Hanger, Inc. (formerly Hanger Orthopedic Group, Inc.) is a leading national provider of products and services that assist in enhancing or restoring the physical capabilities of patients with disabilities or injuries that is headquartered in Austin, Texas (formerly Bethesda, Maryland). The company provides orthotic and prosthetic (O&P) services, distributes O&P devices and components, manages O&P networks, and provides therapeutic solutions to patients and businesses in acute, post-acute, and clinical settings. Hanger, Inc. operates through two segments: Patient Care and Products & Services.
The primary division of Hanger, Inc.'s Patient Care segment is Hanger Clinic (formerly Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics), which specializes in the design, fabrication, and delivery of custom O&P devices through 677 patient care clinics, with 109 satellite locations in 44 states, as well as the District of Columbia as of September 30, 2018.[2] According to the company's 2017 annual report, the patient care market for prosthetic and orthotic services in the United States is estimated at $4 billion annually. Hanger Clinic represents about 20 percent of this market. The company employs approximately 4,600 people, including about 1,500 prosthetic and orthotic practitioners.[3]
Aron Ralston a mountain climber who became famous in May 2003, when he amputated his lower right arm with a dull knife in order to free himself from a fallen boulder
A notable non-human Hanger patient is Winter, a bottlenose dolphin (the main attraction at Clearwater Marine Aquarium) notable for her prosthetic tail (designed and manufactured by Hanger)
A remark in Ambrose Bierce's postwar memoir that "We shot off a Confederate leg at Philippi" refers to Hanger.[6] At 18 years of age, Hanger joined the Confederate cavalry at Philippi, Virginia, on June 2, 1861. One day later, during the Battle of Philippi, while Hanger was sheltering inside a stable with the rest of the Churchville (Virginia) Cavalry when the "first solid Union cannon shot of the war" bounced into the stable and struck his leg. The injury required amputation of Hanger's leg above the knee; he underwent the first battlefield amputation of the war, at the hands of Union surgeons.[6] Hanger returned to his parents’ home to recuperate wearing a prosthesis that was essentially a wooden peg. His dissatisfaction with the fit and function of the limb replacement led Hanger to design and construct a new prosthesis from whittled barrel staves, rubber and wood, with hinges at the knee and foot. The device worked well, and the state legislature commissioned him to manufacture the “Hanger Limb” for other wounded soldiers.[7]
Manufacturing operations for J.E. Hanger, Inc., were established in the cities of Staunton and Richmond. Hanger was awarded his first patent for an artificial limb, number 155, from the Confederate Patent Office on March 23, 1863.[8] Over the years Hanger developed and patented additional products for veterans and other amputees.
In 1906, Hanger moved the company’s headquarters to Washington, DC. In 1915, he traveled to Europe to help World War I amputees and to learn from European prosthetists.
Hanger’s five sons were active in operating the family business. In 1915, they divided J.E. Hanger, Inc., into four separate companies, with each operating in a different region of the country. At the time of Hanger’s death in 1919, the companies had branches in Atlanta, St. Louis, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, London and Paris.[7]
In the years leading up to World War II, there was little significant advancement in the U.S. prosthetics industry. The new wave of amputee veterans demanded better prosthetic options, and in 1946, the federal government began providing funds for research and development in prosthetics. J.E. Hanger, Inc., was able to introduce new prosthetic socket designs made from improved materials such as thermosetting resins.
Around this time, the orthotics industry sought to combine with the prosthetics industry. In 1950, the American Orthotics and Prosthetics Association was formed, which brought a new emphasis on the education and certification of clinical practitioners. By the mid 1950s, J.E.Hanger, Inc., had added orthotic services to its business, and had expanded to 50 offices in the U.S. and 25 in Europe.[9]
The 1960s and 1970s held relatively few technological improvements, but the 1980s marked the beginning of a period of advanced technological development that continues to the present day. In 1986, Sequel Corporation, a Colorado-based communications company, sold off its cellular phone business and began investing in the orthotics and prosthetics industry. In 1989, Sequel bought J. E. Hanger, Inc., of Washington, DC. At the time of purchase, J. E. Hanger, Inc., was an $8 million business with offices in 11 cities and eight states. Soon after, Sequel changed the name of the company to Hanger Orthopedic Group. Ivan Sabel, president and chief operating officer, was focused on centralizing the design and manufacturing of the company's prosthetic and orthotic devices and distributing them nationally.[9]
In 1996, the company bought J. E. Hanger, Inc., of Georgia. This acquisition doubled the size of the company, which now had 175 patient care centers, six distribution sites, four manufacturing plants and 1,000 employees in 30 states. Hanger continued purchasing small companies and by 1998, was operating 256 patient care centers. In 1999, Hanger Orthopedic Group bought its biggest competitor and the industry leader, the orthotics and prosthetics division of NovaCare. This added an additional 369 patient care centers. Following the NovaCare acquisition, the company continued to expand its corporate holdings with related specialty businesses. In 1999, Fortune Magazine ranked Hanger Orthopedic Group as 79th on its list of One Hundred Fastest-Growing Companies.[10]
In October 2022, Patient Square Capital, LP. acquired Hanger, Inc.[11]
Subsidiaries
Hanger, Inc. operates seven business lines within two segments: Patient Care and Products & Services.
