Views From AOPA Leadership

AOPA’s Investment in Research and Quality Improvement, Is an Investment in You

WHETHER YOUR ROLE IN our profession is as a team member of a patientcare facility or as an O&P manufacturer, each of us has a vital part to play in demonstrating the value and efficacy of quality orthotic and prosthetic care—not only for ourselves, but for the patients we serve.

At AOPA, research is a central pillar of our mission, and we are committed to facilitating the expansion and development of research and quality improvement projects that support the advancement of clinical care and innovation in the field of orthotics and prosthetics. One way AOPA is working toward that end is through funding. Guided by our Medical Advisory Board and Research Committee, we are undertaking several key projects.

We are funding the Center for Orthotic and Prosthetic Learning and Outcomes/ Evidence-Based Practice (COPL) Pilot Grant Program, which encourages researchers to further their careers in areas of study that contribute to the O&P community. Funding is issued in 10 areas of O&P research, including an open topic, at two funding levels for one-time grants, $15,000 and up to two proposals for $30,000 for one year. The program allows researchers to capture data required to design projects that are eligible for larger grant funding in the future. Since 2009, AOPA has funded $838,632 in COPL pilot grants.

We also are investing in relationships with federal research partners at the Department of Defense and National Institutes for Health. As part of this initiative, AOPA shares insights into evidence gaps, areas of focus for profession-funded research, and information regarding how the findings are being incorporated into clinical practice.

Through our relationships on Capitol Hill, we are advocating for the appropriation of federal dollars to ensure our federal partners and programs continue to be available as viable sources of funding for O&P researchers.

In addition to funding O&P research, we are investing in the publication of research through a newly launched partnership with the Journal of Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies Engineering (RATE). RATE is a peer-reviewed, open access, interdisciplinary journal, focusing on the engineering aspects and practical applications of rehabilitation and assistive technologies. It is indexed in both Web of Science and PubMed Central. AOPA members will receive a 50 percent submission fee discount, and the journal of proceedings for AOPA’s National Assembly will be published as part of a special collection.

While these projects represent just a few of AOPA’s research initiatives for the first quarter of 2021, we will be rolling out more later this year. Stay tuned to AOPA Connection for the latest.

Traci Dralle, CFm, is president of AOPA.

Specialists in delivering superior treatments and outcomes to patients with limb loss and limb impairment.

Board of Directors

OFFICERS

President Traci Dralle, CFm Fillauer Companies, Chattanooga, TN

President-Elect Dave McGill Össur Americas, Foothill Ranch, CA

Vice President Teri Kuffel, JD Arise Orthotics & Prosthetics, Spring Lake Park, MN

Immediate Past President Jeffrey Lutz, CPO Hanger Clinic, Lafayette, LA

Treasurer Rick Riley O&P Boost, Bakersfield, CA

Executive Director/Secretary (Nonvoting) Eve Lee, MBA, CAE AOPA, Alexandria, VA

DIRECTORS

Jeffrey M. Brandt, CPO Ability Prosthetics & Orthotics Inc., Exton, PA

Mitchell Dobson, CPO, FAAOP Hanger, Austin, TX

Elizabeth Ginzel, MHA, CPO Baker O&P, Fort Worth, TX

Kimberly Hanson, CPRH Ottobock, Austin, TX

John “Mo” Kenney, CPO, LPO, FAAOP Kenney Orthopedics, Lexington, KY

Linda Wise WillowWood, Mount Sterling, OH

James O. Young Jr., LP, CP, FAAOP Amputee Prosthetic Clinic, Tifton, GA

Shane Wurdeman, MSPO, PhD, CP, FAAOP(D) Research Chair Hanger Clinic, Houston Medical Center, Houston, TX