The season premiere of NBC's hit TV show "ER" which aired Thursday, September 25, featured the Utah Arm prosthesis made by Motion Control Inc., Salt Lake City, Utah. Fans of the show will recall that last season, Chief Surgeon Dr. Robert Romano, played by actor Paul McCrane, lost his arm in a helicopter accident. He and some of the other staff were on the roof tending to patients who were being transported via life-flight helicopter to another hospital. Dr. Romano stepped too close to the helicopter blades and lost his arm above the elbow.
His co-workers recovered the severed arm and surgeons were able to reattach it, but as is the case with many real-life amputees, the replantation surgery was unsuccessful. He faced infections, phantom pain, and slowly lost function until finally at the end of last season, his arm was re-amputated.
ER's ninth fall season will feature Dr. Romano exploring prosthetic options, facing insurance challenges, and being fit with the Utah Arm. ER has not divulged the exact story line, but the writers of the show interviewed Motion Control staff, amputees, and several prosthetic arm specialists in order to portray the process an amputee might go through as realistically as possible. "We are pleased to see a show with such high visibility taking on this sensitive topic and hope it will raise awareness of the challenges that real amputees face every day," said Joanna Rendi-MacDonald, Motion Control marketing coordinator.
