Equine therapy to help rehabilitate soldiers

A new partnership between the University of Central Florida and Osceola County could create a center that uses horses to help disabled veterans around the country. Orlando Sentinel reports.

Horses have been integrated into physical or psychological therapy for years, but their role in programs tailored to veterans is pretty new.

UCF’s College of Medicine wants to establish a national equestrian center to help rehabilitate soldiers through therapeutic horse riding – also known as equine therapy.

Horses for Heroes, a program founded in 2007 by Colorado-based Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International, is a national model. There are 90 of these programs in the US.

"We had been dealing for decades with folks with amputations and other serious injuries," says Kay Marks of Horses for Heroes. "Some of our programs began to see a big influx of wounded military personnel coming from these two wars [Iraq and Afghanistan]. We understood they would benefit from a program created for them that would also address their issues like post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychological needs."

Therapists from the organization also report that their patients develop muscular strength and tone that improve mobility and that amputees learn to use their prostheses more effectively.

One community partner for the proposed center would be Heavenly Hoofs, an Osceola organization that provides equine therapy whose patients include children and adults with autism, Down syndrome and spinal-cord injuries.

However, little research has actually been done to quantify the effectiveness of equine therapy for veterans. "No one has had the opportunity yet to demonstrate scientifically what the outcome of the program is in wounded veterans,” says Manette Monroe of the College of Medicine. But because of the school’s affiliation with the Veterans Affairs hospital under construction nearby, “we are in an unique position to achieve this."

Studies in other types of patients have shown psychological and physiological benefits including: lowered blood pressure and heart rate and reduced feelings of anger, hostility, tension and anxiety.

The new agreement is still just taking shape, but it looks like Osceola would donate county-owned land for the center (location TBD), and UCF would build the facility. The biggest expense would likely be a covered arena.

The school has some money available for the project but is looking for additional funding. Some might come from Osceola County’s $3 million economic-development fund. (The facility would create a handful of jobs and could attract restaurants and stores to serve the clients.)

Construction could start as early as next year. The program hopes to help at least 2,500 people a year.

Via Orlando Sentinel.

Image by say.today via Flickr

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com