Updated at: 24/10/23

“A piece of jewelry” is how Jolanda describes her prosthetic leg. For her most recent prosthesis, she did not choose the standard skin-colored model. “I didn’t understand why I would do that! You would see it’s not a real leg anyway, so I decided to make something beautiful out of it.” Her prosthetic leg is now covered in colorful drawings. Doing so helped her to accept it as a part of who she is. “It is no longer something that needs to be hidden.”

A person’s hand holding a the lower part of a prothetic leg, using a a cloth beige cloth.

Creation process

When a prosthesis is created, the primary focus is on its function. It is completely adapted to the body, lifestyle, and needs. Contrary to this, there are very few possibilities to define what your prosthesis will look like. “It isn’t motivating to be in the rehabilitation center and see everyone else walking with the same leg as yours. Each body is unique. This individuality is further extended by a personal style of dressing. When you are in need of a prosthesis, you have lost a part of yourself. I see aesthetics not as a shallow side issue but as a way to gain ownership over the prosthesis.”

Heckert & Van Lierop is a company that specializes in orthopedic aids. Their waiting room faces a huge glass window overlooking the place where the new body parts are being made. Making their workshop a transparent place triggers the sense that you could take part in the making process yourself.

A waiting room with two red sofas and a wooden dining table, facing a huge glass window overlooking the area where new body parts are being manufactured.

This organization underlines the importance of an aesthetically personalized prosthesis. Doing so shifts the attention directed at the prosthesis and the disability toward a more curious and positive direction. “We have had people who found it very important that their children could pick the print for their prosthesis. Others wanted the fabric of their favorite piece of clothing implemented in the cover.”

How to personalize the prosthetic

An obstacle they encounter is that aesthetic alterations are costly and not covered by insurance. Jolanda surpassed this problem by spray painting her prosthesis herself. Not everybody, however, has the skills and equipment to pull this off. This is where the Careable community could play a big role. Can we find easily accessible and affordable ways to personalize? High-quality stickers, fabric sleeves, or 3D printed shells. Can we make them removable and customizable, resistant to daily use?

When we buy a coffee machine, there are countless colors and shapes to choose from. Healthcare products – mimicking the body and emotionally charged – seem to often fall into a single aesthetic category of sterile functionality. How could we, through acknowledging the value of aesthetics, enlarge both ownership and impact of these products as it did for Jolanda? If we value this, then let’s also make use of the skills of artists and designers while keeping the actual user in the lead of the design and decision-making process.

Concrete prosthetic parts, such as legs and hands, scattered on soil-covered ground.

Many thanks to Jolanda and Debby for sharing their personal story and thanks to Leonie of Heckert & Van Lierop for sharing her expertise and personal views. Learn more about Heckert & Van Lierop here.