Pasquina

Pasquina is the 19th recipient of the award in the 30-year history of RESNA. He’s the first recipient of this award since 2005. Past recipients include former U.S. Senators Bob Dole and James Jeffords, and Sen. Tom Harkin.

“It is an honor for me to receive this award and humbling to be able to represent all the dedicated providers throughout the Department of Defense who work tirelessly to improve the lives of servicemembers and veterans with disabilities,” Pasquina said.

The highest honor bestowed on a non-member, the Honorary Fellow Award is given to individuals who have made contributions of high and broad impact on people with disabilities through assistive technology. The organization cited Pasquina for his efforts in education, research and development, and service to implement policy changes that have positively impacted clinical care across the Departments of Defense and Veteran Affairs (VA).

Pasquina, chief of the Integrated Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation for Walter Reed Army Medical Center and National Naval Medical Center, oversees seven services including amputee, orthopedic, physical therapy, prosthetics and orthotics and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Dr. Rory Cooper, a professor of bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering and a VA senior career scientist, nominated Pasquina for the award. Cooper is considered one of the most visible advocates and scholars in the country in the area of rehabilitation of paralyzed individuals who use wheelchairs.

The professor called Pasquina a stalwart advocate for assistive technology, and he noted the colonel’s contributions, which included creating a wheelchair and seating clinic at WRAMC, helping to change TRICARE policy for assisted technology, creating sports and recreation opportunities for servicemembers and infusing assistive technology into the WRAMC clinical TBI care.

“Dr. Pasquina is also an extremely effective advocate for assistive technology, having changed the perception of people with disabilities within DoD, including helping servicemembers remain on active duty,” Cooper said. “He has also tirelessly given lectures around the globe on the capabilities of servicemembers with disabilities and the impact of technology, elevating the perceptions of all people with disabilities and of access to technology.”

Pasquina testified before Congress and participated in writing policy for DoD and the VA. He currently serves as a secretarial appointee on the VA advisory committee for prosthetics and special disabilities programs, which formulates recommendations directly to the Secretary of the VA to enhance healthcare, rehabilitation services, and assistive technology to veterans.