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SPC Barnett, pictured right with son William

Report: Samantha Chapman
Pictures: Steve Dock

STAFF Sergeant Rico Roman grins shyly at Soldier as he sits forward on the gym bench, resting his hands on his knees and stretching his prosthetic leg out from under his long, black shorts.

“I got really lucky,” says the US infantryman who opted for amputation after his legs were severely injured in an IED attack on his Humvee in Iraq in 2007.
On the face of it luck is a strange word to describe losing a limb, but this earnest 28-year-old from New York is adamant that amputating his left leg has given him opportunities he thought he could never have again.

In fact, he has become so good at wheelchair sports such as hockey and basketball he has been asked to try out for the national Paralympic squad.

“I opted for amputation,” said Roman (214 Infantry, 10th Mounted Division). “They managed to save my leg but it was stuck right out in front of me – I couldn’t do anything with it.

“I could see that if I opted for it to be amputated then I would have more movement and a better quality of life – so I did and I haven’t looked back. It was not an easy decision and it took me a long time to think about it but it has given me back my freedom.”

Roman is just one of hundreds of US Army personnel recuperating at Fort Sam Houston’s state-of-the-art Center for the Intrepid (CFI), America’s foremost facility for amputees and burns victims.

Built with money donated by more than 600,000 patriotic Americans the awe-inspiring building is a light, airy and relaxing facility which provides top-notch physical therapy to give badly injured soldiers back their lives.

It is just one component of Fort Sam Houston in Texas which looks after every aspect of a soldier’s care from the point of injury to returning to their former life.

Occupational therapy is a huge part of the CFI with personnel encouraged to perform everyday tasks such as writing, drawing and routines such as washing, dressing and cooking meals in a specially designed mini-apartment.

Team challenges such as paintball, archery, kayaking and golf also give light relief and boost spirits while the centre’s physical therapy helps to build strength, wheelchair and crutch mobility and all-round endurance.

The gym and swimming pool provide most of the focus for the patients – in particular the Flow Rider, a surf simulator that teaches amputees to control and balance their bodies against a raging torrent of water.

“It’s a workout of pretty much everything,” said a dripping wet PFC Andrew Bradley (82nd Airbourne Division), who lost his right leg in an IED attack in Iraq. “It’s probably my sixth time and I really enjoy it – I’ve been here since January and have been able to take part in loads of activities.”

His girlfriend Andrea Lake, who lives nearby in Dallas and can regularly visit Andrew at the base, said she was immensely proud of her partner. “It’s the first time that I’ve seen him on the wave machine and it’s amazing to see,” she told Soldier.

Andrea is just one of many partners and family members that visit patients at Fort Sam – following the US Army’s recognition that love and support plays an integral part in recovery.

The base also boasts Fisher Houses – specially designed homes where Servicemen and women’s families can come and stay while their loved ones receive their treatment. Built by charitable organisation The Fisher Foundation, the houses can take up to 57 families who can each stay for up to 60 days at a time.

SPC Frank Barnett (927 Combat Engineers) was injured in Afghanistan in 2008 when his vehicle hit an explosive device. Suffering terrible burns to his lungs, of which he now only has 78 per cent functionality, he has PTSD and is undergoing indepth rehabilitation.

His 24-year-old wife Diane and their two children William (2) and Noah (10 months) all stay with him at one of the Fisher Houses every other month.

“When my family weren’t here I became very isolated and depressed,” explained SPC Barnett, pictured right with son William. “They live in Illinois so when they came here to stay I just felt so much happier. It would be easy to give in but when I see my family it makes me think that my life is worth it – I want to be with them and to be better for them.”

Next to the Fisher Houses is the Warrior and Family Support Center where former Army wife and generous-hearted director Judith Markelz runs her welfare empire. Having created a building filled with activities, a huge games room, a beautiful outdoor garden and innovative computer room – her aim is give the troops and families somewhere to relax and recuperate.

“These soldiers are not going to be the same people they were before they left, they see things that nobody should ever have to see,” she said. “A lot of these young people join the National Guard because it offers them a free education and benefits but now they are out for 15-month tours where they see nothing but hell day after day.

“We wanted to provide a place where people can come together – we have 14 televisions, 5,000 DVDs, a craft area, entertainment room, butterfly garden and barbeque area, computers and kitchens.

“There is always something for people to do to take their mind away from their treatments and what has happened to them.”

Yet just five minutes walk from Judith’s haven is the Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) where personnel never tire of thinking about treatment and how they can constantly improve on the already first-rate care on offer.

Orthopaedic surgeon and British Army officer Maj Kate Brown (RAMC) works at BAMC and is currently on a year-long project looking into the possibility of regenerating bone.

“The extremities are the most common site of combat injuries,” she told Soldier. “In the US there are around 900 amputees and in the UK it is between 60 and 75 and rising every year – we don’t want to just treat them, it is now about what more can we do for them.”

Maj Brown is currently experimenting to see if and how she can regenerate bones with the idea that this could eventually be a possibility for badly injured soldiers. Her colleague and burns specialist Dr Steven Wolf is also looking at regenerating tissue – an arguably more complex technique due to the nerves, blood vessels and muscle that will have been lost.

“There are interesting things going on,” he added. “There are a high number of very young and badly injured men and women who are going to live another 50 or 60 years and there must be more that we can do for them. This has the potential to take off and be really, really big.”

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