NATIONAL AMPUTEE AWARENESS WEEK

``NATIONAL AMPUTEE AWARENESS WEEK''  Coming soon

It's so easy to forget how it is for others when you have your own problems in everyday life.

We all go through life in on a different road. Some some roads are fast, some slow. Some cross and we have new encounters.

What happens when you have a crash at that cross road?

How does it effect your life?

Quite often you find a change within.

It may be you are no longer who you thought you were.

I am striving to make everybody aware of the plight of the amputee.

The other things people don't consider apart from the actual loss of Limb.

There are a few points below I have extracted from a senate meeting in 2000.

Now 8 years later there is still no vast improvement in the post surgery rehabilitation of amputees.

Amputees still suffer everyday with physical conditions that could be treated through exercise.

They still suffer with financial burden of extra medical expenses.

They still suffer with mobility restriction, which often means public transport is inaccessible.

I heard on the radio yesterday in Sydney that a Taxi survey had shown that disabled people had to wait up to an hour longer for a Taxi as the mobility vans were making more money carrying large groups and prefer ed to take care of them first.

I ask you all please assist me in making people aware of the extra needs amputees have.

It's not as simple as get a fake leg and you're good.

It does make you look more acceptable though and it may stop children pointing. It just doesn't cure everything.

Yet the cure could be as simple as appropriately targeted muscle training.

Of course that's not the whole solution, there is a huge amount of other issues that people don't hear about. We will touch on some of these over the next few weeks.

Current research as at (2000) indicates that more than 1.5 million Americans, of all ages and of both genders, have had amputations; (These Figures have risen since this senate sat)

Every year 156,000 individuals in the United States lose a limb;

Each month 13,000 individuals lose a limb;

Each week 2,996 individuals lose a limb;

Each day 428 individuals lose a limb;

Becoming an amputee is a lifetime condition, not just a temporary circumstance;

Prosthetic care can range in cost from $8,000 to more than $70,000 depending on the level of care and function of the patient;

Most insurance policies cover prosthetics with the stipulation of one prosthesis per patient for life;

The average prosthesis lasts between three and five years;

The general public is unaware of the plight of the amputee community;

An increased awareness to the issues faced by the amputee community will also bring about increased awareness for further research; and

Establishing ``National Amputee Awareness Week'' will bring the cause of amputee awareness to the national front.

In 2000 The Senate called upon the people of the United States, interested groups, and affected persons to promote the awareness of the amputee community, and to observe the week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

Too often, we lose sight of many of those who are right in front of our very eyes.

By dedicating a week to their cause, we will make certain that we no longer forget both the accomplishments and problems of the large and diverse amputee community.

Over half of amputations in the United States occur among elderly citizens as a result of vascular deficiencies.

Other major causes can include primary bone malignancies and congenital limb defects.

Although there have been great strides in prosthetic research, many people are still limited by the financial burdens associated with acquiring an artificial limb.

People from all backgrounds have had to deal with the hardships associated with amputation.

A new prosthetic device can cost between $8,000 and $70,000. These limbs must often be replaced every few years, adding to the burden placed on an amputee.

Even when insurance does cover the cost of these new prosthetic devices, it is often a one-time reimbursement.

This leaves the amputee to deal with any further care or replacement devices that are necessary.

The prosthetic device is not the only cost incurred by the amputee. There are many secondary factors that must be considered.

Over 25,000 people are readmitted to the hospital each year due to complications resulting from their amputation.

Amputees must deal with both the physical and emotional consequences of limb loss.

Physical therapy must be undertaken to learn how to perform the most basic tasks with a new, foreign limb.

They must often also look for alternate occupations once limb loss has made their current occupation infeasible.

As a result, amputees must often undergo counseling to help them come to terms emotionally with their altered lifestyle.

"Not only will amputees benefit from this week, the general population would also have the opportunity to be informed of the unique needs and problems faced by the amputee community."

The amputee community and the general population would both gain from increased interaction that this week will bring.