Hanger, Inc.'s Patient Care segment comprises Hanger Clinic and Linkia.
Linkia is a network management company that works exclusively with the orthotics and prosthetics industry.
Its Products & Services segment includes Accelerated Care Plus,Hanger Fabrication Network (formerly National Labs), Innovative Neurotronics,Southern Prosthetic Supply (SPS), and SureFit.
Southern Prosthetic Supply has distribution centers in five states, distributing more than 400,000 products offerings. Through its SureFit subsidiary, SPS manufactures and sells therapeutic footwear for diabetic patients in the podiatric market. Through Hanger Fabrication Network, it is a fabricator of O&P devices both for out-patient care clinics and competitor clinics.
Innovative Neurotronics, Inc., specializes in the development and commercialization of emerging neuromuscular technologies. Neuromuscular refers to the use of electrical stimulation to improve the functionality of an impaired extremity.
Research
Employees of the company are editors and contributing authors of textbooks such as Prosthetics and Patient Management: A Comprehensive Clinical Approach,[12]Functional Restoration of Adults and Children with Upper Extremity Amputation,[13] and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Principles and Practice.[14]
Legal problems
In 2004, allegations of billing fraud were made against the company when an office administrator reported Hanger employees in New York for forging prescriptions for non-existent patients.[15] A class action lawsuit was brought against Hanger for allegedly using the fraud to artificially raise stock prices.[16] Although 14 offices were named in the lawsuit, Hanger said that only one location was involved in the fraud.[17]
Related Research Articles
Amputation is the removal of a limb by trauma, medical illness, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventive surgery for such problems. A special case is that of congenital amputation, a congenital disorder, where fetal limbs have been cut off by constrictive bands. In some countries, amputation is currently used to punish people who commit crimes. Amputation has also been used as a tactic in war and acts of terrorism; it may also occur as a war injury. In some cultures and religions, minor amputations or mutilations are considered a ritual accomplishment. When done by a person, the person executing the amputation is an amputator. The oldest evidence of this practice comes from a skeleton found buried in Liang Tebo cave, East Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo dating back to at least 31,000 years ago, where it was done when the amputee was a young child.
In medicine, a prosthesis, or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through trauma, disease, or a condition present at birth. Prostheses are intended to restore the normal functions of the missing body part. Amputee rehabilitation is primarily coordinated by a physiatrist as part of an inter-disciplinary team consisting of physiatrists, prosthetists, nurses, physical therapists, and occupational therapists. Prostheses can be created by hand or with computer-aided design (CAD), a software interface that helps creators design and analyze the creation with computer-generated 2-D and 3-D graphics as well as analysis and optimization tools.
The Battle of Philippi formed part of the Western Virginia Campaign of the American Civil War and was fought in and around Philippi, Virginia, on June 3, 1861. A Union victory, it was the first organized land action of the war, though generally viewed as a skirmish rather than a battle. However, the Northern press celebrated it as an epic triumph and this encouraged Congress to call for the drive on Richmond that ended with the Union defeat at First Bull Run in July. It brought overnight fame to Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan and was notable for the first battlefield amputations. As the first of a series of victories that pushed Confederate forces out of northwest Virginia, it strengthened the Union government in exile that would soon create the new state of West Virginia.
A pegleg is a prosthesis, or artificial limb, fitted to the remaining stump of a human leg. Its use dates to antiquity.
A Prosthetist and Orthotist, as defined by The World Health Organization, is a healthcare professional with overall responsibly of Prosthetics & Orthotics treatment, who can supervise and mentor the practice of other personnel. They are clinicians trained to assess the needs of the user, prescribe treatment, determine the precise technical specifications of prosthesis and Orthosis, take measurements and image of body segments, prepare model of the evaluation, fit devices and evaluate treatment outcome.
