Traumatic Brain Injury Facililty at Naval Medical Center

Bethesda, MD - The Honorable Robert Gates, Secretary, Department of Defense, the Honorable Dr. Donald C. Winter, Secretary of the Navy, the Honorable James Peake, Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs, Rear Admiral Richard R. Jeffries, Commander, National Naval Medical Center, Arnold Fisher, the Honorary Chairman of the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, and wounded and recovering military service men and women and their families took part in the ground breaking ceremony for the National Intrepid Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury - a $70 million, 75,000 sq. ft., state-of-the-art treatment and rehabilitation center.

This facility will provide services support for soldiers with post traumatic stress disorder, complex psychological health issues, and/or traumatic brain injury (TBI). The center will also conduct research, test new protocols and provide comprehensive training and education to patients, providers and families.

The project is being funded by the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, which provides assistance to our nation's military personnel who have been critically injured in the performance of duty and their families. The IFHF previously raised more than $60 Million to support families of military personnel lost in Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and to construct the Center for the Intrepid, an advanced physical rehabilitation facility at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, which opened in 2007.

Actual construction for the new facility is scheduled to begin this summer and with its opening in late 2009.

"The National Intrepid Center of Excellence should send a message to military personnel overseas... We will always remember the sacrifices made by our brave, young heroes and their families, and we will continue to support our soldiers by providing them with world-class support when they return," Mr. Fisher said.

NICoE will be the premiere center among a series of five new facilities dedicated to psychological health and research, diagnosis and treatment of TBI. NICoE will serve the most severe TBI cases and will feature the most advanced equipment and facilities for treatment of TBI. This series of facilities will be added into a new and advanced system for diagnosing nonpenetrating TBI and psychological health issues, and getting proper treatment to patients.

The centers will not only provide treatment but will also be research facilities. Improvements in screening, diagnosis, and treatment will be fed back out to the military and VA hospitals and the medical facilities in the field. Long-term follow-up care will also be incorporated into the system plan to ensure that, once soldiers separate from the military, they do not separate from whatever continued treatment they need.

"I am honored to be a part of this groundbreaking today, said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James Peake. "This center will have such great impact on the lives of our service members who
have given so much for our country. Meeting the challenges of TBI and other injuries in this newest generation of veterans is a critical success factor. This new center in addition to the three new Fisher houses will provide these great men and women with the care and rehabilitation they need and deserve."

To augment the center, Ken Fisher, Chairman of the Fisher House Foundation, announced the Fisher House Foundation will build three Fisher Houses so that the families of military personnel can be close to their loved ones during this stressful time. The Fisher House program provides "comfort homes," built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers, that enable family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful times - during the hospitalization for an unexpected illness, disease, or injury.

Also at the dedication ceremony were: GEN James E. Cartwright, USMC, Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, GEN Richard A. Cody, USA, Vice Chief of Staff, United States Army, LG James F. Amos, USMC, Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command, VADM Adam M. Robinson Jr., Surgeon General of the Navy, LG James G. Roudebush, USAF, Surgeon General, United States Air Force, LG Eric Schoomaker, USA, Surgeon General of the Army, MG Ken Farmer (Ret.), Executive Vice President and COO, TriWest Healthcare Alliance, MG Carla Hawley-Bowland, USA, Commanding General, NARMC,WRAMC, RADM Richard R. Jeffries, USN, Commander, National Naval Medical Center, RADM John M. Mateczun, USN, Commander, Joint Task Force National Capital Region Medical, RADM Michael H. Mittelman, USN, Director, Medical Resources Plans and Policy Division N931, BG Dave Papak, USMC, Director, Joint Capabilities Assessment and Integration Directorate, RADM William Roberts, USN, Medical Officer to the Marine Corps, RADM David J. Smith, USN, Joint Staff Surgeon J4 Joint Staff, BG Loree Sutton, M.D., USA, Director, Defense Center of Excellence (DCoE), Mr. Bill White, President, Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, Mr. David A. Winters, Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund Trustee, Mr. Kenneth Fisher, Chairman of the Fisher House Foundation, Mr. David Coker, President, Fisher House Foundation.

This press release was provided by the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.

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