Care for Veterans has been supported by Veterans’ Foundation. The work the charity does with veterans young and old is crucial and inspiring.
How does Care for Veterans help veterans?
Care for Veterans is a home for veterans who have suffered brain damage. Whether through natural causes, war or accident - the home provides outstanding care for its residents. Renowned as a centre of excellence in caring for men and women with Acquired Brain Injury - Care for heroes offers unparalleled neurological expertise and care within the veterans’ community.
The home does not view itself as a final destination, it instead concentrates on rehabilitation with the goal being to provide its residents with the support they need to maintain their independence. Once a person begins to live at Care for Veterans, they are assessed by a team of experts who determine what level of care they require. As the goal for each patient is for them to regain independence they are placed into physiotherapy and rehabilitation programmes that will help each veteran overcome the specific challenges they are facing.
Warrant Officer Steve Boylan is a patient at Care for Veterans: “At 17 I could not vote or legally drink alcohol but was given a gun and went to dangerous places.” Steve enjoyed his time in the British Army, in his spare time, he was an adventure enthusiast and particularly enjoyed being on his motorbike. At 39, Steve was knocked off of his bike by a car and flew headfirst into a van. He received major brain injuries and was relegated to using a wheelchair. 3 years passed until he found himself at Care for Veterans. “Care for Veterans have given me a new mindset and the determination to succeed with my recovery. The physiotherapy is the best I have ever had – they give me goals to achieve and work me hard.” His father explains how the charity helped Steve: “Coming to Care for Veterans was the best thing to happen to Steve. For the first time we’ve seen a real change in his mental attitude and now have hope for his future.”
How has Veterans’ Foundation helped Care for Veterans?
Veterans’ Foundation gave Care for Veterans a grant that paid for 848 one-on-one physiotherapy sessions for disabled veterans. Aims of the physio programme are increased flexibility, improved muscle strength, reduced levels of pain and increased participation in other activities at Care for Veterans. This offers veterans social benefits, increased confidence, dignity and independence.
The purpose of these one-on-one sessions was to help veterans who were living with disabling disabilities to adapt to their personal situation and start making steps to recovering. In turn, this helps each veteran to prepare to regain their independence.
One resident remarked on the benefits of the Veterans’ Foundation-funded physiotherapy course: “It’s good to put yourself through the gym, see if you can do it, keep yourself moving. When I first got here, I was feeling a bit sorry for myself. Then I met a guy who was less able than me, and I thought, why am I complaining?”
