By SHAWN PIATEK
A new military-related brain-injury treatment center will open in Johnstown in late January.
The center will provide community-based neuro-rehabilitation therapy for active-duty military personnel and veterans who suffered brain injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Laurel Highlands Neuro-Rehabilitation Center will be affiliated with the Defense and Veteran’s Brain Injury Center, headquartered at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
“I have been involved with people with these kinds of problems for 45 years,” said Dr. George A. Zitnay, who is establishing and will direct the local center. “I was involved with many soldiers from the Vietnam War who had trouble receiving care of these types of injuries.
“When we were gearing up in 1991 for the first Gulf War, I was concerned about the soldiers returning with these types of injuries not having the kind of support they need. That’s why Col. Andre Salazar and I decided to found the DVBIC.”
The center will have three locations in Johnstown: Therapy and professional spaces will be in the Laurel Management complex at 111 Roosevelt Blvd.; a therapy center and used bookstore will be used for cognitive rehabilitation at 138 Gazebo Park; and residential services will be provided at an unspecified location.
The center will be affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC. As a core member of the DVBIC, the center will receive funding from the Department of Defense.
Help for soldiers
What: The Laurel Highlands Neuro-Rehabilitation Center, slated to open in January.
Key numbers: The center will be staffed by 25 medical professionals with an annual budget of $2 million.
