According to the World Health Organization, only one in 10 individuals has access to assistive technologies — prosthetics, orthotics, wheelchairs, hearing and communication aids — making the need to provide access to the more than 1 billion people who require assistive technology dire. Barriers like affordability, access to basic healthcare and a lack of awareness fuel the unmet need for these devices, especially in developing nations.
For the third year, students and faculty in Saint Joseph's physical therapy and occupational therapy programs are tackling these disparities through Disassembly Day, an event in which previously used prostheses are disassembled and sent to foreign countries where they’re repurposed into new limbs for individuals in need.
The idea started in 2019 when Lora Packel, PT, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Physical Therapy, was working together with Jeffrey Brandt, chairman and founder of Ability Prosthetics and Orthotics, and he mentioned they hosted a similar type of initiative.
“The idea intrigued me,” says Packel. “So, we started talking and decided to partner together along with the nonprofit Range of Motion Project (ROMP) on Disassembly Day.”
While the first year’s event was small in scale, the students, faculty and community partners were still able to collect and donate a record number of components. In year two, they wanted to expand their reach even further, inviting more local prosthetic and orthotic companies to participate.
“Generally speaking, they’re all competitors,” says Packel. “They all have their own companies, their own clinic (or clinics) across the tri-state area, but this was an opportunity for them to come together for a really good cause.”