When Adam Cutshall was in his mid 20s, he was building a mini golf course for his when a bit of carelessness with power tools caused an injury to his pinky finger which was ultimately amputated. Now 47, Adam has been repeatedly denied insurance over the years to get a prosthetic finger, which can cost up to $20,000 if paid out of pocket. As a last resort, Adam decided to get help from social media and a Good Samaritan offered to help.

‘I’m an amputee and I don’t have insurance that will cover a prosthesis. Would someone print one for me?'”

69 year old Paul Hodara developed interest in 3D printing back in 2020. When he saw Adam’s post on Reddit, he offered help. Paul did mention to Adam that he has no background in medicine or prosthetics but he would give it a shot. Then began a journey they took together – designing a model, looking at revisions every week, ands ultimately creating a prototype that worked well for Adam. They continued to work on another 20 prototypes till they agreed on a final version.

The new pinky prosthetic has had a profound affect on Adam. Not only was he able to type again and do other things with that new finger, he felt whole after 25 years of not feeling so. For the first time in so long, he was able to curl his fingers and that to him, was a great experience.

Paul didn’t charge Adam because he used this opportunity to learn about 3d printed prosthetics. He sees a lot of potential in 3D printing for prosthetics and has started partnering with other companies to created assistive devices for disabled people, especially those who cannot afford medical supplies.

Paul has posted several videos on his instagram showing his journey over the last few months with the prototypes. Make sure to check them out!

Source: People

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