Imagine | Summer 2024
A digital magazine from Irwin Mitchell
Imagine | Summer 2024 A digital magazine from Irwin Mitchell
Imagine | Summer 2024
A digital magazine from Irwin Mitchell
Our Serious Injury partner, Richard Biggs hosted the podcast and shares his thoughts on the key takeaways arising from it.
More than 5,000 people undergo a major limb amputation in the UK each year.
People of all ages might need amputation, but most occur in those over 50, often due to health conditions that affect blood supply to the limbs. Yet over 2,400 amputees under the age of 18 live in England alone, and data shows that a significant number of amputations are performed for children under the age of four.
In my role representing amputees following serious injury, driving forward a rehabilitation package is one the most important things I can do to support their recovery. For patients relying on the NHS, which spends approximately £60 million each year on amputation or congenital limb deficiency services, it’s clear that there’s a significant and continuing need for rehabilitation to be adequately funded.
Richard Biggs – Partner, Serious Injury
Richard Biggs – Partner, Serious Injury
In my role representing amputees following serious injury, driving forward a rehabilitation package is one the most important things I can do to support their recovery. For patients relying on the NHS, which spends approximately £60 million each year on amputation or congenital limb deficiency services, it’s clear that there’s a significant and continuing need for rehabilitation to be adequately funded.
An important discussion…
I had the privilege of hosting a podcast with the founders of two leading charities in the amputation, limb loss and limb difference space. Emma Joy Staines of Steel Bones, and Josephine Bridges of Positive Bones joined me to explore rehabilitation provision for those with limb disability. We discussed:
- The biggest challenges patients face straight after their surgery,
- The types of support typically requested from charities,
- Positive and negative changes to amputee rehabilitation in recent years, and
- What best practice rehabilitation could look like.
Emma and Josephine shared their invaluable experience and insight during a hugely fascinating conversation. Listen now.
An important discussion…
I had the privilege of hosting a podcast with the founders of two leading charities in the amputation, limb loss and limb difference space. Emma Joy Staines of Steel Bones, and Josephine Bridges of Positive Bones joined me to explore rehabilitation provision for those with limb disability. We discussed:
- The biggest challenges patients face straight after their surgery,
- The types of support typically requested from charities,
- Positive and negative changes to amputee rehabilitation in recent years, and
- What best practice rehabilitation could look like.
Emma and Josephine shared their invaluable experience and insight during a hugely fascinating conversation. Listen now.
An insight into our discussion…
Private v state funding
We explored the significant difference between privately funded rehabilitation and NHS provision.
The clients I act for, who’ve suffered life-changing amputations, often have access to privately funded prosthetics, aids and equipment and accommodation, which optimises their rehabilitation.
Early access to optimal rehabilitation is crucial in any serious injury case, and a good lawyer will help drive forward the rehabilitation package. Unfortunately, the experience of amputees relying on state funding can be very different.
We also discussed the variations in rehabilitation provision across the country. Emma and Josephine both feel that rehabilitation can vary greatly dependent on which part of the country an amputee lives, in what they described as a “postcode lottery”.
It’s really difficult to find information online about what actually is the day-to-day experience of being an amputee. What happens, you know in the small moments, what happens to your clothes? Can you wear the same clothes anymore? What happens when you need the toilet in the night etcetera? There’s a level of unknown and for me when I first became an amputee it was a bit like stepping into a black hole.
Josephine
Psychological support
As well as the clear physical challenges of an amputation, both Emma and Josephine explained the strain placed on an amputee’s mental health following the loss of a limb.
This life-changing event can cause anxiety, anger, loss of confidence and self-esteem, and feelings of isolation – something they described as a grief type reaction. This can be made worse by the initial lack of knowledge about where to access appropriate support, which is why the work of charities like Positive Bones, Steel Bones, and others, is so crucial.
Statistics show that approximately 21-35% of patients who’ve undergone amputation go on to experience a depressive disorder.
Often in the chaos and crisis of an amputation, the mental health of patients gets forgotten about. But patients need early intervention. We work with families to try and conquer some of those challenges quite proactively and give them the support they deserve and enable them to process the trauma and loss that they’ve gone through.
Emma
There’s clearly a significant issue to be addressed and one which I hope will form part of the NHS prosthetics review when it is finally released.
In 2018, the NHS commissioned a prosthetic patient survey, where patients highlighted that psychological support should be an important part of prosthetic service, but that it wasn’t easily accessible in prosthetic centres across the country.
Emma and Josephine highlighted their concerns at the long waiting lists for prosthetic rehabilitation, which have got worse since COVID-19. But Emma felt that a positive to come out of the pandemic was that the NHS now talks more to external organisations such as charities, which is really encouraging.
Best practice
To wrap up the podcast, I asked what ‘best practice’ rehabilitation provision might look like.
Emma feels it would be a dedicated rehabilitation centre by every NHS facility, where patients can stay for four to six weeks with an appropriate amputee support worker and a multi-disciplinary team.
Josephine highlighted that greater access to equipment for trials was key, not just with prosthetics, but in aids and equipment to help patients rediscover a quality of life and improve independence.
We all agreed that collaboration and peer-to-peer support is crucial in amputee rehabilitation. There are many helpful and accessible organisations available to support amputees at any stage of their journey.
It can be daunting for someone in need of help to find the right support. Emma and Josephine highlighted Limb Loss & Limb Difference UK, a useful website which unites a number of amputee specialist charities across the country, all providing support to anyone impacted by life changing amputation or limb difference.
Legal support
If you or a loved one’s been affected by amputation, limb loss, or limb difference because of a serious injury or medical negligence, we’re here for you. We can help you to access the compensation, care, and rehabilitation you need, to get the most out of life.