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Original material is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution.
11/11/09
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11/10/09
1. They did a split upright, allowing a centered horizontal handgrip to be placed between them. Old-old-school crutches just had you grip the shaft, and new-0ld-school crutches just made a handle stick out from the side of the single shaft.
2. They made them from lightweight materials instead of wood.
3. Rubber tips for traction.
4. Adjustable for both height and arm-length.
5. You have to buy them instead of just cutting them out of the closest tree. #freedomleg
11/10/09
Brazil is ages behind when it comes to giving very basic support to people with special needs.
I'm currently living in a city which is considered an unique role model only because the buses are equiped with wheelchair elevators... completely disregarding how unfitting the sidewalks are for wheelchairs.
And considering how politicians completely ignore the common people's interest, it's a thousand times harder to make them understand how important it is to invest in other stuff.
I'm not even going to talk about the public health system because it's simply ridiculous.
Also, I lol'd at "leave me alone, I'm with two prostitutes." #aimeemullins
11/10/09
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I do wear glasses which are basically a primitive eye lens prosthesis. I have one pair and they are pretty plain, but I chose them carefully for how they looked. So clearly yes there's a fashion component to any prosthesis.
Heels specifically got me curious is all. #aimeemullins
11/10/09
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11/10/09
Tell your mother thank you. And thanks to Aimee for a fantastic article. #aimeemullins
11/10/09
I'd like to hear more about why you think this disparity in treatment is based in economics. It seems like a soldier who needs a prosthesis should have the same options, no matter which conflict he / she served in.
My statement that the treatment disparity is based on political considerations is not a dig at the current or former administration, how could it be when both republican and democratic administrations have allowed it to occur? I am just recounting the accepted opinion of the VA medical staff and, after hearing about the issue myself, my own opinion.
I just can't see how it is an economic choice to have one soldier with three or four sets of advanced prosthetic legs while another soldier gets only one basic set because he served in a different conflict.
Again, thanks and I'll pass along your remarks. #aimeemullins
11/10/09
I agree completely with you regarding the disparity between what Vets who served in previous wars have available to them versus those injured in the current conflict.
I'm not sure that the opinion of the VA medical staff counts for much in this instance. I don't mean that in a bad way (to be honest, my care at various VAs has been wonderful). But VAs come in way down the line. Prosthetic decisions are made at Walter Reed by Army doctors. After a year or more, you'll then get to a VA. By that time, you may nave 2 or 3 sets, but the VAs I've been to aren't equipped for making changes to them, and certainly aren't equipped to offer the services Walter Reed has for current patients to older Vets locally.
I'm not sure I should have said that economics were the reason for this. I should have said that bureaucracy is. To take the current prosthetic wing at Walter Reed, make it's services available at VAs nationwide, offer those services to those who fought in previous wars.....well, good luck with that. You and I might think that it's just wrong to offer it only to the current gen, but when it takes literally 2-and-a-half years to just get my retirement payments to me, to ask for them to go out of their way.....well, you get my point. When it comes to military health care, and VA health care, "speedy" and "easy" are words that simply don't mean anything.
I will say it's getting better. But the govt doesn't do anything real fast. Health care for vets is getting better. But other than those that were recently injured, health care isn't getting faster. I don't think I'm making real good sense here. But it simply isn't a political type of decision. It's a "govt bureaucracy" lack of decision. #aimeemullins
11/10/09
Oh, one last thing. The VA medical staff is under orders to respond to requests made by veterans of the current conflict in a more urgent fashion than requests made by veterans of other conflicts. I was assuming requests for prosthesis fell under that rubric but it makes sense that they were probably disbursed in the early stages of care at Walter Reed. Needless to say, not all of the staff follows this directive.
The slow bureaucracy is unfortunate and I've heard some staggering numbers about the ratio of mental health profestionals to soldiers. Given the large numbers of soldiers with PTSD and now diagnosable pre-PTSD, it is something to keep an eye on. I don't want to assume anything about your situation but soldiers often wait too long to seek help. Take care of yourself, your health is our legacy. #aimeemullins
11/10/09
11/10/09
Of course, as an engineer, I am aware of the market forces that cause the disjoint in perception of some prostheses against others. Glasses are so much more common that it makes sense for such a large industry to spring forth from their use, while limb prostheses are a somewhat more limited field.
There is something to note here, however: while better prostheses should absolutely be covered by insurance, even in the realm of glasses insurance coverage can be very limited (and usually under a rider or additional plan anyway). Even if style choices are available, most insurance coverage is limited to fairly basic style, materials, and features.
This could be an argument about the state of insurance coverage in the US in general. Quality of life is hardly considered, with most insurance giving people just what they need to stay alive. I think many people in medical professions agree, however, that proper improvements to quality of life can lead to lower medical costs in the long run. The "just getting by" attitude of medical funding lacks the long term vision that makes sense when considering procedures that will change lives for decades to come. #aimeemullins
11/10/09
11/10/09
Seriously though, this thing will cut off the circulation in your thigh no? Your foot will slowly die, rot and fall off.
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