IN THE USA

Dreaming & Working Together has established an extraordinary working relationship with the University of Hartford, which has one of the nation’s leading comprehensive academic and experiential prosthetics programs.  The program is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). The MSPO program is one of nine accredited programs in the United States, and operates in conjunction with Hanger Clinic.

Initially, in 2012, two University of Hartford students from the prosthetics program accompanied the DWT team to Peru.  That initial journey quickly blossomed into a formal relationship and is now a permanent part of the program.  

Each year, four students from the University’s prosthetics program are a fully integrated part of the mission, supporting and assisting the team, and gaining invaluable clinical training while working closely with physiatrists and therapists at Hospital Nacional Daniel Alcides Carrion to train patients to care for and walk with new prostheses.

The University’s Department of Rehabilitation Sciences offers a combined B.S. in Health Science/ Master of Science in Prosthetics and Orthotics (MSPO). Graduates of the combined program (BS/MSPO) are prepared to meet the intellectual, social, cultural, and economic challenges of the changing health care system. 

The Department also offers a Master of Science in Prosthetics and Orthotics (MSPO) program for those who hold a bachelor's degree. This is a full-time, on-campus program which prepares students for entry into the fields of prosthetics and orthotics. 

In addition, the University of Hartford has an MSPO Transitional Master's Program for Current Prosthetists and Orthotist.  The transitional MSPO was developed in response to current demands by practicing prosthetists and orthotists and dually certified professionals. Through a distance education format, it allows the prosthetist or orthotist to prepare for dual certification while earning the master's degree.  The graduate curriculum is tailored to meet individual academic and professional needs as students pursue the highest level of clinical education available in the field.

IN PERU

With the success of the initiative with University of Hartford students, and the growth of the overall DWT team, local medical officials in Peru have expressed interest in the development of a formal education program for medical personnel in rehabilitation and related fields, to be provided by the DWT team as part of their mission.  The curriculum for such an education program is actively being developed, with the goal of beginning specific coursework in 2016.  

In addition, discussions are underway for establishment of an exchange program that would permit students from Peru to attend the University of Hartford for specific courses offered in the University’s prosthetics curriculum.  

These initiatives, building on the solid foundation of more than a decade of steadfast and committed work by the growing Dreaming & Working Together team, will further strengthen the teaching and learning that occurs among medical professionals from the two nations, and benefitting men, women and children with acute medical needs.