Article

In response to the identified rehabilitation needs of the service members and veterans involved in America's Global War on Terror, specifically the combatants of the Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom, the Veterans Administration developed a comprehensive Polytrauma System of Care in 2004 that complemented the Department of Defense's acute trauma system. This integrated system of care had its roots in the establishment of the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Centers in 1992. The VA Polytrauma System of Care features a tiered approach to the rehabilitation care of acute and chronically disabled service members and veterans, with elements of the system in place at 156 VA facilities across the United States, Puerto Rico and its protectorates. While the VA has rapidly developed significant clinical expertise in rehabilitation care for the complex difficulties seen with polytrauma, it has also worked closely with the Department of Defense, academic centers of excellence and the private sector to provide all of the clinical services needed. The Polytrauma System of Care programs in place at the Richmond VA Medical Center are highlighted.

Langue : ANGLAIS