GOVERNOR CRIST AND ADMIRAL COLLINS VISIT VETERANS’ HOSPITAL IN TAMPA

June 26, 2009

Contact:

GOVERNOR'S PRESS OFFICE
(850) 488-5394

TAMPA – Governor Charlie Crist today visited James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa to encourage the servicemen and women being treated there and to learn more about the facility’s Spinal Cord Injury and Disorders Program and Polytrauma Center. Governor Crist was joined by retired Rear Admiral LeRoy Collins Jr., executive director of the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs during the visit to the facility operated by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

“As we prepare to celebrate our nation’s independence, we must take time to honor the faithful service and sacrifice of the men and women of our Armed Forces,” said Governor Crist. “We owe these dedicated individuals and their families our deepest appreciation and constant support. I applaud the doctors and medical staff of the Tampa VA for their tremendous care for our servicemembers.”

The James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital consists of five Veterans Health Administration facilities located in Tampa, New Port Richey, and at three community based outpatient clinics in Zephyrhills, Lakeland and Brooksville, serving four counties in Central Florida.

The Tampa facility is one of four polytrauma rehabilitation centers in the United States, as well as one of 22 polytrauma network sites. Recognized as one of the nation’s finest, the program provides medical assessment to patients injured by blasts; provides medical, rehabilitation, and psychological treatment services; and conducts research to understand the effectiveness of treatments for blast injuries.

The state-of-the-art, 100-bed Spinal Cord Injury Center has held the prestigious designation as a Clinical Program of Excellence for almost a decade. The Tampa center serves a caseload of about 1,400 spinal cord injury veterans, annually treats about 650 inpatients and has more than 4,500 outpatient visits.