A new global centre of excellence at the University of Salford is set to train more highly-skilled prosthetists and orthotists following an announcement by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
The centre is set to train 60 individuals to doctoral level over the next four years, and coordinate new Master’s courses and research to address the skills gap at home and abroad, particularly in low and middle-income countries.
The £11million project, funded by the EPSRC unites 27 industry and clinical partners, including two of the largest manufacturers of prosthetic and orthotic devices, Blatchford and Össur.
Led by the University of Salford, the partnership brings together both UK undergraduate training centres (Salford and Strathclyde) with research teams at Imperial College London, the University of Southampton, and Northwestern University in the US, the global leader in research in the field.
The doctoral research training over four years will be complemented by a new Master’s programme operating across all four partner Universities.
Students will be supported by national and global industry, and clinical, patient and service partnerships. Many are expected to be graduates in Engineering with others coming from industry and some from clinical backgrounds.
Malcolm Granat, centre lead and professor of Health & Rehabiliation Services at the University of Salford, said: “There has been a healthy growth in the number of UK undergraduates studying P&O since the removal of the student numbers cap and there is thus a growing need for doctorally-qualified leaders in the sector to support this growth. Presently there is a woeful shortage of research engineers who have a deep understanding of these challenges. Our expectation is that this new centre will create a talented workforce, who will be equipped to produce local and global solutions to transform lives.”
The majority of students will come from the UK, but the centre will support training for students from low and middle-income countries.
Worldwide demand for artificial limbs, braces, footwear and other devices which help people recover from injury is rising, but the people who make, fit and monitor prosthetics require a combination of clinical, medical and engineering skills.
The World Health Organisation estimates 100 million people globally need prosthetic or orthotic services and as populations age, more than two billion people are expected to require health-related assistive devices by 2030.
In the UK, the Disabled Living Foundation estimates that 6.5million people live with mobility disablement, while in parts of the developing world, and often in the aftermath of conflict, there is a growing global need for prosthetics and orthotics support.