disease.

How the Military Views Disability

Using a methodology adapted from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2010 study, researchers asked participants to compare different health states via web-based surveys. The resulting disability weights were then compared to civilian benchmarks.

The findings showed a strong correlation between military and general population disability weights, with no statistically significant difference in the median values across 220 health conditions. This suggests that existing global metrics may be appropriate in many cases for estimating the health burden within military populations.

Supporting Data-Driven Decision Making

Dr. Staudt’s research highlights the importance of understanding disease burden through metrics such as disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), which can inform better resource allocation, enhance health protection, and inform long-term readiness strategies.

This project, along with others like it, was made possible through Geneva’s comprehensive research support, spanning from pre-award development to operational execution, ensuring mission-aligned research that informs real-world outcomes.

Visit our website to learn more about Geneva’s work in military health metrics, data science, and operational readiness.