Joanne Williams
Editor

(Gage McCrimmon/TCJ – Summer Clay (left), a physician assistant, contacted former classmate Lance Beasley to help with a 3D printing project to help young patients.)

It’s all about connections.

Summer Clay, a physician assistant at Charlotte’s 123 Primary Care Clinic was looking for a tool to help with her young patients.

She remembered her Charlotte High School classmate, Lance Beasley, who now teaches STEM courses at the high school.

That connection provided more than 100 3D printed sensory toys to Clay and the clinic. The colorful, multi-size ball offers “healthy sensory alternatives” to self-harming behaviors, including cutting, Clay said,

Beasley found a design and produced the toys on the school’s Bambu 3D printer, producing about 20 at a time, sometimes under the watchful eyes of his fifth and seventh grade sons. No students around in the summer to assist or learn from this, Beasley said.

The balls, which have spikes, were produced in halves that Beasley had to join together. After a while, he found it more comfortable using a cloth to protect his hands.

Beasley said he had never heard of this type of tool in clinical work or the sensory process known as proprioception – basically the ability to perceive our body as it connects with the world.

“We see a lot of youth with mental health issues,” Clay said. “This tool stimulates, irritates their skin but does not harm them.”

Beasley had reached out to Clay before with an offer to help, as he produced N-95 masks with the printer. While the clinic did not need them at the time, Clay remembered Beasley’s offer when she saw the need for these tools.

“Getting these children not just the access to health care but getting them to all the support services that go along with it can be very, very hard,” Clay said. “

Asking parents to go out and buy something on Amazon can be just one added extra thing. So, we were looking for something in our clinic that we could use for that.”

UM Health -Sparrow Eaton said the clinic plans to distribute the toys through its on-site behavioral health consultant, who works with patients during appointments.