An orthotist is a healthcare professional who specializes in the provision of orthoses. An orthotist has an overall responsibly of orthotics treatment, who can supervise and mentor the practice of other personnel. They are clinicians trained to assess the needs of the user, prescribe treatment, determine the precise technical specifications of orthotic devices, take measurements and image of body segments, prepare model of the evaluation, fit devices and evaluate treatment outcome. In the United States, orthotists work by prescription from a licensed healthcare provider. Physical therapists are not legally authorized to prescribe orthoses in the U.S. In the U.K., orthotists will often accept open referrals for orthotic assessment without a specific prescription from doctors or other healthcare professionals.
James Foort was a Canadian inventor, artist, and innovator in the field of prosthetic limbs.
Therdchai Jivacate is a Thai orthopedic surgeon and inventor known for his humanitarian activities in providing free prosthetic limbs to impoverished amputees, and for his development of techniques allowing low-cost, high-quality prostheses to be made from local materials. The activities of the Prostheses Foundation, which he founded in 1992 under royal sponsorship from the Princess Mother Srinagarindra, have expanded beyond the borders of Thailand to Malaysia, Laos, and Burma. Jivacate has established Thailand's first and only educational institution of occupational therapy at Chiang Mai University. He has also created an educational programme for children suffering from chronic diseases at Maharaj Hospital in Nakhon Ratchasima. In 2008, he was given the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service.
Össur hf. is a company based in Iceland that develops, manufactures and sells non-invasive equipment for orthopaedics, including bracing and support products, compression therapy, and prosthetics. The company is headquartered in Reykjavík, with offices in the Americas, Europe, and Asia, and distributors in other markets.
Swami Vivekanand National Institute of Rehabilitation Training and Research is an autonomous institute functioning under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment of India. It is located in Olatpur, 30 km from Cuttack.
James Edward Hanger was a Confederate States Army veteran of the American Civil War, a prosthetist and a businessman. It is reported that he became the first amputee of the war after being struck in the leg by a cannonball. Hanger subsequently designed and created his own prosthesis, then went on to found a prosthetic company that continues in business today.
Pet orthotics refers to the use of orthotics for pets. Orthotics is an allied health care field concerned with the design, development, fitting, and manufacture of orthoses. Orthoses, sometimes called braces or splints, are devices that support or correct musculoskeletal deformities and/or abnormalities of the body.
Heath Calhoun is an American alpine skier and veteran of the United States Army, who achieved the rank of staff sergeant. A double-leg amputee due to injuries received in the Iraq War, Calhoun uses a sit-ski in competitions.
Orthotics is a medical specialty that focuses on the design and application of orthoses, or braces. An orthosis is "an externally applied device used to influence the structural and functional characteristics of the neuromuscular and skeletal system".
Radiometer is a Danish multinational company which develops, manufactures and markets solutions for blood sampling, blood gas analysis, transcutaneous monitoring, immunoassay testing and the related IT management systems. The company was founded in 1935 in Copenhagen, Denmark by Børge Aagaard Nielsen and Carl Schrøder. It has over 3,200 employees and direct representation in more than 32 countries. Corporate headquarters remain in Copenhagen.
Kevin Carroll is an Irish prosthetist, researcher, educator, and author. He is the Vice-President of Prosthetics for Hanger Clinic, a prosthetics and orthotics provider in the United States.
Salts Healthcare is one of the UK's oldest family-run manufacturing companies, based in Aston, Birmingham. It manufactures ostomy and orthotic products. Salts Healthcare has a network of customer care centres that provide home delivery of all stoma and incontinence products. These centres also provide advisors and stoma care nurses to support their prescription customers.
The Osseointegration Group of Australia is an organisation founded by Sydney orthopedic surgeon and osseointegration specialist Dr Munjed Al Muderis. The Osseointegration Group of Australia Team is made up of specialists from various fields including prosthetics, physio, rehabilitation, anesthesia and psychology.
Gait deviations are nominally referred to as any variation of standard human gait, typically manifesting as a coping mechanism in response to an anatomical impairment. Lower-limb amputees are unable to maintain the characteristic walking patterns of an able-bodied individual due to the removal of some portion of the impaired leg. Without the anatomical structure and neuromechanical control of the removed leg segment, amputees must use alternative compensatory strategies to walk efficiently. Prosthetic limbs provide support to the user and more advanced models attempt to mimic the function of the missing anatomy, including biomechanically controlled ankle and knee joints. However, amputees still display quantifiable differences in many measures of ambulation when compared to able-bodied individuals. Several common observations are whole-body movements, slower and wider steps, shorter strides, and increased sway.
Jeff Bourns is an American amputee tennis player who helped pioneer the growth and development of Adaptive Standing Tennis.
1 2 Edward L. Lach (2005). "Hanger, James Edward". In Mark C. Carnes (ed.). American National Biography Supplement 2 (reprinted.). Oxford University Press. p.224. ISBN0195222024.
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