Putting Born Just Right in View of the Experts

I’m serious about getting Jordan the best possible care. I feel the same way for her brother. When they need something, I will find what they need and work as hard as I can to find the best. And that’s exactly what I did to find David Rotter, Jordan’s prosthetist. Not only does he work for an excellent prosthetic and orthotic company, Scheck and Siress, he is the vice president the Association of Children’s Orthotic-Prosthetic Clinics. ACPOC is the only research association focused on research on orthotics and prosthetics for children. I would have never known about it without meeting Dave (or as we’ve said many times in previous posts, Jordan named him Mr. David).

That was years ago when I called pediatric occupational therapists across the country to see who they would recommend if they had a child born with a limb difference. Dave first worked with Jordan a little before she turned three years old. Born Just Right was a younger website, but I have tried to document our experiences along the way… Like sweet moments when Jordan got to swing with both arms at the same time.

She’s so LITTLE in that video!

We’re learned a lot about how to work with Jordan… We added elbows to her prosthetics a few years ago. From the very start, we’ve worked with different hands to focus on specific tasks so Jordan has reasons to use her helper arms. Why use a prosthetic if it doesn’t help her accomplish tasks? Dave has always asked Jordan about the skills she wants to accomplish… Like riding a bike, using the kayak, riding a horse. When she was smaller, Jordan even used a simple hook so Jordan could dangle from the monkey bars. (She’s too big to use it these days.)

Through the years of working with Dave, I’ve been able to share our prosthetic experiences with you right here on this website and on social media like our Facebook page and Twitter. We know upper limb prosthetics aren’t awesome… But Jordan’s body benefits from giving her body opportunities to work with more balance. When she wears her arm, it can be cumbersome until she finds opportunities she couldn’t have thought of without wearing it. We had one of those moments just a few days ago as we walked to school. Jordan was carrying her new lunch box. But she also wanted to walk the dog. Luckily, her helper arm saved the day.

Today, Dave will talk about this community at the ACPOC conference and share how we are changing the way prosthetists work with families. Not long ago, the only resources we had when it came to working on prosthetics was your family doctor, physical and occupational therapists and your prosthetist. We would rely solely on the input we gained within that small team of people. But the ability for us to connect and share here on this website and on social media have changed that. We, the Born Just Right community, are sharing our experiences together. We’re learning what is possible from each other when it comes to prosthetics, therapies and support for our kids. I have learned so much about how to advocate for Jordan and so many other kids. Through the years, I’ve shared many of my tips online and during our awesome meet ups or in private emails with people around the world. We are changing the world for our kids! Together, we’re making sure they’re growing up with a network of support and a team of experts who can really help our kids grow strong and able in every possible way.

So, Born Just Right friends, say hi to the members of ACPOC. Today they get a chance to learn about us. Leave a comment, say hi. Let’s all get to know each other!