Welcome to the Season One Finale! A look at the past, present, and future of adaptive sports within VA. From the very beginning of federal health care for Veterans at the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, sports have played a role in the healing and rehabilitation.
Show Notes
Welcome to the Standing Ready Season One Finale! “Competitive Adaptative: A History of Sports in the VA” a look at the past, present, and future of adaptive sports within VA. From the very beginning of federal health care for Veterans at the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, sports have played a role in the healing and rehabilitation. Starting with baseball and golf after the Civil War, to the origins of wheelchair basketball after the Second World War, athletics have grown to encompass a number of new sports and serves as therapy for veterans with limb loss, spinal cord injury, post-traumatic stress, and a number of other disabilities. It has also grown its own communities of support as Veterans are brought together by sports to learn and heal. Katie and Shawn speak with Lief Nelson, Director of VA’s Adaptive Sports Program and learn insights into the origins of the program and its history within VA while also learning about some exciting innovations moving the program forward. Finally, we are honored to hear the story of Veteran and Paralympian Kyle Pitman. From his time in Iraq and his journey towards the Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, we gain insights into how cycling has fueled his rehabilitation and what it means to him to continue this long held tradition of Veteran athletes.
What is Standing Ready?
Welcome to Standing Ready: An Inside Look at the Untold History of the VA's Medical Innovations. Join us as we elevate and highlight significant medical and scientific contributions of the nation's largest healthcare system.
Join us for interviews with VHA innovators and pioneers, exploring how VHA has changed the landscape of medicine over 75 years with topics on the history of prosthetic limbs, adaptive sports, how history has influenced VHA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and more!
The Department of Veterans Affairs does not endorse or officially sanction any entities that may be discussed in this podcast, nor any media, products or services they may provide.