Anti Stigmatization

Son Invents Stroke Equipment So Mom Can Live Normal Life

March 12, 2006 | By Tony Brown | Bookmark and Share | 7 Comments

The American Stroke Association reports on a son who invents stroke equipment, like the adjustable thumb Froomsplint, so that mom can live a normal life. I had the opportunity to interview Mr. Robert Froom:

BRAIN BLOGGER (Tony): Greetings Bloggers. Today we welcome Robert Keith Froom to our anti-stigmatization forum. Hello Keith and welcome.

KEITH: Thank you, it’s great to speak with you.

BRAIN BLOGGER (Tony): Keith, we invited you here today because of some work that you are doing to help neurological patients overcome stigmatization. Tell us a little about that please.

KEITH: Well, It started when my mother had a Stroke and started to have problems with here hand and arm. I asked her doctors and therapist if there was anything they could do for her and it seemed there was some ways to help. We waited along time for a splint but the hospital made one out of a piece of foam and tape. It was a hassle but I would do it to help my mom. After a couple of days I realized this would not work. I came up with a splint in my garage that my mother could manage with here unaffected arm. The therapist and doctor thought it was great. I also made some devices to help my mother support her arm so it would not just hang there, that made her shoulder feel much better. I incorporated these devices into my mother’s everyday living in her home, bathroom and office.

BRAIN BLOGGER (Tony): How might these accessories be used in an office environment to increase the neurological patient’s autonomy and hopefully decrease stigmatization by employers?

KEITH: My mother would like to sit and work on her computer, a device that allows her arm and the splint to rest next to the key board, this kept her arm from constantly hanging which gave her great pain at times. It also worked well for her to eat her meals or to read a book or work at the table. There is one that also assists while using the toilet and bathroom sink. My mom was even interviewed by the American Stroke Association which resulted in a feature story in this month’s edition titled “Uncurling a Hand.”

BRAIN BLOGGER (Tony): Wow! What an honor to have the support of the American Stroke Association. How do you feel about that?

KEITH: It is great to have the American Stroke Association so interested in the company that we have formed around this idea. I think it will really help get the word out about these new devices for others stroke survivors that might benefit from these devices as my mother did.

BRAIN BLOGGER (Tony): Keith, it looks like great things are in store for you and we wish you the best. Thanks for sharing your story with us.

Declaration: Tony Brown has since become an scientific advisory board member of R.K. Froom and Company

Tags: adjustable thumb, american stroke association, autonomy, brain, couple of days, doctors, everyday living, froom, greetings, hassle, key board, mom, neurological patients, office environment, splint, toilet

7 Comments

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Anonymous
April 23, 2006 | Permalink

Mr. Froom’s splint, as well as the other devices he spoke of in this forum ARE amazing. It is unfortunate that he would take credit for something he did not create.

While I can not speak on all of the devices he has patented, I can safely say that the splint, as well as all of the items pictured in the Stroke Connection article and on his own web site so closely resemble the patented splint and equipment created by Waleed Al Oboudi, OTR/L, that detecting a difference between the two is virtually impossible. Mr. Al Oboudi’s splint, as part of his Neuro-IFRAH model of rehab for patients with lesions at the level of the brainstem and above, has existed for several years. His web site address is Neuro-IFRAH.org

It is clear from this forum that Mr. Froom does not even have a clear idea of how or why this equipment works.

Shame on Brain Blogger and Stroke Connection Magazine for not being aware of these facts. And shame on Mr Froom for taking credit for work that does not appear to be his.

Tony Brown
April 25, 2006 | Permalink

Dear Anonymous,
As Program Coordinator for Brain Blogger and CEO of R.K. Froom Neurological Devices, I feel compelled to respond to your previous post. Regarding your concern of the FroomSplint’s originality, unfortunately as recently as April 24, 2006 our patent attorney Mr. David A. Belasco found no listing of a splint or any other patented invention by Mr. Oboudi in the data base of the United States Patent Office. You will however, find Mr. Froom’s patent listed under the reference number 6,949,077. Thank you.

Anonymous
May 04, 2006 | Permalink

Having a patent on an item does not connote authorship; this is why patents are challenged. Waleed Al-Oboudi is the creator of the hand paddle splint, and I would hazard a guess that Mr. Frooom is well aware of this fact. Taking credit for something he did not create is disingenous.

Other than Mr. Froom’s splint appearing to be constructed of inferior materials, and costing $5 more, I fail to see the difference between his splint and Mr. Al-Oboudi’s.

For those interested in seeing the similarities, go to Neuro-ifrahproducts.com. For those who may believe that this is competitive advertising, it is not. Mr. Al-Oboudi gave the orthotic fabrication rights for his splints to one company. He does not personally see one dime of profit from the sale of any of his orthotics, in order to erradicate personal interest in the sale of these orthotics.

chris
September 09, 2006 | Permalink

What did the “foam splint” that was sent home with you look like? If it looked like the splint you “invented” then you cannot claim to have invented this splint design. That would be akin to making a gun out of plastic, and then claiming to have invented the gun.

Also, it is downright irresponsible to market this splint to those who have suffered a spinal cord injury. It is clear you do not know much about SCIs, otherwise you would be aware that this splint design would destroy the tenodesis function in the hand of someone with quadraplegia. Al-Oboudi’s hand paddle splint was never disigned for such a patient.

Dual Diagnosis
September 16, 2006 | Permalink

Many people who have had strokes use a cane when walking. For people with balancing problems, special canes with three or four “feet” are available.

Robert Froom
May 28, 2007 | Permalink

Healthcare Pioneer Wins Battle To Protect Mother And Patent
Los Angeles, CA â€“ (5/21/07) On May 15, 2007 the Los Angeles Supreme Court dismissed a law suit filed against R.K. Froom and Company, Inc., by Mr. Waleed Al-Oboudi and Amelia Chang of La Jolla, California-based Neuro-IFRAH Products. Case No. BC363083, alleging that Robert Keith Froom, founder and chief inventor at R.K. Froom & Company, Inc., together with his mother, Carol Froom engaged in a â€œconspiracyâ€? to wrongfully appropriate the inventions of Waleed Al-Oboudi and to illegally market the Froomsplintâ„¢, a rehabilitation device that prevents claw hand and turns everyday tasks into extended therapy sessions. R. K. Froom & Company previously obtained a United States Patent for the Froomsplintâ„¢, which was developed by Mr. Froom.

R. K. Froom & Company looks forward to continuing its service to the rehabilitation community. The company is committed to making the Froomsplintâ„¢ widely available to healthcare and rehabilitation institutions nationwide.

Press Contact:
Michael A. Zuk
Attorney At Law
HERZFELD & RUBIN, LLP
(310) 533- 0451
(310) 553- 0648

OT
April 10, 2008 | Permalink

Froom is a fraud. These concepts were ripped off from Waleed al-Oboudi after he help this guy’s Mom. As was generally stated in the first response.
Just because Froom is “not-guilty” in court doesn’t mean you didn’t exploit Waleed.