We’re delighted to host two amputation conferences to kick off Limb Loss and Limb Difference Awareness Month. You can find details of our East of England event towards the end of this page.
Our event in Manchester combines expert insight and lived experience. Join us on an amputee’s journey from adversity to empowerment.
You’ll be thrown into the immediate aftermath of a serious injury and learn how trauma echoes beyond injury, impacting not only the injured person, but their family and friends as well. You’ll hear how patients can be supported to prepare for life-changing amputation surgery and stories from our clients who share how they came to terms with their amputation.
An important part of recovery for an amputee is coping with pain, including phantom pain, which continues after the loss of a limb. You’ll hear from a physiotherapist who specialises in pain management for amputees and another of our clients will share his story, inviting you to consider the unseen and unspoken effects of pain.
Looking towards a brighter future, a clinical prosthetist will help you understand the importance of well-fitting prosthetics to enable amputees to enjoy physical activity and unlock the benefits of sport in their rehabilitation.
The day will conclude with the inspirational story of our Imagine client, Richard Davies. A Royal Air Force veteran injured in a kit moving exercise, Richard rediscovered the colour in life after his below-the-knee amputation. Victory in the Invictus Games ignited his passion for challenge and competition. He’s recently returned from the toughest trek in the world and is now on the pathway to compete in the 2028 Paralympic games.
As Richard says, “Being an amputee’s not easy, but it can also be a completely new way of life you never imagined. Let the good days overrule the bad.”
Who should attend?
Our conference will be of interest to all those working in the field of amputation from consultants, allied health care professionals, rehabilitation specialists and charities.
How you can get involved
We want you to feel fully immersed in the amputation journey and there will be opportunities to ask questions throughout the day. If you want to ask our panel any questions in advance, please submit them when you respond.
Please also shout about the conference on your socials using #IMAmputationConf. Let people know you’re coming and share your thoughts during the day.
Secure your place
Places are limited so please RSVP to let us know you’re coming.
Please note this event is being filmed, should you wish to not be captured on film let a member of the team know.
East of England amputation conference
If you’re based in the East of England, we’re partnering with No5 Chambers for our regional event at Newmarket Racecourse. It promises to be an engaging day where like-minded professionals and amputees can come together to share experiences when supporting those affected by amputation. Find out more by clicking here.
© 2023 Irwin Mitchell LLP is Authorised & Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Our Regulatory Information.
Collaboration and innovation have always been the main driving principles for Jan (she/her). This can be seen throughout her career, from setting up programmes to help homeless people in Liverpool, creating a service dedicated to birth trauma, right up to present where the focus is on developing new methods of making the lives of clients and colleagues better. Working with and drawing together people to push the boundaries of good practice and create something unique, has culminated in the creation of Healthy You. As CEO, Jan is at the forefront of both developing services further and supporting staff to flourish.
Jan has over 15 years of experience in supporting clients, staff and organisations. Her expertise and skills are particularly in the field of trauma. She offers therapy to individual clients, consults with organisations to minimise the impact of trauma for their users and staff, and is an advisor to government bodies. Jan has spent most of her career to date campaigning to improve safety in maternity, for families and staff. She is the clinical lead for the national Make Birth Better campaign, as well as expert advisor on a number of national and government committees providing input into maternity. Jan provides consultancy services to a range of industries including health, aviation, nuclear and litigation.
Developing others is at the heart of what Jan loves to do. Through her coaching and leadership work she develops individuals to become dynamic, compassionate and diverse leaders. Jan believes that people are the biggest resource in any organisation and as such is an advisor, consultant and writer on how to nourish staff, create positive working environments and cultures of psychological safety, to help workforces thrive. Jan has written two influential books in these areas, ‘Nurturing Maternity Staff: How to Tackle trauma, stress and burnout to create a positive working culture in the NHS’ and ‘Managing PTSD for Health and Social Care Professionals: Help for the Helpers’.
Jan has an extensive research career, spanning improving access and experiences for users of maternity services and birth, as well as developing novel resources through animation, film and media. She is currently a Research Associate at Sheffield Hallam University.
Holly King is a Charted Physiotherapist with twenty years of experience. With a background in sports medicine, Holly specialises in the field of complex trauma and amputee
rehabilitation following a varied career in the military, working at Headley Court and at the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines. Holly has developed a special interest in pain
management, particularly phantom limb pain and residual limb pain and has published an academic paper on the use of electroacupuncture to alleviate phantom limb pain. Holly
strives to treat the source of a patient’s pain, improving their quality of life and rehabilitation journey.
In 2023 recognising the profound impact that life-changing injuries can have on individuals’ lives, and the huge gap in charitable provision for an otherwise forgot group (limb loss,
catastrophic orthopaedic, soft tissue and peripheral nerve injuries). Individuals often lose a sense of self, identity, and become socially isolated. Holly founded the charity Stride
Forward providing transformative mentorship programmes that positively impact the lives of individuals dealing with life-changing injuries. Enabling individuals to find purposeful
occupation (employment, voluntary services to hobbies or sport) that empowers them to have an enriched and intentional life irrespective of their physical impairments.
