How we work with hospitals to improve prosthetic fitting success rates

The right prosthetic fitting can shape the entire course of a patient’s recovery, influencing whether they embrace a prosthesis or spend the rest of their life adapting one-handed. Following 17-year-old Davic Kasper’s traumatic ATV accident, surgeons spent two weeks trying to save his right arm. When amputation became the best option, his mom, Sandy, suddenly found herself navigating a world of prosthetic choices she had never heard of before. It wasn’t a surgeon or specialist who guided their ultimate decision though. It was a nurse who first mentioned Open Bionics, a small moment of education that changed the course of Davic’s recovery.

“This is the first year he can carry his own backpack to school,” Sandy said. “Last year, someone else had to do it for him. He can hold a bottle and take the lid off. He uses it for running errands, going out to dinner and shopping. The only time he doesn’t wear it is when he’s sleeping.”

His progress is a powerful testament to what modern myoelectric multi-touch prosthetics can do, and why early education for hospitals and surgical teams matters. Surgeons, physiatrists, occupational therapists, hand therapists, and prosthetists all play key roles on the road to recovery, but when those teams are not aligned, or the knowledge is outdated, the needs of patients can slip through the cracks.

“Our model is education first,” said Elise Dreiling, certified prosthetist and director of clinical operations at Open Bionics. “If a surgeon or therapist gives us ten minutes, we make those ten minutes count with practical takeaways that  they can use the same day.”

Our clinicians recently held an in-service training at a major military medical center on the East Coast. The center’s upper-limb specialists gathered in a conference room, expecting a slide show presentation, but as cutting edge prosthetic devices like the Hero ARM, Hero PRO, Hero RGD and Hero GAUNTLET came out of their cases, the focus of the room shifted.

“The second they got their hands on a device, they were completely dialed in,” said Katie Jeter, certified prosthetist at our Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania clinic who led the in-service training. “They kept asking questions, passing the devices around and trying things.”

The questions ranged from socket design and check sockets to how to serve patients who arrive for just a week of intensive rehab and need a device fitted before they travel home. There were also ideas the Open Bionics team took back to R&D, such as easier charging solutions for bilateral users.

“It was chaotic in a good way,” Katie said. “Their questions weren’t linear, but it came from genuine curiosity. One question sparked ten more.”

Surgeons often want to understand how decisions in the operating room affect prosthetic options later on. In multidisciplinary hospitals or surgical centers, these conversations can happen before an elective amputation.

“Surgeons will ask things like, ‘If I cut here versus here, is it going to make a difference in how successful this patient is with a prosthesis?’” said Daniel Green, certified prosthetist at our New York City clinic. “Even a short discussion can change what is possible later.”

These conversations are shaping real-world care. When Kansas farmer Conor Cox lost his hand in a machinery accident, his care team first attempted to reattach the hand. When it could not be saved, hand and plastic surgeon Dr. Charles Jehle focused on what would still be possible.

“Just because a hand can’t be saved doesn’t mean you can’t do other things to set someone up for success,” Jehle shared during a Morning Medical Update interview produced by The University of Kansas Health System. “I just imagined if he was my brother or if it was my hand, what would I want to have done?”

Jehle’s surgical decisions were shaped by the long-term outcomes he wanted Conor to have.

“If you can rewire those nerves or give them something to do, you can reduce phantom limb pain and create better signals for a prosthetic,” Jehle said. “Even if a patient never chooses a bionic arm, they still benefit. But for someone young and active, there’s no reason not to set them up for the Cadillac of prosthetic options.”

Because of Jehle’s decisions during the operation, Conor was an early tester of the Hero RGD bionic hand, a ruggedised multi-grip bionic hand designed for tough working environments—the “Cadillac” of prosthetics, per se. 

“I’ve been using the Hero RGD from sun up to sun down for tasks around the farm,” Conor said. “Whether it’s scooping things out of bunks, shovelling straw, carrying buckets of grain, or working with water. I love that I don’t have to switch prosthetics, this hand does all–lift heavy, waterproof, solid grip.“

Jehle noted how critical it is for surgical teams to understand modern prosthetic capabilities. “The difference now is that if you understand the prosthetic technology, you can plan the surgery in a way that lets patients take full advantage of it.”

Each Open Bionics hospital briefing is tailored to the audience. Physicians typically receive concise guidance tied to surgical planning, referral timing, and how their decisions shape prosthetic outcomes. “Doctors do not want a full slide deck,” Elise said. “They want to see the product, hold it and understand why it might be better for certain patients. We like to keep it focused on how it will help their patients.”

Training is only one side of the relationship. Hospitals that partner with us also gain a clear referral pathway to a named upper-limb specialist.

“You’re not just sending a referral into a system and hoping for the best,” Elise said. “When a physician refers to us, they know exactly who their patient will see and that it’s someone who specializes in upper-limb care every single day.”

That clarity matters because most upper-limb amputations are unplanned. Many patients wake up after an accident or medical emergency, and their first question is nearly universal.

“Every time you see someone in the hospital after an amputation, their first question is, ‘How long until I can get my prosthesis and start using it?’” Daniel said. “There is no single answer. Healing time and volume changes are different for everyone, but we can help the team know what to watch for and when to start thinking about a device.”

Physicians repeatedly tell us that what they value most is unbiased education and quick access to upper-limb specialists who can guide complex cases. “We’re not salespeople,” Katie said. “We’re here to educate and give health care teams the information they need to make the best decisions for their patients. Each exchange of knowledge supports better outcomes for the people we all serve.”

Hospitals can request in-service training, ranging from a 10-minute briefing to a full 60-minute multidisciplinary workshop with case discussions. All sessions include continuing education (CEU) credits. To schedule in-service training, send us a request here.