Prosthetic Patient Stories

A high-energy, cut-to-the-chase problem solver, Rubio was active as trial advocate, litigator and negotiator on behalf of clients at his law practice in Upper Darby, PA. He was physically active, too, with his favorite activities including rock climbing, skydiving, whitewater rafting, and cycling. Just-married (17 days), he was on his way to his obstetrician/gynecologist wife’s graduation ceremony when everything changed in an instant: A negligent driver strayed from her lane and crashed into Rubio’s motorcycle (then into another car and the guardrail), sending him airborne. He sustained multiple serious injuries that left him in a coma for 13 days, awakening with virtually no memory of the accident or its aftermath.

It’s a possibility most of us can’t even begin to imagine: You go to bed feeling unwell, and awaken 2 ½ months later to discover that all four of your limbs have been amputated: that your life as an active husband, parent, coach and neighbor is forever changed.

This is the reality that faced 36-year-old Clark Deardorff of Harleysville, Pennsylvania, when he regained awareness in September 2017 at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, following an induced coma.

Look in the dictionary under ‘precocious’ and you’ll probably find Isabella DiLeggi’s picture. Born in June 2008 as a forearm-level congenital amputee (a condition known as symbrachydactyly), she grasps life more enthusiastically and successfully with one hand than many 10-year-olds do with two.

…and Bill McConnell doesn’t often miss what he aims at! A gun enthusiast and longtime hunter, he refused to allow severe damage to his right leg to stand in the way of doing the things he loves. And now, after a transtibial (below-the-knee) amputation and a new prosthetic Proprio Foot, he’s picking up the pace in pursuing his favorite activities.

Read the inspiring story of Megan Yocum, a Lawall patient and amputee who overcame significant mobility challenges with the help of our experienced team of certified prosthetists. Discover how our personalized care and support helped Megan achieve her goals and improve her quality of life. Visit our website to read Megan’s story and learn more about Lawall’s prosthetics and orthotics services.

You might say that Stephanie Elliott’s journey as an amputee has been illuminated and brightened by her past experiences—and by lessons she hadn’t been aware she was learning, until she needed them.

That journey began on Dec. 28, 2020, at the height of the pandemic. She arrived at the emergency room with her left leg dramatically swollen, due in part to diabetic complications. After a three-day battle, she lost the leg due to sepsis.

“It was sad, it was sudden; and because of the Covid lockdown, nobody could be with me at the hospital,” she remembers. “My daughter had to drop me off at the ER. My husband had to dial in to participate in the amputation discussion with the vascular surgeon.”