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Infinite TTS

Clinician Spotlight: Patrick Kelley of Oakland O&P

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The main draw of this industry is being able to get somebody up and walking again after they’ve had some sort of traumatic experience in their life.  Whether it be lower limb loss due to trauma or a disease, an ability is taken away from them. I like the sense of giving that back to patients.

 

Patrick, on the right, in front of Oakland O&P.

In 2002, I was fresh out of the military off of active duty Marine Corps and looking for a career that would be interesting and challenging. After making some phone calls, I ended up shadowing an orthotics and prosthetics company. From there, I started learning the industry from the fabrication side while working in the lab.  Eventually I ended up going to Northwestern, first for orthotics and then for prosthetics. Ultimately, I decided prosthetics was the way to go.

The main draw of this industry is being able to get somebody up and walking again after they’ve had some sort of traumatic experience in their life.  Whether it be lower limb loss due to trauma or a disease, an ability is taken away from them. I like the sense of giving that back to patients. Oakland Orthopedic Appliances is opening a new office location, which will allow for more patients to be reached.  We are aiming to target patient populations as needed, and up north is an underserved area.

Once patients are in the office, a lot of initial encounters really serve to lay groundwork for an ongoing relationship in addition to the assessment of the current clinical situation.  It’s worthwhile to get to know the patient, what their goals are for the future, how they see themselves as a prosthetic user. Really understanding how realistic the patient’s goals are and managing expectations while doing everything possible to get them there is so important.  In the prosthetics industry, your patients aren’t one time patients–you’re building a pretty intimate and long-lasting relationship together. That relationship is crucial in order to properly advocate for the patient’s needs. There’s a lot of conversations that need to be had in order to figure out what patient and practitioner feel would result in the optimal outcome, from choosing socket type to selecting the suspension and components.  

For the patients I’ve fit with LIM’s Infinite Sockets, I’ve been very happy with the outcomes.  I’ve had a great experience working with LIM from the beginning, and was a huge fan of the Infinite TF from the get-go.  Then there’s the transtibial socket which went through a redesign, and it has been vastly improved. It’s more aesthetically pleasing and less bulky; I have a few patients now on the new design who really love it.  The Infinite Socket is a great option to provide in our area and makes us stand out as providing a niche service. I can stand by the product. In general, technology in the prosthetics industry has advanced so much.  There’s new devices coming out every month to do different things or do to optimize current functions. The socket technologies and new materials being explored have incredible potential. LIM has been a part of that growth and is doing innovative design work.  

Premier Partner Q&A: Anthony Tufano of Mutual Orthopedics

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Anthony Tufano, CP, is the president of Mutual Orthopedics.  He strives to achieve an optimal outcome for every individual patient by combining new technologies with the traditions that have made his long-standing practice a success.

 

Infinite Socket, Mutual Orthopedics
Mutual Orthopedics CP Anthony Tufano with Infinite Socket TF patient

What brought you into the Orthotics and Prosthetics industry?

My practice is third generation.  First was my great-uncle in 1957, then my father, and now myself.  What is now Mutual Orthopedics was officially founded by my father in 1978, and I took over in 2002.  It is one of the oldest companies in the Long Island area. Some of our patients have been with us for forty years.  We have expanded to two offices, one in Brooklyn and one in Long Island, with a sizable prosthetics and orthotics laboratory at the Long Island location.

 

How have you seen the industry change over the course of your career in prosthetics?

The uptake in technology alone has changed the way we practice.  Today, we have access to a whole slew of technology that we did not have previously. We as prosthetists can make people much more comfortable than we could years ago. A while ago, everyone had a standard prosthesis.  That was the challenge back then. It was a lot easier to run the business before, but the technology wasn’t there. Currently, the struggles of operating a practice are related to the changing environment of health care, rather than technological limitations.  Prosthetists are now better able to understand patient needs and fulfill many more of their dreams due to those advancements. As a prosthetist, you want to make your patients more comfortable than they were when they came in. You want them to be able to do things they haven’t been able to do before and to maximize the potential that they have.  The best thing for me to see is a patient coming back after they’ve gotten their prosthesis with parts worn out because they’ve been using it so much.

 

Mutual Orthopedics, Infinite Socket TT-S
Mutual Orthopedics CP Anthony Tufano with Infinite Socket TT-S patient

Can you describe the working relationship you’ve had with LIM Innovations?

I have a long-standing patient who has been with Mutual Orthopedics since the 80s.  About three years ago, he came to me wanting to be fit with the Infinite Socket. After meeting with Geoff, a representative from LIM, we set the process in motion and got the patient fitted. The Infinite Socket is fun to fit, and getting it just right for the patient is a great experience.  Once the fit is flawless, it’s a slam dunk. The appeal of working with LIM is they evolve with you and listen to the input of the prosthetist. It is a collaborative process. Like any product, it has the occasional pitfall now and then, but LIM works efficiently with the clinician to find the optimal resolution.

What would you say are the benefits of the Infinite Socket versus a conventional socket?

In my opinion, the beauty of the Infinite Socket is the adjustability.  It allows for the socket to evolve on a continuous basis along with the patient’s residual limb.  I can get patients to the next level of comfort by tweaking and adjusting to accommodate fluctuations in volume.  The comfort of sitting that the Infinite Socket provides is a huge factor for patients as well. The flexible struts are a draw as well; having something that isn’t rigid when a patient is ambulating on it is a big deal. The Infinite Socket permits a dynamic fitting as opposed to a static one. I love the product.