Motor man calls on industry to support amputees

Well-known motor industry figure Seamus Ryan, former General Manager of Ballsbridge Motors now retired, is calling on colleagues in the motor industry to give their support to the Amputee Ireland organisation and their call that Government should preserve the entitlements due to amputees, despite the difficult economic climate that prevails.

Seamus, himself an amputee, states that there are some 4,000 amputees in Ireland at present. "In my time in the motor industry, amputees represented a small but important niche market whose needs I was happy to supply, little knowing that, one day, I also would be one of them."

Against this backdrop, and in light of the increasing number of diabetics now in Ireland for whom the risk of amputation is an ever present reality, Seamus believes that the motor industry can have an important role to play in influencing Government and politicians generally. In this regards, focus is being placed on the issue next weekend with events to mark European Limb Loss Day on 3 December.

Amputees face a host of daily challenges including personal mobility, dexterity, delays in access to healthcare and decreased employment options. Support charity Amputee Disability Federation Ireland (Amputee Ireland) welcomes European Limb Loss Day amid calls for better care structures and free prosthetics for amputees. Visit www.amputee.ie