Photo courtesy of Angela Oakley

By Liam Verster

Modernize prosthetic care for amputees in Alberta

Grande Prairie woman’s petition calls for prosthetic limb coverage to be expanded

Jun 14, 2021 | 1:51 PM

A Grande Prairie woman has launched an online petition calling for the Alberta government to change its regulations around prosthetic coverage to include computerized prosthetics.

Angela Oakley had her leg amputated above the knee following complications from a bone infection. The 32-year old veterinarian is able to access a mechanical prosthetic under the Alberta Aids to Daily Living program, but she says that it is not sufficient for everyday life.

“In my case in particular I have a lot of damage to the upper leg and I can’t use a mechanical knee, which is what you are provided. Number-wise, my doctor said a mechanical basic prosthetic knee gives you about 20 per cent of your mobility back, which is enough to navigate your house or navigate your yard, but nothing else really.”

She says amputees in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and many other countries are able to access computerized prosthetics, which have a lot of benefits that aren’t included in the mechanical models.

“Almost every amputee in the United States who has an above-knee amputation and a prosthetic uses a computerized knee. There’s lots of research that shows using these knees improves both the mental and physical health of the amputee because you’re able to do so much more,” said Oakley.

“With a computerized knee you can expect to get 90 per cent of your previous mobility back; there’s safety mechanisms to them… there’s like a hundred little sensors on them that go off with every step to adjust for an incline, uneven ground, picking something up, adjusting your speed, they do all of this which a mechanical knee does not.”

Each province mandates its own coverage for prosthetics, and Oakley is advocating for Alberta to change its coverage model because, as of now, the insurance models in the province don’t cover computerized prosthetics, and it’s going to cost her $50,000 out of pocket to get one.

“So Alberta is kind of in the dark ages in this. They wrote the rules before computerized or robotic prosthetics were even a thing, and they’ve never been revised. There’s no system to ask for one or to plead your case and see if you’ll get one.”

She adds not all amputees need these computerized models, but even having exceptions for certain people to access them would be beneficial not only to the individual but to society as a whole.

“These people, they’re typically young, 20 or 30 years old, they have 35 years left working in this province, paying taxes, employing other people, being functional members of society that without this technology they can’t do. So, I think financially it makes sense for the province to invest in this kind of technology for amputees because not only does it decrease the cost of health care for these people, they’re less likely to have injuries, they’re less likely to have issues using the prosthetics and they’re less likely to fall, but they also go back into society and give back to their communities.”

Oakley’s Modernize prosthetic care for amputees in Alberta petition has been launched at change.org. She has also sent letters to Health Minister Tyler Shandro, Premier Jason Kenney and Opposition Leader Rachel Notley outlining that it has been 30 years since the guidelines for prosthetic coverage have been revised, and now is the time to make those changes.

Oakley adds it’s too late for her to be affected by any change to the prosthetic coverage regulations, as she will need a computerized knee within a month in order to fully return to work, but she still wants to see the change so that other people in the future will be able to access better coverage options.