Award-Winning Blog and Newsletter Lift St. Louis Health Care Practice

Early in 2007, Prosthetic and Orthotic Care, Inc., launched a new blog, The Care Digest. Winner of a Gold Star awarded by the popular marketing consultant Elizabeth Mansfield, this blog is an electronic version of P&O Care’s popular print newsletter by the same name, available for download on their website at http://pandocare.com/news.html.

The Care Digest’s frequent blog posts profile patients and practitioners, and it allows anyone to rate their experience with the clinical practice. It also summarizes news and provides commentary with a personal perspective on the P&O industry here in St. Louis and around the world. Together, the blog and newsletter reach over 1,100 people in St. Louis and enable P&O Care to connect better with their patients and referring health care professionals. “We hope patients take the opportunity to upload their own commentary, pictures, video and unique stories,” says blog creator Bill McLellan.

Both versions of The Care Digest form part of an innovative outreach campaign begun just over a year ago. Since August 2006, the successful plan has enabled P&O Care to grow from five prosthetists and orthotists to eight, and from twelve to twenty employees. Prosthetists Manny Rivera and Dan Luitjohan came on in 2006, and Orthotists John Lartonoix and Shawn McAdams started this year. The practice also added orthotic intern Luke Brewer and prosthetic resident Maggie Ware-Smith in June and July. With the addition of Bill McLellan as Director of Sales and Marketing a year ago, P&O Care has a dedicated liaison coordinating the crucial relationships among patients and their doctors, nurses, therapists, prosthetists and orthotists.

“We don’t want to be the biggest P&O practice in town, just the best,” says CEO Jim Weber. “This business is all about providing a superior clinical service, not just manufacturing limbs and braces. Though not widely utilized by health care practitioners, good marketing ensures that competition works the way it’s supposed to. Patients get more for their money, such as fast, quality service and complementary home visits.” McLellan adds, "Turning a quality newsletter into a blog is easy and fun. It's a good idea for any professional practice, whether in health care or other fields of specialized service. Blogs are interactive and easily updated with stories, pictures, and online video; and they provide an excellent way to stay connected with patients and colleagues."

To sign up for the e-mail or snail mail versions of The Care Digest, or to become a contributor on this blog, contact Bill McLellan at BMcLellan@PandOCare.com. P&O Care is a team of health care professionals with a common goal of creating innovative prosthetic and orthotic solutions to help people live their lives to the fullest by regaining their mobility, strength and independence. Their care centers are located in Des Peres, MO, and Fairview Heights, IL.

Josh Sundquist, CNN Hero

CNN recently profiled Josh Sundquist, creator of the online amputee network "Less than Four," or <4. The website provides a place for amputees to meet, talk about their prostheses or other interests, and create a blog about themselves. According to CNN, it has over 200 members and 10,000 viewers, but judging by the number of calls we've received from people who saw the clip, it might have many more soon.

She Glides on Ice

Earlier this year, P&O Care did a profile in The Care Digest on Janetta Roggers. Since then, these two videos of Janetta have been viewed over 16,000 times online. Always adventurous, Janetta is continuing to experiment with new activities, the latest being soccer.

Virginia Parity Push

Here's a great article on the push for prosthetic parity in Virginia.

http://www.roanoke.com/business/wb/wb/xp-132817

In Missouri, by contrast with Virginia, the effort to get a prosthetic parity law on the books is being led by a committee of amputees, rather than a prosthetic company like P&O Care. The Missouri Coalition for People with Limb Loss will, of course, eventually raise money from prosthetic companies to hire a lobbiest, and it's only right that we help. But patients who have been denied coverage by their insurance companies are leading the push here.

We would also take issue with the characterization of prosthetic parity as a traditional "mandate." Limb loss is a tragic, sudden (even when caused by diabetes) medical condition, the kind of thing that health insurance exists to cover. No one will cut their limb off to benefit from "mandated" prosthetic coverage. We will simply see more amputees going back to work and fewer depending on Medicaid for their prosthetic coverage. Less than ten years ago, insurance policies used to all cover prosthetics on their own. Why not now?

