Warriors' Gateway

Warriors' Gateway



A care facility for individuals with traumatic brain injury and polytrauma from around the Midwestern United States, including severely disabled veterans.



"A warrior is not necessarily a veteran, although he can be. At Warriors’ Gateway, a warrior is someone who is willing to fight to get back as much of their independence as they can achieve through hard work in therapy.”



Alan Belcher, Executive Director - TLS Veterans



Warriors' Gateway Rendering



To view a rendering of the Warriors' Gateway building please click on the image below.

Site Plan

WARRIORS' GATEWAY

THE NEED: Veterans

- Our nation’s current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have been distinguished by the number of soldiers who have survived blasts from mortars, artillery and bombs. Survival rates have more than doubled from the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Improved body armor and advanced emergency techniques are keeping more of the wounded alive. As a result, survivors are left with the lingering effects of severe multiple injuries known as polytraumas.

Many veterans with polytraumas are young adults who face a lifetime of challenges that include:

  • Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
  • Amputations
  • Sight, hearing and speech deficits
  • Neurological and musculoskeletal damage
  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

The most insidious of the injuries is TBI, which has been labeled the signature injury of the Iraq War. Mild TBI can cause symptoms such as mood swings, depression and fatigue. Moderate to severe TBI can lead to deficits in cognitive abilities and motor functioning.

In March 2009, the Pentagon estimated that up to 360,000 veterans have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan with a brain injury, with 45,000–90,000 needing specialized care. More wounded can be expected as the conflicts continue.



THE PROJECT

- Warriors’ Gateway will serve individuals with TBI and/or polytrauma who no longer require acute hospitalization but need occupational rehabilitation focusing on community re-entry. To that end, Warriors’ Gateway will combine a treatment regime typically associated with a rehabilitation hospital and the daily nursing care associated with a residential facility.

The goal is to provide seamless care. The hope is that every patient will return home.

Plans are for 120 skilled-nursing beds. Residents will have the option to move into one of 85 supportive-living apartments as they advance toward independence. Client and family input will be a priority in each individual care program.


THE NEED: TBI

- According to the National institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), approximately 1.9 million new cases of traumatic brain injury (TBI) occur each year and about half of these cases result in at least short-term disability. The incidence rate for TBI is 0.8%, or 8 out of every 1,000 persons experience a skull fracture or intracranial injury in any given year. Young males under age 18 have the highest incidence rate.

TBI is caused by injuries involving moving motor vehicles (31% of cases), household accidents (26.3% of cases), injuries involving firearms, and workplace accidents. Approximately half of TBI cases result in limitations in activity and about a third cause the person to be restricted to bed for at least half a day. Those TBI cases that do experience short-term disability as a result of TBI are at risk for long-term disability.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), there was a 14.4% increase in TBI-related emergency department visits and 19.5% increase in hospitalizations from 2002 to 2006. The CDC also reports that, as a result of a TBI, an estimated 5.3 million Americans have a long-term need for assistance with activities of daily life.



SERVICES

- Services will include:

  • Occupational, physical, recreational, respiratory and speech therapy
  • Cognitive rehabilitation
  • Treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
  • Medical and psychiatric care
  • Vocational training
  • Employment placement


ABOUT TLS

- Transitional Living Services is a 501 (c) 3 not-for-profit corporation formed in 1996 by veterans to help veterans. Since 2001, it has owned and operated New Horizons, a shelter in Hebron, Illinois for veterans throughout northeast Illinois who have become homeless because of mental illness, substance abuse and other misfortunes. Veterans from WWII, the Vietnam War and other conflicts have participated in our program and have gone on to find employment and reconnect with their communities and families.

Last year, TLS received funding through the Department of Labor’s Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program to expand job-counseling services. Currently, TLS is striving to develop Warriors’ Gateway with the hope that every severely disabled veteran who enters its doors will return home.

Transitional Living Services
645 McHenry Ave., Woodstock IL 60098
815-334-0540
www.tlsveterans.org