Technician Education—Filling in the Gaps

For the orthotics and prosthetics field, there is an issue that goes beyond processes and systems-and that’s education. Related to fabrication, that means technician education, a subject Brad Mattear of O&P¹ is passionate about. Mattear is on the Board of Directors for some of the National Commission on Orthotic and Prosthetic Education (NCOPE)-approved technician schools and has presented on the subject at meetings of the American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association (AOPA), the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists (the Academy), and PrimeFare. “The education being taught to the technicians is still the education of 20-30 years ago,” Mattear says. “We haven’t kept up with the practitioners coming out of the schools now who know about all the latest and greatest technology-but how to fabricate these devices is not being taught to the technicians.”