6th November 2025
When you visit the Open Bionics clinic in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, you meet Travis Richards, a clinician who prioritizes listening first.
“During the evaluation, I like to kick back for 20 to 30 minutes and say, ‘Tell me your story,’” Travis said. “Most people have experienced nothing but rushed clinical appointments. If they want to talk, it’s my job to let them talk.”
Travis came to prosthetics after an orthopedic surgery internship changed his plans. “The surgeon looked me in the eye and said, ‘Don’t do this if you’re not 100 percent into it,’” he said. “Instead, he told me to check out orthopaedics and prosthetics. From that day on it was O&P.”
Travis trained at a large corporate clinic before co-founding his own independent clinics in Florida. “It was a great training ground. You see everything,” he said. “Owning my own place taught me patience, too. You can’t rush people. This is our first contact with a lifelong patient, hopefully. You don’t gloss over that.”
That philosophy shapes his clinical visits to this day. “I’ve had folks stop at the end of a first visit and say, ‘This didn’t feel like a quick doctor visit,’” Travis said. “You end up hearing what they don’t tell anyone else — fears about going back to work, what everyday life is like. You become part clinician, part confidant.”
He is intentional about time. “In big systems I was always getting yelled at for taking too long,” he said. “Here, we have the luxury to be thorough. An eval might be scheduled for two hours and take three because the person needs it.”
He also checks his own assumptions. “I’ll never know what it’s like to live with limb difference, so I try to be acutely aware of what they need, their goals, and meet them there.”
Travis is a former motorcycle racer who now prefers gravel cycling and distance running. His son, also a motorcycle racer, has since surpassed his best lap times. “Proud and ‘dang it’ at the same time,” he said with a laugh.
Travis moved to Tennessee to open the Open Bionics Nashville clinic. The office is in the UBS Tower in the center of downtown, across from the courthouse and a short walk from Nissan Stadium.
“There’s a parking structure next door,” Travis said. “The commuter train gets you close, and there’s a free bus transfer if you need it.”
A first visit to the Nashville clinic will cover goals, daily tasks, limb history, a myoelectric check and a clear plan. “I explain the whole process so there are no surprises,” he said. “We talk about timelines, insurance, and what the arm can and cannot do. Listening first helps us pick a device that people will wear and love.”
The Open Bionics Nashville clinic serves Tennessee and neighboring states, including Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas. To explore personalized upper-limb prosthetic care with a clear plan from consultation to delivery, book a free appointment with the Nashville clinic.
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