Alan McDougall is the Clinical Director at Proactive, bringing an extensive 18 years of experience as a Prosthetist. He studied at Strathclyde University, which paved the way for a career beginning in London as an NHS prosthetist.
Alan's trajectory soon shifted towards innovation, where he began a job in research and development with Blatchford, contributing to the design of pioneering prosthetic knees and feet that we see in the marketplace today. A following job at Ottobock saw his role change to become a product expert and educator where he trained clinicians on the fitting and intricacies of microprocessor-controlled prosthetics, including the renowned Genium knee and Empower foot.
In clinical practice today, Alan is dedicated to socket technology where he and the team at Proactive strive for the utmost comfort in prosthetic sockets.
Our Imagine client, Richard, is a Royal Air Force Veteran who was injured on an exercise in Cyprus in May 2019. His injuries led to his below-the-knee amputation in July 2021.
Richard turned to sport during his recovery, winning four gold medals in swimming at the 2023 Invictus Games. The games ignited his passion for challenge and competition. He’s recently returned from the toughest trek in the world and is now on the pathway to compete in the 2028 Paralympic games.
Richard is a partner in our Manchester office. He specialises in complex and high-value claims, particularly brain injury, spinal and amputation cases.
He’s dedicated and passionate about working hard so all of his clients have the best possible rehabilitation at the earliest opportunity following a serious accident.
Richard is a member of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL)
Alison became a client of Laura Mcilduff of Irwin Mitchell in November 2018 having been involved in a road traffic accident which left her with life changing injuries including an above knee amputation.
Since the accident Alison has been in receipt of a comprehensive rehabilitation program funded by several interim payments secured by Irwin Mitchell which is coordinated by her case manager Abbie Udall of Abbie Udall Associates and she has a custom built prosthetic leg. In March 2022 a settlement award was agreed which will enable her to continue to access therapy and prosthetics, purchase any equipment and make adaptations to her home.
Alison attained an MA in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University and a PHD in Astrophysics from Durham University before becoming a Senior Research Assistant at Durham with the Cosmology Group in 1989. After five years she her career changed direction when she started her own landscaping business Broadbent Landscapes. Unfortunately ill health forced her to close the business in 2007 and in subsequent years she was also a full time carer for her mother.
Alison describes herself as an obsessive gardener and now a settlement in her personal injury case has been achieved would like to travel globally and live a fulfilling life despite the challenges her injuries present. Alison, along with her rehab team, has recently started North East Amputee Support Group which is aimed at supporting amputees across the North East of England.
Consultant in Physical & Rehabilitation Medicine and Clinical Lead for Amputee and Prosthetic Rehabilitation in Manchester, UK; Consultant and Clinical Lead in Neurorehabilitation - Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, UK
Consultant in Rehabilitation Medicine – Ashbrook Neurorehabilitation, Manchester, Osiris Healthcare, PSP Neurorehabilitation and Grey Salamander, National Neurorehabilitation Chamber
Qualification: MBBS (India), Dip .Ortho (India), MRCS (Royal College of Surgery, Edinburgh), FRCP (Royal College of Medicine, London), FEBPRM (Fellow of European Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation)
Additional Appointments:
National Chair – SIG for Amputee Medicine BSPRM UK
Honorary Lecturer - Salford University
Executive committee member of BSPRM (British Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine)
Member of BSPRM Major Trauma Core Group
Member of the National Clinical Guideline Development Group (GDG) for Trauma Service Delivery (NCGC | National Institute for Health and Care Excellence NICE | Royal College of Physicians) 2014-2015, Published in Feb 2016
Specialist Commentator for NICE Innovation Briefing
Research and educational projects:
With Salford University, Sheffield University, Manchester University, Newcastle University and University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN). Dr Basu is the convenor and faculty in BSPRM SIGAM Advanced Prosthetic and Amputee Rehabilitation Course at Stanmore and Manchester since 2024. He is one of the major contributors for BSRM Amputee and Prosthetic Rehabilitation Standards and Guidelines document 2015 (published in 2018).
Ruby was injured in August 2021 when she was hit by a car whilst shopping with her baby, Leon. Ruby sustained severe orthopaedic injuries, resulting in her right leg needing to be amputated and needing to wear an external fixator on her left leg for nearly a year.
Thanks to support from the major trauma unit at Aintree at Day One, intensive rehabilitation, and Ruby’s own drive and determination, she has made an amazing recovery and will be speaking at the conference about her journey.
Mike Howarth suffered a life changing upper limb amputation and brain injury when he was knocked from his motorbike on August 2nd 2019. He was an experienced motorcyclist and had ridden for over 30 years.
His injuries included the traumatic amputation of his left arm, a brain injury, fractured femurs, fractured ribs, fractured collarbone, fractured shoulder blade, Brachial plexus injury and a fractured spine.
Prior to his accident, Mike had built up a successful business and was working as a Management Consultant, a job which he loved and enables him to travel the world.
He lives in Sheffield with his wife Helen and their two children.