More Women Enroll in OSU-Okmulgee O&P Program

While technicians in the orthotics and prosthetics field have been predominantly male, more women than men are enrolling in OSU-Okmulgee's Orthotics and Prosthetics Program. According to Jerry Wilson, chair of OSU-Okmulgee's Health and Environmental Technologies Division, this shift from men to women students is not unexpected. "Since the field of orthotics and prosthetics requires the caring, nurturing traits that are similar to those of nurses, of which the majority are female, it's only natural that more women are enrolling in the program." Out of 14 students in the program this semester, ten are women.

Wilson added that many of the students currently enrolled developed an interest in having a career in the field because they have had a relative or friend who has had a prosthetic limb or orthotic device. Others entered the program because they toured the program and decided it offered the job components that they enjoyed--hands-on skills, working with people, and improving the quality of patients' lives--while some of the current students have had careers in other fields and are making a career change.

Why They Chose O&P Stephanie McHenry has a special reason to be seeking a career in Orthotics and Prosthetics--she wears a prosthetic leg. She was born without a fibular bone on her left leg and without two toes on her left foot, so she has been in and out of hospitals all her life, having surgeries and being refitted with new prostheses. Thanks to her prosthetic leg, McHenry was able to have a reasonably normal, active life growing up. She played basketball and all the physical games other children played.

McHenry has always wanted to help children with disabilities similar to hers, as she was inspired by many of the doctors and prosthetics technicians who helped her. Now, she's attending Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee as a full-time student learning how to make prosthetics and orthotics for others.

"In my Orthotics and Prosthetics class, I just made an orthotic for my right shoe, which is a very rewarding feeling. After I earn my associate degree here, I hope to work at a hospital like the ones where I have been a patient for 18 years." She said the instructors in OSU-Okmulgee's program do whatever it takes to help students learn.

Diana Thomas took a test on different types of occupations, and the results indicated she was well-suited for a career in orthotics and prosthetics. She learned of OSU-Okmulgee's program in orthotics and prosthetics, came to campus and took a tour. She immediately knew it was the program for her, and she started the following fall semester.

Thomas said she likes the program because it's high energy and hands-on. "I really enjoy the orthotics and prosthetics classes at OSU-Okmulgee--I can't see myself doing anything else. I am so excited to be in this program!"

Thomas will graduate next summer with a double associate degree--one in orthotics and one in prosthetics. She intends to earn a bachelor's degree in the future, then, after she passes the certification exams, plans to work as a certified prosthetist/orthotist practitioner. "Someday, I'd like to open my own clinic in Oklahoma," she said.

Besides a full schedule of classes, Thomas serves as the president of the Orthotics and Prosthetics Club on campus. She said the group is working on raising money for several field trips to O&P facilities around the state and to help low income people receive the care they need. "The club's community service project is to help indigent people in the Okmulgee area by providing foot analysis at no cost. We will evaluate people with diabetes or other foot pathologies, then refer them to a doctor. After they see a doctor and get a prescription for an orthotic or prosthetic device, oftentimes those patients come through the clinic here on campus."

Living with a quadriplegic and having a cousin who was a bilateral amputee inspired Connie Murray to get a degree in orthotics and prosthetics. After a 24-year career as a nurse, Murray wanted a career change but wanted to stay in the medical field. She researched careers on the Internet and found that orthotics and prosthetics is in the top 25 fastest-growing and highest-paying careers, and that OSU-Okmulgee offered an associate degree program in orthotics and prosthetics not far from her home in Davis, Oklahoma.

"As a nurse, I was used to seeing patients who were acutely ill and may have lost a limb," Murray said. "Now I want to work with people after they leave the hospital to help them have a high quality of life with the use of a prosthetic or orthotic device."

Murray added that many of the men in her life--her husband, father, brother--have been in the armed services, so she would like to work with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) making orthotics and prosthetics for veterans after she graduates.

Maegan Edmonds grew up in Morris, Oklahoma, just a few miles away from OSU-Okmulgee. She knew about the university because her fiancé had graduated with a degree from the university, but she didn't know it offered a degree in orthotics and prosthetics until she visited during the Advancing Technology Showcase event.

"I had always wanted to do something in the medical field, and I grew up with a relative who has a prosthetic leg," Edmonds said. "I always thought it was so cool because he could do everything all the rest of us kids could do. When I came to OSU-Okmulgee and saw all the orthotic and prosthetic demonstrations, I knew it was the career for me."

