October 4 – 11 is National Amputee Awareness Week and it provides the opportunity for Australian community to recognise, support and celebrate those living with limb loss.

Recognition is an essential element in understanding the challenges and complications of daily life through the experience of limb loss.

Amputation is typically performed as a last option to save a life from a trauma, from a cancer, disease or infection. Amputation is one of the few medical outcomes in which the solution creates a permanent disability.

There will be thousands of individuals receiving amputations in Australia this year. Thats one amputation every hour on average, with over 50% of those facing the process due to the complications of diabetes and vascular disease.

For an individual and their family in this journey, the impact is physical and emotional. Limb loss changes your mobility, changes how you see yourself and it can change the way people see you.  Limb loss makes many aspects of day-to-day life more challenging and often more frustrating. It doesn’t have to be a prison however and the application of kindness and consideration can go a long way to lessen the barriers it presents.

NATIONAL AMPUTEE AWARENESS WEEK is the opportunity for RECOGNITION, to learn the meaning of RESPECT, to COLLABORATE as a compassionate community and bring about the CELEBRATION of those who live these experiences of limb loss.

Amputees NSW is the community living that experience and we invite everyone show their support of this important week for our NSW amputee community.  We encourage you to reach out to us to seek information and to share the messages of awareness within your families, colleagues and community.