Walter Reed: The Value of Livable Communities

Since the Walter Reed fiasco, I have been thinking about the systemic effects of such an event. What kept resurfacing for me was the notion of livable communities. What often gets overshadowed in the healing process is looking beyond the "medical model" and seeing that enviornment plays a critical role in both rehabilitation but a sustained healthy lifestyle. For people with disabilities and those who are aging livable communities will be catch phrase that will begin to be bantered about in the coming years. But what does this mean in terms of the Walter Reed incident and more importantly what can we learn from it for future reference.

My thoughts are that what the Walter Reed staff need to comprehend and hopefully approporiate is the importance of physical space and enviornmental surrounding as part of the ongoing treatment both physically, mentally and psychologically. Functionality must be part of any treatment model but also livable conditions and the ability to feel safe in a situation where one is vunerable. The idea behind livable communities is that a person can function to the BEST of their ABILITIES and not feel hindred by the enviornment or even social barriers. While I am not disputing the medical care at Walter Reed I would suggest a larger review of treatment of people with disabilities maybe going outside the medical model.