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| Community Budget Issue Requests - Tracking Id #1121 |
| Horses Helping Hero�s |
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| Requester: |
Lisa Reedy |
Organization: |
Quantum Leap Farm, Inc |
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| Project Title: |
Horses Helping Hero�s |
Date Submitted |
1/4/2008 9:28:47 AM |
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| Sponsors: |
Fasano |
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| Statewide Interest: |
| Statewide Resource for Returning Veterans;
Quantum Leap Farm is a Florida state-wide resource for veterans who are being treated at the James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa. Currently we serve injured veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as veterans from other conflicts. Veterans receiving therapy at Quantum Leap Farm suffer a variety of ailments and are currently seeking rehabilitative services for Polytrauma Injuries, Traumatic Brain Injuries, Social Rehabilitation, Mental Health, Paralysis, and Amputation. The counties served in the State of Florida constantly changes with the population of veterans returning from conflicts and receiving treatment at this VA hospital.
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| Recipient: |
Quantum Leap Farm, Inc |
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Contact: |
Edie Dopking, Ph.D. |
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10504 Woodstock Road |
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Contact Phone: |
(813) 920-9250 |
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Odessa 33556 |
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Contact email: |
quantumleapfarm@aol.com |
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| Counties: |
Citrus, Duval, Hernando, Hillsborough, Orange, Pasco, Pinellas, Seminole |
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| Gov't Entity: |
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Private Organization (Profit/Not for Profit): |
Yes |
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| Project Description: |
| Quantum Leap Farm is a non-profit therapeutic and recreational horseback riding program serving veterans and civilian adults with mental and physical disabilities. We are one of only nine therapeutic riding programs in the nation serving injured veterans returning from Iraq. The majority of veterans referred to Quantum Leap Farm come to us from the James A. Haley Veteran�s Hospital: currently the busiest VA hospital in the nation. As such, Quantum Leap Farm is a state-wide, and indeed a nation-wide resource for any veteran receiving treatment at the James A. Haley VA Hospital. We receive referrals from multiple departments within the VA including the polytrauma unit, the social rehabilitation unit, the mental health intensive case management program, the recreational therapy department, the traumatic brain injury department and others.
As reported in newspapers and on television, the signature injury of this war is traumatic brain injury (TBI) resulting from exposure to improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Another less publicized diagnosis, albeit an even more frequent one, is closed head injury (CHI). CHI occurs when the brain is concussed by exposure to shock waves emanating in all directions from IED explosions. Anyone in the general vicinity of an explosion may suffer CHI. Other common injuries resulting from the war are multiple amputations, extensive burns, and of course post traumatic stress disorder. Most injured Iraq War veterans present with some or all of these life-altering injuries hence the term �polytrauma� patient.
VA physicians and therapists refer veterans with polytrauma and other diagnoses to Quantum Leap Farm for a variety of reasons. Therapeutic horseback riding offers physical, mental and social benefits to participants and sessions can be designed to address multiple and specific therapeutic goals. Quantum Leap Farm provides other services in addition to therapeutic horseback riding. Those who are too severely injured to sit astride a horse safely may participate in our carriage driving program and improve their short-term memory skills, fine motor skills, postural control, speech and ability to interact socially. Veterans with brain injuries and post traumatic stress disorder may choose to participate in kinesthetic therapy sessions which gradually expose them to a variety (frequency and intensity) of sensory stimuli, helping them re-establish normal responses to sensory input. This coming year we are starting an equine assisted mental health therapy program to help injured veterans and their family members cope with the emotional aftermath and many practical challenges they�ll face as a result of having permanent war injuries.
We are requesting recurring funding from the State to help support our present service to injured veterans and to help expand our program. Presently we are struggling to keep up with demand due to limited funding and available staff. With this new funding we can increase both our operating hours and staff to expand the number of veterans we serve and the variety of services we offer them.
Currently in the state of Florida according to the statistics found at http://www.floridavets.org/pdf/ann_rprt_07.pdf there are 1,747,076 veterans. As more and more injured veterans return from Iraq and Afghanistan that number stands to increase rapidly, yet currently there is a dearth of programs serving veterans. With funding from the State of Florida Quantum Leap Farm can offer many more injured veterans the mental, physical and social benefits of therapeutic horseback riding and other equine assisted therapies.
We are honored to be able to provide assistance to our country�s loyal dedicated soldiers returning from serving our great nation.
Our list of Specific Services are as follows:
a) Therapeutic Horseback Riding Session
b) Recreational Horseback Riding Session
c) Kinesthetic Session
d) Ground Session
e) Carriage Driving Session
f) Equine Assisted Mental Health Therapy Session
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| Is this a project related to a federal or state declared disaster? |
No |
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| Measurable Outcome Anticipated: |
| Number of sessions provided to veterans = 2,712 for Fiscal Year 2009 (July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2009) |
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| Amount requested from the State for this project this year: |
$166,510 |
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| Total cost of the project: |
$230,520 |
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| Request has been made to fund: |
Operations |
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| What type of match exists for this project? |
Local, Private |
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Cash Amount |
$33,500 |
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| Was this project previously funded by the state? |
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No |
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| Is future-year funding likely to be requested? |
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Yes |
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Amount: |
$166,510 |
To Fund: |
Operations |
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| Was this project included in an Agency's Budget Request? |
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No |
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| Was this project included in the Governor's Recommended Budget? |
No |
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| Is there a documented need for this project? |
Yes |
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Documentation: |
http://www.floridavets.org/pdf/ann_rprt_07.pdf |
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| Was this project request heard before a publicly noticed meeting of a body of elected officials (municipal, county, or state)? |
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Yes |
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Hearing Body: |
Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners |
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| Is this a water project as described in Section 403.885, Laws of Florida? |
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No |
