Friday, June 24th, 2016
Last modified on December 29th, 2019
I graduated with a Masters degree in Occupational Therapy in 2008 from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. Shortly after receiving my Masters, I moved to Houston, Texas. For the past eight years, I have worked all throughout the medical center in Houston, including, but not limited to: TIRR Memorial Hermann, Memorial Hermann, MD Anderson, Supplemental Healthcare and now currently for Rehab Without Walls. During these eight years, I have specialized in neurological rehabilitation, and I have been very active with two non-profits: Rehab Services Volunteer Project (RSVP Houston) and the United Spinal Association Houston (formerly National Spinal Cord Injury Association Houston). Both organizations were created to help individuals living with neurological injuries.
I have worked with Saebo products – more specifically, the SaeboStretch and SaeboFlex – for at least seven years. I absolutely recommend them for all healthcare practitioners as Saebo products are unique in many ways.
They are easy for patients to use, which is paramount to prevent patients from discontinuing its use. The SaeboStretch splint displays arrows on each strap which makes it easy to put on and take off. Also, the design of the splint allows for stability and adjustability, two adjectives which rarely go together in the description of a splint. (Most splints that are designed to be stable sacrifice adjustability and flexibility.) The SaeboStretch is sturdy and built to last, yet it can also be molded and repositioned to accommodate individual patients’ needs which will improve positioning, comfort and protection of the skin.
I am currently working with a young client who has had a traumatic brain injury resulting in severe spasticity and hypertonicity. Some of the fingers on this client’s hand are contracted making it extremely difficult to position in a standard splint. Splints that were previously fabricated for this client no longer fit due to changes in tone and positioning of the hand/fingers. Also, previous splints have deteriorated in quality and the straps and Velcro are frequently falling off and need to be replaced.
So, we introduced her to the SaeboStretch.
Once we started working with the SaeboStretch, I was able to mold the positioning of the thumb and wrist angle to accommodate the exact position this client needed. The straps are always connected which makes it very easy for not only me as the clinician, but also her caregiving family to don and doff. Also, as this client’s needs change, the SaeboStretch can be adjusted with different inserts to allow for more or less flexibility.
We used this particular splint to protect the positioning of the client’s wrist, and preserve range of motion so that the wrist could ultimately be used to communicate. Because of this client’s severe brain injury, communication via talking out loud or blinking was not possible. Once the rehabilitation team determined that using the wrist was most effective to answer “yes/no” questions, finding an appropriate splint that would preserve range of motion in the wrist was paramount.
I’m pleased to say that using the SaeboStretch with this particular client not only preserved the range of motion in her wrist, but also helped to decrease the tone in her hand making it easier for the client to move the wrist to respond to questions and follow commands.
We normally don’t think of things like hand splints as a communication tool. When you put a Saebo solution in the hands of a skilled clinician, a whole new world can be opened up for a patient’s life.
I’m very thankful for Saebo in helping make this happen.
Jeffrey Despommier, OTR, MOT
Rehab Without Walls
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Whether you are a caregiver, occupational therapist or even a stroke survivor yourself, Saebo provides stroke survivors young or old access to transformative and life changing products. We pride ourselves on providing affordable, easily accessible, and cutting-edge solutions to people suffering from impaired mobility and function. We have several products to help with the stroke recovery and rehabilitation process. From the SaeboFlex, which allows clients to incorporate their hand functionally in therapy or at home, to the SaeboMAS, an unweighting device used to assist the arm during daily living tasks and exercise training, we are commitment to helping create innovative products for stroke recovery. Check out all of our product offerings or let us help you find which product is right for you.
