Wellness Fusion Campus slated for mid-May opening

Hope Chapel on Ricker Road helps with the spiritual aspect of Comprehensive Soldier Fitness, and is a part of the Wellness Fusion Complex here. Photo by Marcie C. Wright, Monitor Staff.

Marcie C. Wright,
Monitor Staff:

In support of our warriors, Fort Bliss and 1st Armored Division headquarters commanding staff is pleased to welcome a wellness fusion campus, which coincides with the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program.

The campus will care for Soldiers, families and Department of the Army civilians with a holistic, multidisciplinary, multimodal approach to improving life balance, health and self-confidence, according to the mission statement in the orientation brief.

The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program embodies five pillars of strength: physical, spiritual, emotional, familial and social. The wellness fusion campus aims to sustain all of these with services in a centralized location – 16 facilities between Ricker and Cassidy roads, all within walking distance of each other.

The Optimal Healing Complex, which includes the Soldier and Family Medical Center, covers the five pillars of Soldier fitness and is located on Ricker Road here. Photo by Marcie C. Wright, Monitor Staff.

Non-traditional services, such as Eastern medicinal techniques are now offered at the Alternative Medicine Bldg. 2485. Integrative medicine includes acupuncture, anodyne, meditation, yoga, Tai Chi Qui Gong, all services obtained on a walk-in basis. Reiki, chiropractic, massage, biofeedback and MMA (ancient herbal healing) treatments require a referral.

“We are in a time of tremendous growth,” said Dr. Tameka Owens, health promotions officer and team member on the plans committee. “It’s very appropriate to make sure you leverage the assets you have and to [close] the gaps – to know what needs to be strengthened.

“Part of what the campus seeks to do is remove the stigma of seeking help,” said Owens. “It’s not sufficient just to say, ‘you need to go to counseling.’ There are other areas that need to be worked on – mind and body, or other alternative medicines to assist with these issues.”

Three more buildings included in the Optimal Healing Complex of the Wellness Fusion Center are located directly behind the two buildings on Ricker Road, near the Soldier and Family Medical Center. Photo by Marcie C. Wright, Monitor Staff.

Each facility will perform its own function, but will communicate within the circuit for a team approach to healing and healthy lifestyles, Owens said. The goal is to maximize the use of resources by providing clients with information on the entire scope, opposed to only the services offered at one or two offices.

“Instead of operating in their own silo, they are more collaborative in their approach,” said Owens.

Included in the campus are Milam Gym, Mission Essential Fitness Facility, and the Soldier and Family Medical Clinic, which manage with the physical aspect of fitness; Army Community Service and Hope Chapel provide familial, emotional and spiritual support; Desert Strike Lanes and the USO offer social avenues. Also incorporated in the campus are the walk-in behavioral health clinic (Bldg. 2489) and the Army Center for Enhanced Performance.

Access to the campus is open to patrons on a walk-in basis, as well as through commander and medical referrals. All in-processing personnel will be introduced to the campus through the Welcome Center here.

The campus will be fully operational in the coming months, when all buildings and healing centers are slated for completion and the campus ribbon cutting will take place.

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