Orthotists and Prosthetists
Design, measure, fit, and adapt orthopedic braces, appliances or prostheses, such as limbs or facial parts for patients with disabling conditions.
9,390 people do this job in the US. $81,110 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 43%
- 1%
- 56%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 1%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 18%. Today's estimate: 21%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 15 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design orthopedic and prosthetic devices, based on physicians' prescriptions and examination and measurement of patients.Done daily by most who do it. | 17% | 2.1 h50 min to 4.2 h | 72%Half by now | |
| Research new ways to construct and use orthopedic and prosthetic devices.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 16% | 2.1 work days3.3 h to 1.7 work weeks | 1%Half by Sep 2028 | |
| Construct and fabricate appliances, or supervise others constructing the appliances.Done daily by most who do it. | 16% | 3.3 h1.7 h to 1 work day | Stays with people | |
| Fit, test, and evaluate devices on patients, and make adjustments for proper fit, function, and comfort.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 10% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Examine, interview, and measure patients to determine their appliance needs and to identify factors that could affect appliance fit.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 9% | 50 min25 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Repair, rebuild, and modify prosthetic and orthopedic appliances.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 8% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Maintain patients' records.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 5% | 17 min8 min to 38 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Train and supervise support staff, such as orthopedic and prosthetic assistants and technicians.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 5% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Instruct patients in the use and care of orthoses and prostheses.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 4% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Select materials and components to be used, based on device design.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Make and modify plaster casts of areas to be fitted with prostheses or orthoses to guide the device construction process.Done daily by most who do it. | 3% | 1.3 h38 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Confer with physicians to formulate specifications and prescriptions for orthopedic or prosthetic devices.Done daily by most who do it. | 1% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).