PRINCIPLES OF CARE FOR AMPUTEES
An Outreach Program of the Amputee Coalition of America's National Limb Loss Information Center

Historically, healthcare professionals caring for individuals undergoing amputation, or living with the absence of one or more limbs, receive a significant portion of their education during their initial training.  Continuing education will usually be accomplished through individual organizations, or not at all. 

Although the medical fields associated with these organizations are considered to be subspecialties, they cover a multitude of diagnoses with limb loss/amputation being a small subset.  Consequently, many people living with limb loss do not receive the benefit of the most up-to-date treatment modalities that will enable them to return to an active, productive life style and help prevent many of the co-morbid conditions associated with a sedentary life style.

Principles of Care for Amputees provides continuing education to meet the needs of professionals who provide care for people with limb loss.

Seminar highlights include: introduction to the Amputee Coalition of America; amputation surgery related to trauma, tumor and vascular disease; factors involved in patient evaluation and decision making about limb salvage vs. amputation; pain issues; post operative care; rehabilitation & gait training, infection prevention; psychosocial and family issues; advantages and disadvantages of various types of prosthetics.

Doug Smith, MD, medical director of the ACA, and Paddy Rossbach, RN, ACA President/CEO, founded the program, developed its initial content, and continue to serve as faculty. Experts in the fields of rehabilitation, pain management, psychosocial issues, and orthotics and prosthetics have added content to the seminar and serve as faculty.

The content of the seminar may be modified to meet the needs of a wide range of audiences.  The 4-hour seminar may be modified to fit into a 2 or 3 hour timeframe.

NEW FEATURE COMING SOON!  

The ACA is finalizing a series of continuing education modules, which will be available online or on CD, to help healthcare providers (HCPs) understand the appropriate sequence of events that should occur before, during and after the amputation of a limb.

Much like the seminar described above, these modules are not designed to train HCPs to perform specific procedures but rather to give them a basic understanding of the processes and procedures needed to help their patients achieve an optimal outcome and to demonstrate the importance of a team approach to healthcare.

There is a growing recognition of the need for this information because most HCPs’ knowledge on this subject is limited to their initial training. In addition, because many of them have had little need for it in their daily practice, continuing education is often not pursued. Consequently, many people living with limb loss miss out on the most up-to-date treatments that could otherwise enable them to return to an active, productive lifestyle and help prevent many of the secondary conditions associated with limb loss, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Some or all of the following seven modules will be available as CDs and as Web-based learning programs:
1. Introduction
2. Surgical Implications
3. Pain
4. Physical Rehabilitation
5. Prosthetic Care and Devices
6. Emotional Hurdles
7. ACA Resources

Although the modules are designed and intended for use by HCPs, they will also be available and beneficial to interested laypeople, such as support group leaders. The ACA has received a growing number of requests to develop these modules so that they can be used by groups, at in-services in hospitals, or by individuals, both professionals and consumers. The ACA has successfully provided these seminars to military and civilian HCPs for the past few years either as full- or half-day programs, depending on the individual needs of the group.