HAC2 Field evaluation of the Agilis foot
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Around 80% population with disabilities lives in the low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs) and most lack access to prosthetic feet for high mobility, as the prices of current devices in the market lie far beyond the acceptable budget. Currently available prostheses like the SACH foot target low mobility users due to their basic design and focus on simplicity and robustness. To address this issue, EPFL and ICRC collaborated on the Innosuisse project to develop a prosthetic foot (Agilis) with advanced biomechanics for high mobility users. The initial prototype was tested in a pilot in Vietnam and the preliminary results were promising. With the proposed project, we aim to continue this successful collaboration for the evaluation of the functional performance and user acceptability of a newer version of the Agilis foot, before the ICRC launches it on the market. This evaluation will involve 200 amputees in Irak and Cambodia, with half of them fitted with an Agilis foot and others with a SACH foot. Participants from both groups will be evaluated six times using the Prosthesis Evaluation Questionnaire, 6 minutes Walking Test and Timed Up and Go test at the centers and thrice with a physical activity monitoring (PAM) of two weeks in real-world conditions. The participants will be equipped with wearable inertial sensors during the standardized tests and PAM and the overall protocol will last less than 12 months. Data from this study will be analyzed to understand how the Agilis foot improves the real-world ambulation of the users and whether this performance is better than SACH foot. More than 30 million people LMICs are in need of a prosthesis and this project can enable the Agilis foot to alleviate the suffering of these people.
As leader of the EPFL EssentialTech’s Humanitarian Division, Greg works at the interface of research and humanitarian action. He is leading several large-scale partnerships between EPFL and the ICRC (Engineering for Humanitarian Action), the UNHCR (The Geneva Technical Hub) and the Graduate Institute (The Future of Humanitarian Design). He is also developing executive trainings for humanitarian practitioners on the responsible use of technology in humanitarian setting, as well as about cybersecurity in the sector. Prior to working at EssentialTech, he led the Innovation Coordination at MSF (Doctors Without Borders) Switzerland, aimed at harnessing the power of medical, humanitarian and digital innovations to meet the needs of patients and others affected by disasters. He previously worked several years as a manager for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in various regions affected by armed conflicts (Afghanistan, Colombia, Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire) and later as Deputy Director for the Antenna Foundation, an NGO that incubates innovative solutions to meet the basic needs of people living in poverty. He is the co-founder and current President of the Board of Watalux SA, a social startup developing innovation for safe water and better hygiene in hospitals, and Board Member of SwissSolidarity, a leading Swiss philanthropic foundation. He holds a PhD in Life Science from the University of Lausanne (Switzerland).
Dr. EmelineDarçot is a project manager at the EssentialTech Centre in Lausanne, Switzerland, which harnesses innovation in support of sustainable development,humanitarian action and peace promotion. She is currently coordinating the Engineering Humanitarian Action programme within the Humanitarian Division.
She holds a PhD in Life Science from the University of Lausanne (Switzerland). After a PhD and a postdoctoral position in biomedical imaging at the University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV), Emeline joined the EPFL EssentialTech Centre in 2021 as a project coordinator on the Ren’All Care project. She then joined the EPFL Research Office in 2022 as project manager and coordinates since then the Engineering Humanitarian Action programme within the Humanitarian Division of the EssentialTech Centre.
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