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Peer Support

In Australia the main causes of amputations are vascular disease and diabetes.  Other causes of amputation are traumatic injuries, infections, tumours and congenital disorders.

Australia has the second highest rate of amputations in the developed world. (1)  There are more than 4,400 amputations every year in Australia as a result of diabetes.(2)  In Queensland the NDSS figures equate to 821 amputations from diabetes alone.

Amputees Queensland recognises the challenges of recovering from a traumatic event such as losing a limb or learning that you require an amputation.  Our peer support volunteers can provided support, encouragement and information either face to face, via telephone or online.

Peer Support

Peer Support

A Peer Support Volunteer is someone that has had a similar experience to you, they are available to provide understanding, emotional support and practical information to individuals, families and carers pre and post amputation as the journey to recovery and rehabilitation begins.

”Peer support is not like clinical support, and it is more than just being friends. In peer support we understand each other because we’ve ‘been there,’ shared similar experiences and can model for each other a willingness to learn and grow. We come together with the intention of changing unhelpful patterns, getting out of ‘stuck’ places, and building relationships that are respectful, mutually responsible, and potentially, mutually transforming. This allows us to try out new behaviours with one another and move beyond the ‘illness culture’, where we are defined as sick and disabled, into a culture of health and ability.

Mead and Copeland, 2004

Peer Support Volunteers

Our Peer Support Volunteers understand the challenges in losing a limb or adapting to life after amputation, when contacting us for peer support we aim to match individuals with volunteers of similar ages and limb differences where possible.

To request a Peer Support visit please complete the online form or contact our office on (07) 3290 4293 and we will arrange for one of our Peer Support Volunteers to contact you.

(1) Bureau of Health Information: Healthcare in focus: how NSW compares internationally. Sydney: NSW Government; 2008.

(2) Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, (2016). Australian Atlas of Healthcare Variation. [online] Australian Government. Available at: http://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/atlas/ [Accessed 29 Jun. 2016].