Last updated 2/2008 –
AAOP (American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists): As a professional society of orthotists and prosthetists, the AAOP is dedicated to promoting professionalism and advancing the standards of patient care through education, literature, research, advocacy and collaboration.
Last updated 01/2008 –
Advocacy- (ad’vo’kas’e) n. Recommendation.—-1. Support and defense of a cause. 2. The act of pleading on behalf of another.
Educating consumers about how to advocate is a fundamental principle of the Amputee Coalition of America. Oftentimes, the policies of insurance companies and government agencies wind up accidentally excluding those who require the most help. That is where the Amputee Coalition comes into the picture. We bridge the gap, empowering amputees through education, support, and referral services. By getting the word out about viable options, the Amputee Coalition refers amputees and their concerned friends to the right organizations to get the assistance they need and deserve. In the event that the first attempt towards accomplishing goals or getting needs fulfilled fails, amputees must understand that there are other options. These are the steps we recommend to effective advocacy, whether acting on your own behalf or in the interest of a friend.
Last updated 2008 –
Know your legislator, his or her political party, committee assignments, the district, the voting record, and any known position or public statement on Amputee Coalition issues. A helpful Web site for locating this information is http://thomas.loc.gov/.
Last updated 01/2008 –
For bilateral leg amputees, rehabilitation should be emphasized as early as possible to maximize ambulatory potential and to help alleviate possible gait or motion control problems associated with contracture (the tightening of muscles around the residual joint, which can restrict an amputee’s range of motion). Other problems could result from abduction (the movement of the residual limb away from the center or mid-line of the body which can lead to excessive reductions in locomotion).1 Once this process has begun, the bilateral leg amputee, with the help of the medical team, will need to consider his or her respective levels of agility, balance, endurance and stability, since these are key considerations during the initial stages of ambulatory rehabilitation (relearning to walk or ambulate). Also relevant is the high amount of metabolic energy (heart rate, oxygen use, etc.) required to measure ambulatory potential (the potential of the patient to rehabilitate in conventional prostheses). These factors, along with other variables such as level and cause, are especially important for the elderly and/or physically unfit patient who will experience greater difficulty in achieving proper ambulation, especially if affected by diabetes and/or other vascular/cardiorespiratory conditions.
Last updated 01/2008 –
The patient and, if possible, a family member should have a discussion with each member of the surgical/rehabilitation team. This team should include the surgeon, anesthesiologist, physical/occupational therapist (PT/OT), prosthetist, and an insurance specialist. The patient should be given information (available through Amputee Coalition) on how to choose a prosthetist well before surgery or, failing that, immediately afterward. The patient should check the prosthetist’s education, prosthetic training, qualifications and credentials, and experience, as well as the location and accessibility of the prosthetist’s office. The patient should also request that the surgeon and prosthetist discuss together how to structure the amputation to maximize prosthetic success (e.g., best residuum length, and surgical technique, as well as what postoperative edema-reducing techniques should be used). Following are some important topics that should be discussed:
A pesar de toda la publicidad que recibió la nueva versión de la serie televisiva La mujer biónica, en el 2006, Claudia Mitchell se convirtió en la verdadera mujer biónica. Aunque las fantasías hollywoodenses y humanas le otorgan fuerzas sobrehumanas a la biónica, Mitchell, una estudiante de 27 años y ex marine, está feliz de utilizar su nueva prótesis para volver a llevar una vida normal.
Desde la época de las antiguas pirámides hasta la Primera Guerra Mundial, el campo de la protésica se ha transformado en un sofisticado ejemplo de la resolución del hombre por mejorar.
Los grupos de apoyo cara a cara ofrecen excelentes oportunidades para que las personas que padecen las mismas dificultades aprendan de los demás.
Cerca de un año después de que Christina Skoski sufriera la amputación de su pierna, a los 15 años, se encontró sentada junto a la piscina de un complejo turístico donde sus padres la habían llevado a pasar unas vacaciones en familia.
