Hand Transplant Emily was injured in a car accident on June 11, 2006. She was the front-seat passenger in a car that clipped the back of another vehicle, causing the car in which she was riding to flip over once, hit a curb and then roll back over before coming to a stop. During the roll-over, her right hand went through the open sunroof and was caught between the car and the road. She was taken to UCLA Medical Center, where it was determined that her hand was too severely injured to save, and it was amputated.  Emily was right-handed prior to the accident. With the assistance of hand therapists, she learned to use her left hand for all tasks, including tying her shoes, writing, dressing and even driving a car. She was fitted with a myoelectric prosthetic hand, which uses electrical impulses in the muscle, and a traditional prosthesis, but she found the prosthetic hand to be too heavy and the hook to be very awkward. She stopped using them after realizing she could function nearly the same without them. Emily works as an office assistant in a county human resources department. To obtain this position, she was able to satisfy the typing requirement of 40 words per minute with her left hand. As a single, working mother of a 6-year-old daughter, she is able to complete all the ordinary tasks required of a working mom, such as cooking, laundry and grooming, etc., but there are things she has not been able to do, such as teaching her daughter to tie her shoes, catch a ball or ride her bicycle without training wheels. And she misses being able to put her own hair in a ponytail. Emily has been limited in her ability to advance professionally, since she physically cannot reach the next level of typing 50 words per minute. Due to this obstacle, she has been limited in her ability to solely support her daughter. As a result, they live with Emilys father. Emily is excited about the possibilities that her new hand offers, including the potential to prov...