JULY 31, 2024 – The Defense Department has released the results of its first Exceptional Family Member Program survey as part of ongoing efforts to ensure the program provides comprehensive support to military families with special medical or educational needs.
The survey, conducted by the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy, polled active-duty service members to assess their experiences and overall satisfaction with the program’s three primary components: identification and enrollment, assignment coordination, and family support.
The program, which serves about 100,000 military families with disability-related needs, helps service members identify available services at projected duty stations to support the continuity of care for dependents.
EFMP family support representatives are also present on military installations for ease of access and to link dependents to care through referrals and nonclinical case management.
Tomeshia Barnes, the associate director of the Office of Special Needs in DOD’s Office of Military Family Readiness Policy, said the survey was designed to give military families a voice.
“One of the things within the Office of Special Needs that was really important to us was really understanding and having data on the lived experience of military families enrolled in the EFMP — their experience with the program, as well as their experience accessing and navigating other services provided to meet their needs,” Barnes said.
While the department did include certain questions related to the program on other DOD-wide surveys, Barnes said there was a need for more granular feedback from those enrolled in the program.
“We sought to have a survey that really provided us specific data on the families enrolled in the program as they experience the various components of the program, as well as other federal and state-level services that they access,” she said. “We really wanted to hear from our families, their perspectives on their experiences with the program and other services to meet their needs.”
The key takeaways from the survey shed light on families’ level of satisfaction with the program, the support provided, and whether the program had an impact on service members’ decisions to remain in the military.
It found that the program had met the needs of 83% of military families to some extent in the 12-month period before the survey was conducted.
Forty-three percent of respondents indicated their overall satisfaction with the program, while 25% said they were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied. Thirty-three percent indicated they were dissatisfied with the program.
Those responding to the survey reported the highest level of satisfaction specifically related to the program’s enrollment process and family support services. The program’s assignment coordination component received the lowest levels of satisfaction.
On family support, one of the program’s most visible components, 79% were satisfied with the professionalism of the staff. A majority of respondents, 66%, also said they were satisfied with the accuracy of the information provided by the staff.
“Importantly, we saw a high level of satisfaction with the providers’ familiarity with local resources and that they were able [to] really tailor their support to meet the family’s needs,” Barnes said. “That’s really what we expect from the program.”
Barnes also paid close attention to how the program impacts a military family’s decision to stay on active duty.
Most respondents, 49%, said their enrollment in the program would not impact their decision to continue serving, while 25% said the program would have a positive impact on their decision. Twenty-six percent said their enrollment would negatively impact their decision to stay on active duty.
Barnes said the results discount a common perception that enrollment in EFMP would have a negative impact on a service member’s career.
That perception, she said, often stems from the impression among service members that their enrollment in the program would restrict the availability of certain duty stations, thereby limiting their career progression.
“It really goes to show that EFMP enrollment doesn’t necessarily have that negative impact …,” Barnes said.
She said the findings related to retention, in particular, point to the value of receiving feedback in a comprehensive manner from those enrolled in the program, rather than relying on anecdotal information.
With the survey results in hand, Barnes said, the department can further enhance the mechanisms that the program has in place to assist families, particularly as they relocate to new duty stations.
“We’re also really addressing how the EFMP family support component of the program is connecting families to ensure that they know that there are resources available to them,” she said. “We know that family support is optional for military families, but we want them to know that it exists and what services are available to them, so that as their needs change, and they may now have a need for assistance, they know where to go.”
Ensuring that the program continues to meet the needs of military families, Barnes said, is a critical piece of her office’s commitment to taking care of those who serve.
In addition to conducting the survey, the Office of Special Needs also invites continuous feedback through an online form, as part of the department’s commitment to ensuring military families have a voice, Barnes said.
“We’re committed to taking care of people, and they’re vital in providing feedback that enables us to truly do that,” she said.
By Joseph Clark, DOD News