Wear and Tear on Military Personnel Post Caledonian Crisis

Since May 2024, New Caledonia has been experiencing a period of crisis. The organisation of the work of military personnel on the ground has been heavily impacted, with longer working hours, shorter rest periods and increased stress levels (uncertainty about the situation, lack of visibility, etc.).

Prolonged exposure to stress is accompanied by neuronal damage (Ramdani et al., 2024) and operational fatigue, a mindset that results from reversible neuronal damage and appears to be distinct from exhaustion. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of the crisis on the level of operational fatigue. In addition, identifying the organisational and human factors (Jaspers et al., 2024) that may have been protective against operational fatigue could help to optimise the way in which these factors are taken into account in the event of future crises, in order to promote resilience.

Military personnel face specific operational constraints related to their activity. These constraints require physiological adaptation, which can lead to overall biological wear and tear. In our case, the term 'operational wear and tear' refers to the mindset or mental state induced by operational constraints and the chronic stress they impose.

The soldiers deployed in New Caledonia since the riots in May 2024 have had to cope with operational constraints linked to their job, as well as those linked to the insurrection situation. By modifying the physical constraints (longer working hours, less sleep, etc.) and psychological constraints (for example, the unknown duration of the crisis), the current crisis in New Caledonia may have increased operational wear and tear.

The investigators hypothesise that soldiers present in New Caledonia when the riots began have accumulated additional stress related to the crisis and that this could result in greater operational wear and tear than soldiers transferred to New Caledonia in the summer of 2024. However, it is possible that the stress of moving to New Caledonia will counterbalance this effect. For this reason, the study is being conducted over 2 months, in order to assess the evolutionary profile of operational wear and tear.

This is a single-centre observational study of healthy military personnel in New Caledonia. Subjects will be volunteers and their participation or non-participation will not influence their ability to serve, their promotion or their career. Their superiors will not be informed of their participation or non-participation.

Military personnel will be given an oral presentation of the study. On this occasion, the information note will be distributed to them. If they are volunteers, they will have an inclusion visit, notify their non-objection and fill in the first questionnaire. Between two months later, they will complete the second questionnaire.

Eligibility Criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

* be a member of the military
* be permanently posted to NC at the time of the study

Exclusion Criteria:

* Be on temporary assignment in NC at the time of the study
* Subjects covered by articles L1121-5 to 1121-8 of the Public Health Code, i.e. :

  * Pregnant women, women in labour and nursing mothers
  * Persons deprived of their liberty by judicial or administrative decision
  * Persons subject to psychiatric monitoring under articles L3212-1 and L3213-1 who are not covered by the provisions of article L1121-8
  * Persons of full age who are the subject of a legal protection measure or who are unable to express their consent.