Why did YOU become a Prosthetist or Orthotist?

Why did YOU become a Prosthetist or Orthotist?

Hudaa

10/13/2006

Dear List,

You are my lifeline to a comfortable, meaningful, productive life. Without
you, many, many people would be wasting away without a chance to enjoy even
the small things that most people take for granted.

I admit thatI am not always clear as I would like to be when writing about
things that are so important to me. I thank you for your patience in taking
time to read this.

I have posted a few things over the last few weeks and have gotten many
supportive replies. However, the majority were from amputees and not from
CPs or OPs. The few of you that did reply positively are burdened with the
increasing bureaucracy that is beginning to prevent you from providing the
kind of care you want to give their patients. I have had the pleasure to
have had a couple of you as my own Prosthetists and have met many of you as
students.

I am not asking for a miraculous sudden transformation of you businesses.
All I'm asking is that you stick your necks out a little and publicly post a
response that can begin to address issues that affect more than your pocket
books.

My first post was on September 15, entitled A Challenge to the OandP
Community.
In it, I not only gave you some of my own experiences, but also the concern
I had for my son, who as a relatively new LBKA, and the lack instruction on
prevention of long term damage to his sound side.

The second , on September 20, I added an addendum to the first posting,
adding that I was not opposed to making a profit in you businesses.

On October 1, I wrote A Prime Example of the Need for Physical Therapists
as Part of an OandP facility. This recounted that I was experiencing
muscle movement that had been diagnosed in 1969 as impossible, do to nerve
damage to the brachial plexus. 25 years ago I was ill-prescribed and fit
with a prosthesis that impinged on that nerve center and prevented any
regeneration. This was not the fault of the Prosthetist, but of the Rehab
Doctor that ordered it. I added that a Physical Therapist at the prosthetic
facility would have been able to catch the problem and give information back
to the Prosthetist for relay to the ordering physician. (I was not receiving
any in-hospital PT at the time since this was an elective amputation at my
request.)

Yesterday, October 12, I posted Professionals? Who are you trying to kid?
I wanted to address the squabbling that is preventing, in my opinion, the
resolution of the greater issues in the survival of your community.

I REITERATE, we as the patients that you supposedly serve, DEPEND on you
still being there when we need you.

I am posting these things on List Serve in order to reach as many of you as
possible; hoping that you will get your priorities straight and become the
true professional and competent practitioners that we, as patients, depend
on.

Thank You for Listening

Hudaa Nielsen (Ann-Marie Hudaa Nielsen)
Human Female Amputee