Click Medical – Handspring Prosthetics

This week, we are excited to highlight Chris Baschuk, MPO, CPO, FAAOP(D) who is the Regional Clinical Manager for the Mountain West at Handspring Prosthetics. Handspring has practices in Colorado, Utah, New York, New Jersey, and Georgia. 

Handspring specializes in meeting the unique requirements and requests that individuals with upper-limb loss and differences present to them. 

“We are constantly looking for new ways to innovate. We have recently begun applying CAD and additive manufacturing into our design and fabrication processes, which has expanded our horizons as to the form and function of our prostheses. This includes being able to integrate RevoFit® systems with greater ease than with traditional fabrication methods.” 

“We find that a hybrid model of combining tried and true traditional fabrication methods alongside newer technologies like RevoFit ultimately results in a better outcome for the patient.”

Please share a brief bio of yourself:

“Chris Baschuk, MPO, CPO, FAAOP(D) is the Regional Clinical Manager for Handspring Clinical Services in Salt Lake City, UT. He also serves as the Chair of the Upper Limb Prosthetics Society of the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists. Chris and his colleagues at Handspring, including Adam Duncan, CO in Salt Lake City and Amy Ginsburg, CPO in Denver, specializing in meeting the unique requirements and requests that individuals with upper-limb loss and difference present to them. In addition to clinics in the intermountain West, Handspring also has clinics in New Jersey, New York, and Georgia. Whereas most prosthetists see a majority of lower limb patients, more than 80% of the patients seen in the Handspring Clinics have some form of upper limb loss or difference.

How does adjustability benefit your practice and your patients?

“Handspring relies on advanced technology, including products from Click Medical, to integrate into their prostheses to come up with innovative solutions to meet their patient’s needs. The adjustability provided by the lacer systems is very helpful in allowing for dynamic adjustment of upper limb prosthetic sockets by the user depending on the activity that is being done at the time.”

How does RevoFit® play a key role in your practice?

“We use the RevoFit kits for our patients that are higher activity and need adjustability. In particular, when we are making activity specific prostheses, the RevoFit kits are always at the front of our minds. They allow the prostheses to be donned easily, and then to be tightened down as needed to provide improved compression and stabilization of the socket when under load. This is really important for our self-suspending transradial sockets.”

What are some successes your practice has had delivering adjustable RevoFit® devices?

“We had the pleasure of working with Bob Radocey from TRS to design and develop an activity specific prosthesis for him to use while working out at the gym. He wanted something that could be easily donned, but that also would have the ability to really clamp down on his arm and give him good control and stability while lifting weights. We were ultimately successful in integrating a RevoFit system that provided compression superior to his olecranon to hold him into the socket. To keep the look of the arm clean, we integrated the BOA system into the forearm behind a removable door. With the door in place the BOA dial was completely concealed. It was a really great outcome for a truly heavy-duty application.”

What inspired you to get into the O&P field?

“Growing up, I never knew anyone that had limb loss or difference. Yet, when I went to collage to study biomedical engineering, I was fascinated with the idea of developing artificial limbs. This curiosity ultimately led me to a role as an undergraduate researcher in the Orthopaedic Research Lab at the University of Utah where I helped investigate osseointegration. That experience solidified my desire to work with individuals that have limb loss or differences. The rest, as they say, is history.”

Are there any non-profits or special events your team is involved with and to what level?

“Handspring participates with a wide variety of groups. Our clinicians serve in a variety of roles in national organizations including The American Academy of Orthotists, Prosthetists and the Amputee Coalition, The Helping Hands Foundation and the Challenged Athletes Foundation. Handspring has also been a sponsor and supporter of Enhancing Skills for Life, which provides education, events, resources, & connections for individuals living with bilateral upper limb loss or quad limb loss.”

Tell us something fun or special about your practice?

“We are always willing to take on a challenge, even if it is not specifically an upper or lower limb prosthesis. Because we have the capability and talent to integrate advanced technologies such as additive manufacturing and custom silicone, we get asked to do some fun things. Some of the most rewarding have been applying our techniques to animals. We have made AFOs for a Great Dane and a running prosthesis for a Border Collie.”

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