Sean
Middletown, NY
Occupation
Traveling CAT Scan Tech
Technology
Myoelectric Prosthesis with i-Limb Quantum, Taska & ETD 2, Body Powered Prosthesis, and Activity Specific Prosthesis with various terminal devices
Handspring hero Since
2016
Success Story
Written by Kara Fhon OT/s
Sean was born and raised in Westfield MA. He recently bought a house and moved to Southwick MA with his wife, happy to stay local to the area. Sean hopes to turn his home into a small farm where he can continue to take care of animals. Sean recently celebrated his 30th birthday and he enjoys staying physically active. His hobbies include playing hockey, golf, being outdoors and playing with his two dogs. Sean has been traveling for work as a CAT scan tech for the past five years, taking contracts nearby or far from home. He considered going to school to be a physical therapy assistant (PTA) but was inspired by Dr. Debra Latour when they met after his injury to go into radiology. Sean graduated from high school in 2012 but was not sure of what path to follow so he dropped out and started working as a butcher at a local shop where he stayed 3 years. He loved being a butcher and wanted to do this for the rest of his life, until he realized he would have to be the owner of a company to have any real success, so he decided to join the Air Force. He worked at the butcher shop up until his last day before he was supposed to leave for the Air Force. He had a side business cutting meat, and on that last day while working a job, his sweatshirt sleeve got caught in the meat grinder and when he came to understand what had happened, all he remembers was getting out of surgery.
What Stands Out
In hindsight, Sean had no idea about anything related to Occupational Therapy or prosthetics prior to his accident. He had no expectations going in after the accident as he went to see a few prosthetists in the area. He noticed that the prosthetists he had gone to before Handspring did not have a lot of experience with upper limb and remembers one person he spoke with had only had experience with a partial hand and creating a thumb prosthetic, and another only did about 3-4 prosthetics a year. Sean did not know if that was good or bad, but luckily met Dr. Debra Latour, an OT through ATI Physical Therapy after being referred to her from his first OT, Dr. Kimberly Gross. Through these connections, he was introduced to Handspring and the second he went to Handspring he knew it was a different kind of experience he was in for. He was able to relate to his OT, Dr. Debra Latour, as their level of injury was transradial, Sean’s being his left side. He liked that Dr. Debra Latour was an ambassador for the program, and before finding out how involved she was, he had already put his trust in her. After speaking with some of the clinical team who work at Handspring like Laura Katzenberger, L/CP and listening to the owner Tom Passero, CP’s (below the knee amputee) story, he immediately knew this was the team to work with and even though he had no expectations, the team blew him away. Sean is inspired by Logan Aldridge, who he met through Handspring. Logan has a right side above the elbow injury and is a huge advocate for limb loss and inclusion. He works at Peloton and is a cofounder for an adaptive training program, where he teaches people how to train whether they have a limb loss or deficiency and including nutrition. Sean became active in wanting to become healthier and put muscle on after his amputation, getting into CrossFit himself. One of Sean’s defining moments in life since his accident is not just one but many where he has impressed himself by doing things he has never done before with two hands and having a lot of little victories.
Sean's Advice
Sean has three pieces of advice to give. First, go in with an open mind. After receiving his first prosthetic, Sean was over the moon and thought it was the first time he would have his hand back but advises to not think of it as getting your hand back, but as a tool to get you back on the right track and not the same path you were on before. Secondly, Sean advises that if people are looking for a team, have questions or are looking for services from Handspring, the team has not only helped with his prosthetic hand, but helped him out with life decisions. He says the team are not just clinicians, but become friends, and this provides a different experience than we are used to in healthcare. Lastly, Sean says do not let one incident define who you are. If this had not happened to him when he was 21, he is not sure where he would be today. The unfortunate situation Sean encountered in his early 20’s put him in a better position today. He is not a big believer in that everything happens for a reason, but you must make the best out of the hand you were dealt (no pun intended).
Handspring Heroes
Providing personalized, expert care in upper & lower limb prosthetic rehabilitation.