In this issue, O&P News poses five questions to Jeffrey M. Brandt, CPO. Brandt is the founder and chief executive officer of Ability Orthotics and Prosthetics Inc.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1995, Brandt enrolled and completed the prosthetics technician program at Spokane Falls Community College in Spokane, Wash., and became a certified technician. He spent the next 3 years as an O&P technician, working for two privately owned facilities in Fairfax, Va., and Philadelphia.
In 1999, Brandt graduated from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine’s Orthotic and Prosthetic Program. He completed his orthotic residency at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where he specialized in cerebral palsy and cerebral vascular accident patients. He also participated in a weekly pediatric scoliosis clinic at the Children’s Hospital in Chicago. As a student, Brandt was awarded the Gunther Gehl Scholarship by the Midwest Chapter of the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists (AAOP).
Brandt completed a prosthetics residency in Wilmington, Del., where he serviced primarily adult, lower limb amputees and participated in pediatric prosthetic clinics at the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Children’s Hospital. Brandt co-founded Kinetic Revolutions in 2010.
Brandt is a member of the AAOP and the American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association (AOPA). He is active in AOPA’s Political Action Committee, which serves to address key legislative issues on Capitol Hill, among other key political initiatives.
He is a member of the O&P News Editorial Board and several industry advisory boards, and is a member of the O&P News 175.
O&P News: What are your hobbies outside of work?
Brandt: I love to run. I have been running both competitively and for leisure since I was 16 years old. I love to run while on trips or vacation, as it is a great way to stay in shape and get to know the area you are visiting. I also enjoy the science of weather — I guess you could call me a weather enthusiast. I enjoy all types of music and proudly root for the Washington Redskins football team. Being from Washington, D.C., I bleed burgundy and gold.
O&P News: What was the defining moment that led you to your field?
Brandt: I volunteered at a HealthSouth [rehabilitation hospital] that had an O&P department while in college, and during my first visit, realized this profession had the perfect mix of art, science and psychology. It had both white- and blue-collar elements and there were business opportunities to grow a practice. It seemed ripe for technology.
O&P News: What area of research in O&P most interests you right now?
Brandt: Without a doubt — validated outcome measures. I am interested in accelerating the profession by obtaining validated outcomes measures in which to measure, quantitatively, every device type we fit as prosthetists/orthotists.
O&P News: Have you been fortunate enough to witness or to have been part of medical history in the making?
Brandt: When my now-wife and I were dating, she worked on the Human Genome Project in Rockville, Md., sequencing DNA as part of mapping the human genome.
O&P News: What is up next for you?
Brandt: I am enjoying the daily challenges of growing an O&P company and look forward to not only my continued growth and maturation as an executive, but also the company’s for the foreseeable future. I want to continue to make sure I am the best father and husband I can be and provide my family with experiences. I also have many business ideas floating around in my head.
- For more information:
- Jeffrey M. Brandt, CPO, can be reached at jeff.brandt@abilitypo.com.
Disclosure: Brandt reports no relevant financial disclosures.
