The four students in UHart’s Master of Science in Prosthetics and Orthotics program helped to fabricate and fit children and adult patients with prosthetic limbs.
Sierra Stout '25 and Jake Lieberstein '25 joined a multi-disciplinary team at AIC-CURE Children’s Hospital in Kijabe, Kenya. The team was comprised of prosthetists, therapists, and investigators. Also on the team were peer mentors—people with limb loss or limb difference, including three Paralympians.
For this year’s trip, which was made in partnership with the Limb Kind Foundation, the team specially fabricated five unique below-the-knee prosthetics, 3D printed in Boston. The prosthetics were hand-delivered to Nairobi by one of the team members, Grace Paglierani ’22, an MSPO alum who is now with the Hanger Clinic.
Stout says it was an incredible opportunity to work alongside an inspiring and dedicated team, which fabricated 51 prostheses in under 10 days. “This experience not only challenged and strengthened my clinical and technical skills, but also deeply shaped me into a more compassionate and capable clinician,” she says. “The impact it had on me was profound and I am eager for the chance to return and continue to make a difference.”
Meanwhile, Abigail Schwartz ’25 and Ian Riccielli ’25 went to Peru as part of a team from the organization Dreaming and Working Together. Professionals from the Hanger Clinic and Hartford HealthCare also participated. Together they fabricated, fit, and delivered prostheses for 60 patients, all upper and lower extremity amputees.
Stephen Charry ’10 M’13, applied assistant professor of prosthetics and orthotics, was the faculty advisor to the Peru team. He says he was thrilled to see the level of engagement and quality of care that UHart students delivered, as they acquire real-world experience in their chosen field.
“They were thrown into a scenario that was very foreign, fast-paced, and extremely hectic,” Charry says. “Both Ian and Abby represented themselves and the University of Hartford masterfully. They changed the lives of many patients, and this was a true testament to the future clinicians they will become.”
Duffy Felmlee ’12, associate program director of UHart’s MSPO program, works with both Dreaming and Working Together and the Limb Kind Foundation, and has been at the center of UHart’s commitment to helping those with limb loss and limb difference around the world. He says that effort will continue in 2026, with trips to Sri Lanka and Zambia, in addition to Kenya. Dreaming and Working Together is also planning another trip to Peru next year.
“Our MSPO students have demonstrated quality and competency in managing their patients, with faculty oversight, in a new environment with cultural, professional, and personal nuances,” Felmlee says.
Sierra Stout '25, Master of Science in Prosthetics and Orthotics studentThis experience not only challenged and strengthened my clinical and technical skills, but also deeply shaped me into a more compassionate and capable clinician.