Orthopedic device is getting support

Injured Hoopfest participants can roll themselves to the next court this weekend using a product made by a Spokane company that’s become a hit with area doctors and therapists.

Called the RollerAid, the patent-pending device is produced by Spokane-based Therapeutic Dimensions, Inc.

At least four RollerAids will be available for free use during Hoopfest, said Nigel Davey, the president of the RollerAid division of Therapeutic Dimensions. They’ll be at the Premera tents near the carrousel in Riverfront Park, Davey said.

The four-wheeled product is officially called an orthopedic leg-support scooter, and it’s designed for below-the-knee injuries. It resembles a walker, with an added flat platform. A person rests their knee on the platform and then pushes the scooter along.

The RollerAid division, launched more than a year ago, acquired the rights to the scooter from a Cheney woman, Heather Stone, who first developed it.

In the early 1990s, Stone suffered a severe ankle injury that forced her to go through extensive surgery and rehabilitation. She discovered she fared poorly on crutches, and her job made using a wheelchair impractical.

The experience led to her design the first RollerAid. She started a company that manufactured the product until she sold the idea to Therapeutic Dimensions several years ago.

Therapeutic Dimensions and RollerAid CEO Rob Allen now pays a royalty to Stone for every RollerAid sold or rented.

The scooter has hand and foot brakes and swiveling front casters for ease of turning, and can handle people weighing up to 350 pounds, said Davey.

RollerAids sell for about $625, but most patients rent the units from medical equipment providers for $20 to $45 per week, depending on insurance coverage, according to a RollerAid press release.

The company also refurbishes units for resale, Davey said.

“We’ve sold between 200 and 300 units so far,” said Allen.

Local physicians and physical therapists have found the RollerAid a helpful option for people with injuries below the knee, he added. Research shows some injuries heal faster when patients keep weight off an injured limb, according to Davey.

A Seattle clinic recently purchased 47 RollerAids. And about 20 patients at Spokane’s Rockwood Clinic have used the device, said Davey.

“In addition to letting people move around, it lets people work and deal with people upright, so they can look people in the eye while using the RollerAid,” said Davey. “We’ve found people tend to feel more positive and help them feel good” during rehabilitation, he said.

Davey first heard about the product when he was working at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute, which has been helping Therapeutic Dimensions commercialize the scooter.

SIRTI’s main contribution to date has been helping the company emphasize rentals as opposed to sales, Allen said.

After leaving SIRTI last year, Davey decided to join forces with Allen and help the company grow. In the past year, the RollerAid division has added three full-time jobs, he said. Therapeutic Dimensions has about a dozen workers at its north Spokane office.