PRIDE HEALTH
Prosthetics Doctor Caters To Patients Coping With Disabilities
by LaTonya Mason
photos by Lee Stewart
Rondell Richardson's great-grandmother influenced him in more ways than one. Not only did she lend a hand in raising him, but she was quick to show how much she believed in him and always told him that he would do great things. Now, he owns Impact Prosthetic Solutions - the only African American-owned prosthetics and orthotics company in Charlotte.
"My great-grandmother... wore an orthopedic brace and eventually became an amputee. Unfortunately, she did not receive a prosthetic limb," Richardson notes.
Richardson was young then, but at 31 years old he now knows that a prosthetic limb would have increased her mobility, and he is on a mission to give to others what his grandmother did not receive. If statistics from the Amputee Coalition of America are any indication, he is on the cusp of something great. According to the ACA, "Enrollment in prosthetics schools are down, and the number of amputees are expected to rise due to the near epidemic of obesity and diabetics."
African Americans make up the greatest number of diabetics in the country, and experience the highest rates of diabetes complications - blindness, kidney failure and amputations. And they undergo lower- extremity amputations two to three times more often than white patients. That's where Richardson comes in. As an African American prosthetist, he sees it as his role to break through cultural barriers, educate people and dispel myths associated with amputations by providing culturally sensitive services.
"It is not an easy thing for anyone to experience limb loss, but what I noticed in my work is that for African Americans, it becomes a cultural and, oftentimes, a spiritual issue. Since approximately 70 percent of the patients I fit prosthetics for are African American, I saw a need for an individual practice that meets the needs of this population."
In November, Richardson and his business partner, Rico Phronebarger, a prosthetic technician, opened Impact Prosthetic Solutions in the University area with a goal to empower amputees by restoring their level of functioning, and decreasing the stigma of amputation.
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Richardson is from Connecticut. He graduated from UNC Charlotte with a bachelor's degree in health and fitness. He is certified by the Newington Certificate Program in Orthotics and Prosthetics, and is a member of such professional organizations as the International African-American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association, the Amputee Coalition of America and the American Diabetes Association.
Richardson strives to encourage his patients. In addition to fitting them for custom-made prosthetics, he encourages
them "not to focus on what you don't have but to pay attention to what you do." His ability to minimize his own limitations enabled him to open Impact and become a first-generation entrepreneur. In an effort to help others overcome obstacles, he provides an annual scholarship for an African American student pursuing a degree in orthotics or prosthetics from the University of Connecticut Newington Certificate program.
Richardson and Phronebarger's braces are designed to provide support, stability and comfort to body parts that are weak, fractured or misaligned. They fit, design and fabricate braces for the neck, back, elbow, wrist, knee and ankle. They also make custom foot orthotics and sports braces.
When he's not working, Richardson enjoys coaching his two sons' basketball teams, and spending time with his wife, Sonyia. The Richardsons live in Charlotte.
PRIDE HEALTH