The last Amputee Walking School of 2019 was another success as our professionals completed their afternoon study of updated course material and an enjoyed energetic evening of exercise with our limb loss participants!
The program started at noon, when physical therapists, clinicians and other health care partners attended Dr. Jonathan Forsberg’s (MD, PhD) lecture on Osseo-integration. That was followed by Meg Sions (PT, PhD) and Outcome Measures in Limb Loss. The founders of Amputee Walking School, Todd Schaffhauser and Dennis Oehler, then took over the podium for an update on training techniques for limb loss rehabilitation.
Our evening program continues with those with lower limb loss and their families gathering around Todd and Dennis to hear them talk about their own lives and strategies to heal and regain mobility. Todd and Dennis stress the importance of exercise and persistence in order to reach individual goals. They specifically encourage amputees to walk - and join their 1 Million Steps Challenge. (Click here to read more about this friendly completion!) Then everyone breaks up to work with the physical therapists and other volunteers, under Todd and Dennis’ supervision, through various exercise stations.
Amputee Walking School is a program held four times a year, co-hosted by Dankmeyer and the University of Maryland Rehabilitation and Orthopaedic Institute (UM Rehab). When our 2020 dates are confirmed, we will post them.
