A new amputee asked me one day, "How can I be sure the prosthetist is showing me everything?  I read a magazine and there are things they never told me about... hundreds of knees, feet and supplies.  In the office, they only told me about a handful." 

This is a great question.  Before a new amputee can even think about trusting a medical professional to educate him or her, the amputee has to self-educate.  Learn about the professional's background.  Is the prosthetist certified?  How long has the facility been in business?  What is their reputation?  The amputee should research before the appointment and questions should be written down.  Multiple consultations with different prosthetists is a great way to dig for more information.

Part of a prosthetist's job is to listen... listen carefully to the amputee as he or she describes daily tasks and goals.  Clinically also, there are indications and contraindications for components, including anatomy, weight, height, and activity level.  The prosthetist will then somewhat filter which components are discussed.  

So if it seems that information is being filtered, it probably is somewhat.  But a good prosthetist will only filter out information that is not useful.  Is it also possible that a prosthetist could be ignorant to new technology, or unwilling to provide multiple options to a client?  Sure, there are plenty of bad prosthetists out there.  That's where patient research, multiple opinions, and peer recommendations could help.