NORTHWEST
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
A helping hand
East Oregonian
Astoria boy is first to receive a 3-D-printed
prosthetic arm from an Oregon hospital
“There’s this huge
need for children who
have congenital limb
loss. It doesn’t make
sense to build them
an expensive device
they’ll grow out of in
one to two years.”
By EDWARD STRATTON
EO Media Group
PORTLAND — Jude Rochon
sat patiently in Dr. Albert Chi’s
office at Oregon Health & Science
University Thursday morning while
the prosthetics expert performed
surgery on Jude’s right hand and
forearm with scissors, metal snaps
and a lighter.
The 6-year-old Astoria boy, who
was born without a right forearm
and hand, recently became the first
patient to receive 3-D-printed pros-
thetics from an Oregon hospital,
part of Chi’s quest to help provide
low-cost, upper-body limbs.
The two prosthetics he received
for free from Chi, one with the hand
open and another with the hand
closed, are made from 20 to 30
3-D-printed biodegradable plastic
parts, colored orange and black for
Jude’s favorite college team, the
Oregon State Beavers. Each cost
about $50 in materials.
The arms are connected by
a nylon harness on Jude’s left
shoulder. When he reaches with his
upper-right arm forward, a pulley
system opens or closes the hand,
depending on which prosthetic
he’s wearing. The elbows have
full range of motion, along with a
rotating wrist.
After being fitted for an
improved harness on his closed
hand and cupping a can of San
Pellegrino Thursday, Jude shook
the hands of older brother Sawyer,
father Mike, doctor’s assistant Isaac
Womack and Chi.
A hand up
Jude, who practices about an
hour a day with his new arms, is
short on words about how the pros-
thetics will affect his life. He used
one of the prosthetics last week
to ride a scooter gifted by OHSU
down the hall.
“This has helped me with
writing,” Jude said, adding his
new arm helps hold papers while
he writes with his left hand. Asked
what the hands might now enable
him to do, Jude answered excitedly,
“Wrap presents.”
Jude is the youngest child of
Alivia and Mike Rochon, along
with Sawyer and sister Mia. The
couple adopted Jude from a special
needs group in Shanghai when he
was a year old.
Page 9A
— Dr. Albert Chi
Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian
Jude Rochon, right, clutches a juice box in his new prosthetic, while being fitted for a new harness by
Dr. Albert Chi, left, and assistant Isaac Womack.
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
LEFT: Jude Rochon demonstrates how he can grasp items with his new 3D-printed prosthetic arm.
Rochon can open and close the hand with the aid of a special harness he wears. RIGHT: Jude’s
mother, Alivia Rochon, helps adjust the prosthetic arm that works in conjunction with a harness that
helps him control the hand.
Alivia said she initially wondered
what she should do to accommodate
Jude’s disability, but he has always
found a way to get things done; be it
riding a bike and playing on his youth
baseball team to writing and tying his
shoes. But Jude recently was bullied
by another child, she said, which
sapped his confidence and led them
to start looking into prosthetics.
“It’s hard to see your child lose
that confidence,” she said. “In addi-
tion to Dr. Chi giving this to Jude
to help him physically, what we’ve
already seen in him emotionally
and in his confidence, it’s already
helped him so much.”
Alivia’s sister, who works at
OHSU, connected the family with
Chi, a trauma surgeon, professor
and nationally renowned expert in
prosthetics, who relocated last year
from Johns Hopkins University.
By the time Jude received his first
prosthetic last week, he and his
family were being interviewed by
at least two television stations and
The Oregonian.
“We don’t like the interviews,
and the TV, and the hoopla,” Mike
said. “It’s for Jude. But it’s sure
comforting when you go up there
and you realize this guy (Chi) is all
about Jude and this tool.”
Enabling the Future
Chi is a member of Enabling the
Future, a global network of volun-
teers using 3-D printers to create
free prosthetic tools.
“There’s this huge need for
children who have congenital limb
loss,” Chi said. “It doesn’t make
sense to build them an expensive
device they’ll grow out of in one to
two years.”
