Today, the Zablocki VA Medical Center in Milwaukee dedicated their new Spinal Cord Injury Center. The VA is a leader in both care and research related to spinal cord injury and this new facility will deliver a full range of treatment for disabled and paralyzed veterans with spinal cord injuries.
The new Spinal Cord Injury Center is a much needed improvement. The previous spinal cord injury unit at Zablocki was on the 10th floor of the hospital where many of the rooms did not have enough space to accommodate the unique needs of the patients. Meanwhile, rehab and therapy services were located in the basement which was a struggle for many of these patients with limited mobility. The patients and staff at Zablocki are second to none and for years they made the best of a bad situation.
The new Spinal Cord Injury Center will give the hospital staff and patients the resources and accommodations they need for a continuum of care and services. The rooms are larger and the beds are designed specifically for people with spinal cord injuries. New technology and treatments will help our veterans with these injuries live longer and more independently than ever before.
Wisconsin’s disabled and paralyzed veterans deserve only the best. This is why I worked with the Department of Veterans Affairs and my colleagues in the Wisconsin congressional delegation to obtain the funding needed to build this new center to help veterans with spinal cord injuries. As a nation, we have a sacred obligation to care for the veterans who fought for our freedom.
If we're so flush with cash that we can afford the kind of spending involved with beautifying this project to the degree we did, perhaps some of that money could have been diverted and used to save some of the very historic buildings on those same grounds.