Danish engineer develops prostheses for Ukrainian veterans
«Amputation should not be a sentence», - says Danish engineer Lasse Werner Madsen, who founded the «Levitate» company to develop prosthetics. He helps Ukrainian veterans regain movement and independence.
He told about his path, cooperation with Ukraine and support for the military in a comment to a correspondent of Ukrinform.
Madsen lost his right leg above the knee when he was a teenager - more than 20 years ago, when he was 14. At that time, active prostheses were just emerging and were virtually unavailable, so he used an improvised device assembled by a prosthetist. Due to the lack of modern solutions and support from like-minded people, as well as the desire to return to sports, in particular gymnastics, the future engineer decided to focus on creating his own technological solutions.
Later, with about ten years of engineering experience, Lasse spent two years developing his first prosthetic product in collaboration with leading experts from the Technical University of Denmark. Today, the company has its own research and development team working on the design and improvement of prostheses, and the founder himself, as CEO, is directly involved in this process.
According to Madsen, the company's mission is to ensure that amputee survivors receive support in the early stages of rehabilitation, are able to move actively and return to full professional and social activities. He emphasises that amputation should not be a sentence.
Because the cost of such equipment is high, the company cooperates with charities and international organisations. Madsen personally looks for funding abroad and sends the prostheses to Ukraine. As of today, more than a thousand Ukrainians have received them.
Cooperation with Ukraine began after requests for help. The first visits took place in Lviv, in particular to one of the hospitals where hundreds of amputees were treated. According to the engineer, when the Ukrainians saw how he moved around with his prosthesis and the opportunities it provided, he was allowed to communicate with patients in the wards. He answered questions about returning to work, sports, and everyday life, and then decided to continue working directly in Ukraine.
Now the company plans to open its own office in Ukraine and create new jobs for both Ukrainian and foreign specialists, including veterans. Some employees have already moved to Ukraine.
Among the stories that impressed him the most, he recalls the story of a Ukrainian soldier he met at the conference. The veteran said that during intense shelling, he was able to move quickly and escape thanks to a prosthesis from a Danish company.
Aside from everyday life, Ukrainians with Madsen prostheses also participate in public events. This year, they took to the catwalk at Ukrainian Fashion Week.
Photo: Ukrinform correspondent.
