The hospital started in 1921 when polio was among the primary conditions that required orthopedic and orthotic treatment. The orthotic service continues to play a key role in supporting the orthopedic services.
In 1975, Scottish Rite began making custom prosthetic devices to treat children with limb differences. A multidisciplinary team of physicians, therapists, and technicians work together to create a state-of-the-art, custom-made prosthesis for each patient’s specific needs.
As part of an innovative program created in 1981 by hospital staff and made possible by donors, a group of teenage patients with amputations first traveled to the National Sports Center for the Disabled in Winter Park, Colorado, to participate in a now annual adaptive skiing program called the Amputee Ski Trip.
The hospital has also helped grow the O&P literature base. A study published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery in 2010 collected data from Scottish Rite patients about scoliosis brace wear data in relation to curve progression. This study was the first to highlight the use of in-brace temperature sensors to track patient wear. Throughout the decades, the O&P department has contributed to research in several of Scottish Rite’s areas of care, such as with the Movement Science Laboratory. Hospital employees have published, presented, and taught about basic principles of pediatric O&P, including at the University of Texas Southwestern O&P master’s program and acting as adjunct clinical faculty for that program.
“For 100 years, Scottish Rite for Children’s mission has never wavered,” said Robert L. Walker, president and CEO. “Throughout the years, each staff member, volunteer, trustee, friend and donor has focused on how we can improve the lives of the children we serve locally and around the world.”
The organization is known for being a bright, child-friendly place that does not look, feel, or smell like a hospital. Across Scottish Rite’s three locations in North Texas, details are designed specifically for children. Over the last year, the hospital’s O&P department provided over 7,500 orthoses and prostheses.
