The Northwestern University Prosthetics-Orthotics Center (NUPOC), in partnership with the National AgrAbility Project, is conducting a survey of farmers, ranchers, agricultural workers, and livestock handlers who have amputations. According to Project Director Craig Heckathorne, MS, the purpose of the survey is to determine how prosthetic components used or rejected by farmers and ranchers can be improved to better serve these individuals, and how farmers and ranchers view the services associated with obtaining and maintaining a prosthesis.
The survey was created based on preliminary interviews with 40 farmers who have either upper-limb or lower-limb amputations and 26 certified prosthetists who provide service to farmers and ranchers. The interviews identified several areas of concern, including durability, environmental effects, adaptations, cost, and education and training.
The objective in this survey is to have a broader representation of the concerns of farmers and ranchers with amputations to establish priorities for improvements. Specifically, NUPOC researchers want to increase the representation of different types and levels of amputation, different farming and livestock operations, the variety of components used or tried and rejected, and the diversity of geographic regions.
For more information and to access links for the separate online versions of the upper-limb and lower-limb surveys of farmers and ranchers with amputations, visit the NUPOC website under the Research tab. To request a printed survey or ask questions, contact Heckathorne via e-mail at c-heckathorne@northwestern.edu, or call 312.503.5723.
A webinar with the results of the preliminary interviews is also available on the National AgrAbility Project website. The title of the presentation is “Experiences with Prosthetics and What Is Needed: Results of Systematic Interviews with Farmers and Prosthetists.”