Chi said the budget prosthetics
are meant more as tools than fully
functional limbs, which can cost
hundreds of thousands of dollars.
He is developing more advanced
3-D-printed prosthetics incorpo-
rating electronics, and hopes to
have a new one available for Jude
in the coming year.
At Johns Hopkins, Chi was the
medical director of the targeted
muscle reinnervation program,
where doctors have reassigned
nerves so amputees can move
prosthetics by merely thinking
about which actions they want to
perform. At OHSU, he focuses on
improved motor control of pros-
thetics, including by eyesight.
Chi said his work in advanced
and budget prosthetics is equally
important to him.
“My goal is to really involve the
community,” he said. “Anyone in
need, I can build them something.
I’m hoping we can create a volun-
teer group, to provide this to anyone
in need. We can have printing clubs
in schools.”
He said anyone needing an upper
body prosthetic or wanting to help
make them can contact him directly
at chia@ohsu.edu
؏ EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY ؏
ENTER THE EAST
OREGONIAN’S
Part Time - Inside Salesperson
MAROON 5
Great work environment. Super awesome team. Good base pay PLUS
commissions. Retirement plan. Weekends off . Interested?
CONCERT TICKET
SWEEPSTAKES
We are looking for a motivated, self-confi dent individual to join our
inside sales team at East Oregonian in Pendleton.
Get a one-year subscription to the East Oregonian
(in print or online) for yourself or for someone you
love or extend your existing EO subscription for a
year at our special price of $150 (a 14% savings!) or
donate $150 to the EO’s Newspapers in Education
program and you’ll be entered into a drawing for
premium tickets to the Pendleton Whisky Music Fest
concert featuring Maroon 5 at the Pendleton
Round-Up Stadium on July 15!
CALL NOW TO ENTER: 800-522-0255 ext. 1 or stop by
our offi ce at 211 SE Byers Ave. in Pendleton, Monday
through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed on July 4).
GRAND PRIZE – $438 value
• Two VIP wristbands for access to the
sponsor’s building, with pre-party dinner
and open bar starting at 4:30 p.m.
• Two Premium Grandstand
We have an opening for a part time inside salesperson position.
No newspaper experience? No problem, as long as you understand
the importance of great customer service, working hard
and a desire to enjoy your job.
Could this be you?
We are seeking a dynamic salesperson to make prospecting phone
calls to potential customers and businesses of all types, service
existing accounts, be organized and have excellent computer and
communication skills. If you’ve been looking for the opportunity to excel
in a sales environment, this is it! The right candidate will be organized
with a high attention to detail, have a desire to learn and grow their skills
and work well in a team environment. Must be very accurate and detail
oriented plus have excellent customer service and communication skills.
Job qualifi cations include accuracy and speed when typing and spelling,
excellent organizational, phone and communication skills. No sales
experience required. Part-time, wage plus commission. Benefi ts include
Paid Time Off (PTO) and 401(k)/Roth 401(k) retirement plan.
concert tickets (Section G, Row C)
• One VIP parking pass for lot
next to Pendleton Convention Center
SECOND PRIZE – $312 value
• Three Premium Grandstand
concert tickets (Section G, Row C)
THIRD PRIZE – $312 value
• Three Premium Grandstand
concert tickets (Section G, Row D)
Deadline for entry: Monday, July 10 at 12 noon.
Winners will be drawn July 10 at 1 p.m. and contacted that day.
Winners will be announced on July 11 in the
East Oregonian and on the EO’s Facebook page.
No purchase required. One entry per person.
Sweepstakes open to residents of Oregon and
Washington age 21+ only. Complete rules can be found
at www.eastoregonian.com/eo/sweepstakesrules.
Send resume and letter of interest to EO Media Group,
PO Box 2048 • Salem, OR 97308-2048,
by fax to 503-371-2935 or e-mail hr@eomediagroup.com
Come work with us! We are an awesome team.