Prosthetist Guidance

To ensure our practice remains evidence-based and cost effective, our Best Practice and Clinical Support Groups evaluate products and components, provide technical support to peers and develop evidence-based guidelines for best-practice treatment.

Steeper Best Practice Group

This group of experienced clinicians and prosthetists developed the Best Practice Guidelines - comprehensive, evidence-based guidelines, to provide consistent information to enable clinicians to make appropriate choices for their patients, and ultimately, to reduce national variations in prescriptions in lower limb prosthetic treatment.

By using the renowned Delphi method, the BPG pooled a consensus of professional opinion for each guideline statement and produced recommendations that are supported either by medical evidence, professional recommendation, or both. The recommendations cover prescription of socket type, casting method and prescription of generic hardware.

The Best Practice Guidelines have been reviewed and endorsed by the British Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Amputee Rehabilitation (BACPAR); leading specialists in the production of treatment guidelines in prosthetic rehabilitation.

Download BPG

Steeper Clinical Support Group

All products within the lower limb prosthetics portfolio have been evaluated by the Clinical Support Group (CSG), prior to being offered to the UK market through Steeper.

Through the Clinical Support Manual, the CSG provides clinical evidence to support the use of lower limb prosthetic products provided by Steeper, defining the most appropriate application of each and providing any information to ensure that the product is used correctly, safely and effectively.

Evidence is gathered by means of clinical evaluations. By using the manufacturer’s suggested application of the product, patients are selected and the product fitted and trialled for a period of time, generally as part of their ongoing prosthetic care. The comments of both patients and prosthetists at several stages in the trial are gathered regarding the effectiveness of the prosthetic product, any problems encountered, the perceived benefits or shortcomings in comparison with their current prosthesis and their general satisfaction with the product.

The group then produces a Clinical Evaluation Summary, with clear indications and contraindications for the use of the product providing additional information to allow clinicians to make much more informed choices.