Practitioner Profile: Maggie Ware-Smith

P&O Care's newest prosthetic resident is the super-talented and friendly Maggie Ware-Smith. Maggie graduated this year from Northwestern Medical School in Chicago with graduate certificates in both prosthetics and orthotics. After growing up right here in Clayton, she attended the University of Virginia where she graduated with a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering in 2006.


This past July, Maggie started her year-long prosthetic residency, seeing patients and building limbs with P&O Care's Jon Wilson, CPO. She plans to do an orthotic residency after she gets her ABC certification in prosthetics next year. Maggie hopes to practice someday as both a prosthetist and an orthotist, capable of providing the same patients with artificial limbs and custom bracing. P&O Care is lucky to have such an ambitious rising star.

John Lartonoix, ABC Certified Orthotist

John Lartonoix (a French name pronounced Lar-ton-wah) became an ABC Certified Orthotist is 2001. To prepare him for this exciting career, John earned a bachelor degree in Exercise Science from Appalachian State University and an associates degree for Physical Therapy Assistant. Then, he interned with an O&P company in the St.Louis area where he met and worked side by side with Jon Wilson, now P&O Care's Clinical Director.

In 2000, John and Jon both attended Northwestern Medical School's Orthotic Program and often talked about working together in the future. However, after graduating John Lartonoix took a residency in Columbus, Ohio, for Columbus Orthopedic, and Jon Wilson returned to St.Louis to form P&O Care. Columbus Orthopedic was later purchased by the Hanger Corporation and was an extremely respected practice. The office serviced all local hospitals including Children's Hospital and the Ohio State University Hospital.

In his patient care, John says he was lucky enough to be exposed to most aspects of the orthotic field. "I worked closely with several doctors from the Children's Hospital developing a strong pediatric background. In 2006 P&O Care developed a need for a certified Orthotist, and I was looking for new career experiences. After meeting with Jon Wilson and Jim Weber, CEO of P&O Care, I found what I was looking for. P&O Care is a group of wonderful people who make for an amazing team. I see such a variety of patients each day, which allows me to help people in many different ways. Being part of the P&O Care team enables me to do my job with care and pride."

Introducing Shawn McAdams

P&O Care is excited to announce the addition of orthotist Shawn McAdams, who brings warm patient care and highly skilled craftsmanship to our profession. Shawn just completed his residency in orthotics with C. H. Martin Co. in Macon, GA. He graduated from Northwestern Medical School’s Orthotics and Prosthetics Practitioner Program in 2005, and he has worked in the field since he became an orthotic and prosthetic technician in 2001. This December, Shawn will be taking his board exams for ABC certification in orthotics. Until then, he will be supervised in all his patient care by P&O Care’s Lead Orthotist, Dennis Richards, who has been an ABC Certified Orthotist since 2004.

We Want Your Feedback!

We at P&O Care are eager to hear from you, the readers of The Care Digest, especially our patients and colleagues in health care. Anyone can leave a comment on this blog, either anonymously or with your name if you have a Google account. Let us know what you think of the blog or any other aspect of our patient care. Just click "comments" below to leave your own.

Get a Grip

The first prosthetic hand with individually moving fingers is now on the market. Think: Luke Skywalker at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. Myoelectric prosthetic arms and hands have sensors that pick up electric impulses from the muscles of the arm. Until now, those impulses have been able to open or close a hand, control grip strength, and rotate a wrist or elbow. But the i-Limb hand by Touch Bionics in Scotland has tiny motors for all four fingers and thumb. With it, amputees can pick up a coin, turn a key, punch keys on a cell phone, or lift a coffee mug.

Touch Bionics released the i-Limb July 29 in Vancouver, British Columbia, at the World Congress of the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics. There's no word yet on whether Medicare or insurance companies in the US are going to pay for the i-Limb hand, so unfortunately, distribution is limited to people who want to pay out of pocket.