VA Center Leads Post-Traumatic Disorder Research
Published Dec 04, 2008
Two short years ago, the Waco Veterans Administration Medical Center was on the doorstep of closure.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs was conducting a nationwide effort to improve efficiency, and the Waco VA was on the chopping block.
But on the eve of the hospital’s 75th anniversary, a decision was made to revitalize the campus as a leader of health care for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Waco facility is now designated as a Center of Excellence for Mental Health.
“Congressional representatives remain actively interested in planning for the future operations and services provided in the hospital,” says VA spokesperson Nelia Schrum.
Congress approved nearly $50 million for construction and renovation projects at the hospital, including a rehabilitation center for blind veterans and various infrastructure improvements.
The 346-bed hospital provides inpatient psychiatric care and nursing home care to psycho-geriatric patients.
A primary focus of the center is the research and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder. The VA partners with Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, Scott and White Hospital and regional institutions to study and address the condition among returning veterans.
The world’s most powerful portable MRI, which the center unveiled in mid-2007, will be used to study pre- and post-deployment troops in an effort to understand susceptibility to post-traumatic stress disorder and resilience to stress. The MRI will also be used to study traumatic brain injuries.
“Currently, there is very limited MRI access to troops immediately before deployment. The research results should provide valuable insight for researchers in understanding why some troops are more susceptible to post traumatic stress disorder and others are not,” says Schrum.
Story by Michaela Jackson
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