Understanding the benefits of prosthetic prescription: exploring the experiences of practitioners and lower limb prosthetic users

Purpose. While lower limb prosthetic prescription is reliant on many physical indicators, it is clear that psychosocial factors need to be emphasised to a greater extent within this field if the needs of users are to be appropriately addressed. The aim of this study is to explore and identify the outcomes of prosthetic prescription through qualitative inquiry. Method. Six focus groups with prosthetic service users and 10 semi-structured interviews with service providers were conducted and then analysed with inductive thematic analysis. Results. The outcomes identified were: independence, not being in a wheelchair, balance and safety, improved quality of life and reaching potential. Conclusions. These emergent themes challenge the predominating focus on physical functioning that many practitioners have. These findings are important for developing a user-based model of service provision and outcome evaluation.