Edmonds said now that she's a student here, she thinks the program is "awesome" and the instructors are "super-nice." After she earns her degree, she wants to stay in the area and work at a VA facility.

A life-changing event made Sandy Northcross decide to go to college. She divorced, and with her children grown, decided it was time to start on a new path in life. A resident of Morris, Oklahoma, she had friends who worked at OSU-Okmulgee, so she toured the nursing program and the orthotics and prosthetics program. Immediately she was hooked on pursuing a career she had never thought of before.

"I thought it was amazing to see how they can take something as complicated as the human body and re-create it using man-made materials," said Northcross. "To be able to improve someone's quality of lifewith an orthotic or prosthetic device is exactly what I want to do with my life. I feel I discovered a 'jewel' when I found this program."

After she earns her associate degree, Northcross hopes to earn a bachelor's in orthotics and prosthetics and become an American Board for Certification in Orthotics and Prosthetics (ABC)-certified practitioner.

Roye Brown is attending OSU-Okmulgee because her father found out about the orthotics and prosthetics program here and suggested she apply. Brown, who is from Las Vegas, Nevada, is very glad she's here because she loves making prostheses. "I love helping people, and I enjoy the hands-on aspects of the job."

Brown said she has known since she was very young that she wanted to go into this field. Her cousin was born without an arm, so she watched his development as he was fitted with a prosthesis and learned to function as a normal child. Brown also said when she was young she liked to make prostheses for her dolls. "I remember I would always rip offmy Barbie dolls' legs so I could make prosthetic legs--so it's natural that I want to do this for a career." Brown hopes to work in the field for a few years and open a facility in the future.

Tammy Hart , who has lived in Morris and Henryetta, Oklahoma, has been an OSU-Okmulgee student in the past, and has returned to pursue her passion--helping people live better lives because of orthotics and prosthetics.

"Years ago, I was a student here at OSU-Okmulgee majoring in computer science technology, then I became ill and left school. I decided to return to school and go into the medical field. I took a tour of OSU-Okmulgee's Orthotics and Prosthetics Department, where two students told me all about the program. I was so excited about this career field that I came back the next day and enrolled!"

Hart enjoys working with the plaster in addition to helping people have a better lifewith orthotics and prosthetics. "I enjoy the hands-on aspect of being in the medical field." Hart enjoys the work because it allows her to fulfill her deep desire to help people. Her son has scoliosis, her grandfather had diabetes, and Hart herself has worn foot orthotics.

When Hart graduates, she plans to work in the Okmulgee area to serve the area's large population of patients with diabetes. "It will make me very happy to help people benefit from orthotics and prosthetics services." Hart said she plans to earn a bachelor's degree in science in the future.

New students who enrolled this current semester include two women-- Kim Williams from Augusta, South Carolina, and Myra Rider from Okmulgee.

About the Program The Orthotics and Prosthetics program was restructured in 2006 to become a technician-level degree program. Jerry Wilson, Chair of OSU-Okmulgee's Health and Environmental Technologies Division, was instrumental in revamping the program. "This new program will prepare world-class, high performance technical professionals for the orthotics, prosthetics and pedorthics community," he said. "Students are developing multiple skill sets, including technician skills, fitting skills and pedorthic fabrication skills." Wilson added that graduates will be qualified for jobs in three categories: as a technician, fitter, or pedorthist.

OSU-Okmulgee first organized its Pedorthic Footwear Technology Program in the mid-1990s after responding to the growing need for pedorthic services. In 2002, the university initiated a "Registered Assistant" program and in 2003 became recognized as an accredited program by the National Commission on Orthotic and Prosthetic Education (NCOPE).

Keith Crownover, CPO, LPO, came aboard in August 2006 as O&P Programs Director. He has restructured the curriculum and syllabi to reflect a technical based educational program with the added fitter and Pedorthic educational components, the university noted "Today's O&P professionals must be educated and versatile persons, proficient in multiple levels in order to support the certified clinician," said Crownover.

To enroll or for more information, contact the OSU-Okmulgee Orthotics and Prosthetics Program director, Keith Crownover, CPO, at 918.293.5320 or keith.crownover@okstate.edu , or Division Chair Jerry Wilson at 918.293.5330 or jerry.wilson@okstate.edu

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