"Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans."
I heard this saying before but never gave it much thought until a fateful summer day in 2002. I was working on setting up an Intelligent Transport System highway work zone on I-94 in Detroit, Michigan, when a motorist driving at 80 mph crashed into me. The accident caused me to have bilateral below-knee amputations, and unfortunately, one of my coworkers lost their life at the crash site.
Currently, I am using an elevated vacuum prosthesis to maintain the functionality of my prosthetic limbs. However, I have noticed that my suspension sleeves to hold the prosthesis in place wear out quickly. I have had instances where I had to purchase a new sleeve only to experience vacuum loss on the same day. Even the slightest vacuum loss forces me to buy another expensive sleeve, which costs around $200 per replacement.
To solve this costly problem, I developed SleevSaver, an adhesion repair product that comes in meter-long rolls that can be custom-cut for spot repairs or to fit the socket rim of a prosthesis. By using SleevSaver, I have increased the life of my sleeve by five times and saved $3,500.
I launched SleevSaver on August 1, 2019, partnering with SPS to offer it to O&P clinics nationwide. I'm proud that countless people have benefitted from using SleevSaver, and every amputee swears by it. To give back to the community, I'm working towards my next goal of assisting children with limb loss.
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| By Bill Hattan, Bilateral Amputee Since 2004, President & CEO of SleevSaver, Advocate for The Amputee Coalition of America |
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