I recently had a patient with a below the knee amputation who when I asked, "What sorts of things do you want to work on getting back to?" responded, "Hunting, fishing, playing outside with my kids." At first I really believe he was saying these things to be sarcastic (although to me these are completely reasonable goals, I'm not sure at this point he realized they were attainable). To his surprise on the next visit (with the guidance of a local Physical Therapist Assistant), I brought him a nice stack of print-outs on handicap accessible fishing sites in his area and information on obtaining a hunting license for people with disabilities. He accepted it, smiled, and said, "I never knew there was such a thing." Until the day I searched and found these resources on the website for the state's Division of Natural Resources, neither one of us knew they existed.
Take home messages:
*Don't let patients give up on the things they love
*Ask locals for advice
*Google is your friend
*Check out your state's website on the Division (Agency) of Natural Resources or Department of Fish and Wildlife for info on hunting/fishing options with disabilities
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