The company which produces the prosthesis for the world’s first para-astronaut has called for him to continue to 'push boundaries'.
It was announced on Wednesday November 23 that John McFall will take part in a ground-breaking new para-astronaut feasibility study at the European Space Agency.
Managing director and prosthetist at the Ringwood-based Dorset Orthopaedic clinic, Matt Hughes, said “John epitomises what amputees can do if they’ve got the right kit and the right attitude.”
The clinic began working with John in the lead up to him competing at the Beijing Paralympics, where he won a bronze medal in the 100m. John studied medicine at university and is now an Orthopaedic doctor.
He has a through knee amputation, which he sustained in a motorbike accident. John’s current prosthetic is extremely high-tech.
“It has lots of little sensors around the knee joint and in the shin tube which is telling the little computer where his leg is,” Matt said.
“That’s feeding information to a little hydraulic unit which basically changes the resistance in that knee, so if it knows he’s walking downstairs, it will increase the resistance in the knee so that he can do that with confidence and not have to worry about him falling over.”
But a potential trip to space could present new challenges for him and his prosthetics, and Matt said that they will need to discuss his new requirements.
“We need to sit down and look at what he’s got, what this entails and what we might need to do looking forward for the next 12-18 months.”
Matt said that John continues to be an inspiration for the amputee community, and that people like him are always needed to push the boundaries over what is possible for those with prosthetics.
“What it shows is that there are no boundaries,” he said.
“There are things that people are going to find harder to do but if you’ve got the mindset and the right team, kit, family and support behind you then the reality is there aren’t any boundaries, and you can get on and do whatever you want.
“That’s been a philosophy of our clinic for the 20-odd years that I’ve been there, and long may that continue.
“We need people like John to keep pushing boundaries.”
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