Frederick O. Foote, MD, CAPT, MC, USN (Ret.)

The Epidaurus Project—named for a celebrated sanctuary of healing in ancient Greece—scored a major victory with the creation of the new Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) in Bethesda, MD, and its regional integrated delivery system of hospitals and clinics. All incorporate the key elements of holistic care.

Dr. Foote’s work as an Institute Scholar is to produce a series of publications documenting and analyzing this historic development at one of the world’s most prestigious and influential healthcare institutions. In journal articles, Dr. Foote is detailing strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement, and discussing issues that are central to the further evolution of holistic care.

Dr. Foote’s ultimate goal is to publish a book that will, in his words, “serve both as a manual for medical students constructing their general concepts of medicine and as a resource for residents in complementary and integrative medicine.”

Dr. Foote served in Operation Iraqi Freedom as a staff neurologist and assistant medical department head on the USNS COMFORT, a seagoing medical treatment facility. He was then deployed to West Africa, where he developed programs for improving health care at sea, including the IMPACT at Sea Program for medical quality management; the IWO Successful Sailors Program; and initiatives in space redesign, infection control, and mass casualty care.

In 2006, he was appointed project officer of the Epidaurus Project. In that role, he serves as a subject matter expert in advanced health facilities design, holistic medicine, use of the arts in health care, and patient/family centered care. He was assigned as an advisor to design teams for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), Fort Belvoir Community Hospital, The National Intrepid Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (NICoE), and the Medical Home and Patient/Family Centered Care initiatives at NNMC.

Dr. Foote has been honored by the Navy with two Meritorious Service Medals, four Commendation Medals, a Meritorious Unit Commendation, a Good Conduct Medal, a Humanitarian Service Medal, and a National Defense Medal.

He is an adjunct assistant professor at The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Health Services Administration. His forthcoming book of poetry, to be published by Grayson Books, was inspired by his experiences in Afghanistan treating the wounded of the Iraq/Afghanistan Wars.