As I entered the symposium room at the Tampa Shriners hospital, my eyes excitedly skimmed the audience for familiar faces. The slide show was paused on an enlarged x-ray of a child with Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency (PFFD). The symposium had been going all day long and my presentation was the very last. As the speaker discussed the x-ray, I sat down in the back and became overwhelmed with regret… I wish I had been there all day to listen in. I have PFFD and I’ve always been fascinated with the ins and outs of this rare congenital limb deficiency.  

Ann Stomkin, MS/LCSW was kind enough to invite me to speak at the ACPOC Children with Congenital Limb Deficiencies Symposium, sponsored by College Park Industries and held at the Tampa Shriners Hospital for Children on January 23, 2009. Our segment focused on the psychosocial issues of the developing child with a limb deficiency. Our presentation was informal and was more of a discussion, a loose conversation that briefly touched on some pretty profound themes of self identity and perseverance. Some of my childhood photographs served as a background slide show.  We were delighted to have Ronnie Dickson, volunteer and Orthotic & Prosthetic student, come to the stage and also share his experiences as an above knee amputee. Our stories are quite different. Ronnie does not have PFFD and he underwent amputation at a later age. It was clear, though, that we share some undeniable similarities. We both possess a great passion for the prosthetic industry, are both eternally grateful for the care we received from the Shriners, and are both lucky to have wonderful support teams behind us today.