our business: THE SUPER CANE
Don Newton and Gary Overcash —
Lean On Me
By MISTY BROWNING
The Super Cane Promises To
Change Lives of Countless Seniors
With Balance Issues,
But That’s Only the Beginning
F
or every great invention, all it takes is
a stroke of genius, mixed with some
tenacity and the sheer will to create
something that will change lives.
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Don Newton’s stroke of genius came after 17 years
of working as a physical therapist. The Hardin-Simmons
alumnus, who received his doctorate in physical therapy
at the acclaimed university, has always seen the need to
help seniors with fall prevention.
“Each home health company I’ve worked for has
implemented a fall prevention program, and one of the
things we do is a detailed assessment of the vestibular
function, hand and eye coordination, stuff like that,”
explained Newton. “Some of those people that I worked
with, it didn’t matter what I did with them, they contin-
ued to fall.”
Newton realized that part of the problem was that
they were either not using their assistance device, or they
weren’t using their reacher. He explained that people
with problems with their vestibular function, more
commonly known as inner ear, have issues stopping
their bodies when they lean. When people who have
the disorder lean forward, they have a tendency to keep
going forward. If they are leaning backwards, they have a
tendency to fall backwards. Newton had the idea to make
a cane that would stand alone so that no one would have
to lean to pick it up. Adding a reacher to the cane is