What Makes This Profession Great?
Last week I had someone ask me, "What is the best part of orthotics and prosthetics?" I immediately thought of the variety in my work. Orthotists' and prosthetists' patient populations run the gamut, from babies seen the day after delivery to geriatrics in their 90s. I frequently work with children, some as young as newborns, but I have older patients that I have had the pleasure of working with for years. These patients have become part of my life, and I have become part of theirs. It is not unusual for me to attend a patient's soccer game, bar mitzvah, graduation, wedding, or, inevitably, funeral. I enjoy interacting with such diverse populations and meeting so many individuals and their families. There is tremendous variety in the type of work I do as well. It covers the spectrum from fitting foot orthoses to marathon runners, to fracture management, ankle-foot orthoses to aid in rehabilitation, immediate post-operative care, casting, alignment, evaluations, and adjustments. Even within each discipline, there is no such thing as a "typical patient." Each individual's abilities, activities, goals, and realities make even the same diagnosis and prescription entirely unique. Each workday is sprinkled with such a mixture of diagnoses and requirements that routine and boredom are virtually impossible. Every day passes with such alacrity that lunch is remembered only when there are audible reminders of it being missed. Do you have friends in other fields who are bored with their jobs? As orthotists and prosthetists, we may get frustrated but never bored. The profession is in a state of constant change. New technology and techniques are continually being introduced. Componentry options alter the way we approach old problems and present us with a whole host of new problems. We may be able to allow movement at joints previously requiring immobilization. We have new socket designs. Not only are we exposed to innovations from manufacturers but, since the advent of the Internet, patients also frequently come in asking for specific products and techniques. Our minds and practices are always challenged to keep pace. But it is this process of continual learning that keeps the profession vibrant, even after years in practice. We are very fortunate that the work we do is so tremendously rewarding. For instance, we see a patient who is now able to stand unassisted because of our work. We see a patient return to independence because of what we were able to do. We can help to decrease a person's pain and discomfort and enable someone who has been hospitalized to return home. As orthotists and prosthetists, we do this every day. I can't tell you how often there have been tears of joy shed in my office. How many other professionals are afforded this? But perhaps the single factor that makes our profession such a great one to be a part of is the practitioners themselves. No other profession that I know of has such dedicated professionals who are both passionate and inventive. Present a group of O&P practitioners with a problem and expect to have the same number of solutions as people present, usually arguing about why their personal solution is the best. We are born problem solvers, seeking out better alternatives to help our patients and our practices. A single practitioner has the ability to change the way the field practices. Because of the size of our profession, an individual orthotist/prosthetist can rapidly influence the standard of care. Do you use the Carlson modification, fit the Ortiz M.A.S.® sockets, or fabricate Lange partial foot prostheses? These are three examples, but there is an exhaustive list of others. The pioneering individuals who create new methods and devices are happy to share their ideas with others, usually with no other goal than the betterment of the profession and helping people to live better lives. We are truly fortunate that our profession is populated with so many caring individuals. Professionals who, by the level of care they provide to their patients and their sustained commitment to the profession, change the field and peoples' lives every day. Many of the brilliant innovators and talented clinicians of our profession are still working today. Some, sadly, we have lost—and because of the influence of the individual practitioner on our profession, these losses are always acutely felt. I would like to take a moment to remember and applaud these practitioners, both the designers and the dedicated clinicians alike. It is through their work, their passion, their commitment, that our profession has become great. |
