Dr. House Walks INCORRECTLY With Cane

The medical drama House was quite popular when on air.   Dr. Gregory House was a medical genius who was highly dependent on pain medication.  This dependency coupled with other faults made the show very entertaining and I suggest watching if you have not seen it.  Despite Dr. House's deep medical knowledge however, he continuously used his cane to walk incorrectly.  When learning about the use of a cane in graduate school this was always used as an example of what NOT to do.  Check out the clip below starting at the 3:00 mark:

 

First and foremost, the reason Dr. House carries a cane with him is to deal with pain and weakness in his right thigh.  As you can see in the clip Dr. House holds the cane in his right hand and is seen to walk awkwardly through the halls.  He does this repeatedly through out the entire show and I want to reiterate that this is the INCORRECT way to use a cane.  Walking this way promotes a sub optimal and unsafe gait pattern that can cause a variety of issues if performed long term.  Therefore it is important to learn the CORRECT way to use a cane. 

In order to use a cane correctly it is important to ALWAYS place the cane in the opposite hand of the injured lower extremity.  This allows a person to still put some weight through the lower extremity and allows a person to walk optimally.  It is also important to mention that Dr. House's cane may also not have been sized properly for his height.  A cane handle is supposed to come up to the height of a person's wrist while allowing a slight bend in the person's elbow.  In the show there are instances where the cane does not appear to be the proper size.  Therefore it is important to remember that a cane should always be on the correct side and sized properly when dealing with a lower extremity injury.

For more information on proper cane sizing and usage click here

Here is an instructional video showing the proper way to size and use a cane.  It also includes how to safely use a cane on the stairs: