OT Hand Therapy Interventions

When we think of hand therapy, we tend to think of it as a practice area with an  abundance of research.

But, the mapping review of hand therapy interventions we examine this episode reminds us that there are also sizable gaps in the research—especially when it comes to more complex diagnoses.

This means that when OTs are working with upper extremity conditions, we still need to pay careful attention to the other 2 pillars of evidence-based practice: the client values & developing our own skillset/clinical expertise.

To talk about what this looks like in practice, we are excited to welcome Hoang Tran, OT/L, CHT to the podcast. Hoang is the owner of Hands-on Therapy & Hand Therapy Secrets—and a vocal advocate for OTs working with the upper extremity.

1. You will be able to identify hand therapy interventions that have the most abundant research and guidance for practice.

2. You will be able to recognize gaps in the research on hand therapy interventions.

• Intro

• Breakdown and analysis of journal article

  • Brief intro to hand therapy interventions

  • Where the research stand on hand therapy

  • What was the intent of this paper?

  • What were the authors’ methods?

  • What were the findings?

  • Discussion/Conclusions/Implications

  • Takeaways for OT practitioners

• Discussion on practical implications for OTs (with Hoang Tran)

  1. How did you first find OT?

  2. What led you into hand therapy and ultimately business ownership?

  3. Do you find OTs have a unique approach to hand therapy?

  4. What were your initial impressions of the article?

  5. Did it align with your experience that osteoarthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome and tendon injuries have the most treatment guidance to draw from?

  6. How do you engage a patient right away in their session, and then encourage them to return for their next visit?

  7. When you see someone with a more complex diagnosis where there is less evidence to draw on, what skills do you find yourself using?

  8. Are there ways you measure outcomes and the patient experience that were not mentioned in the article?

  9. How do you keep up with changes to hand therapy? & How has your approach to hand therapy changed since you started practice?

  10. What do you see on the horizon for OT in hand therapy?

Primary

• Hand therapy interventions, outcomes, and diagnoses evaluated over the last 10 years: A mapping review linking research to practice

Additional

• A systematic review of the benefits of occupation-based intervention for patients with upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders

• Psychosocial factors addressed by occupational therapists in hand therapy: A mixed-methods study

It is the policy of OT Potential to disclose any financial and non-financial interest the provider or instructor may have in a product or service mentioned during an activity. This is to ensure that the audience is made aware of any bias of the speaker.

OT Potential pays guest speakers an honorarium for their participation, either directly or to an institution of the speaker's choosing at their request. We invite guests whose expertise often comes from practices, programs, or building products in their field. Where a speaker has a financial interest in the subject of a course, we disclose it below so you can weigh it for yourself.

OT Potential's interest in this topic: We have no financial stake in this topic.

Speaker interests: Hoang Tran owns Hand Therapy Secrets, which sells education to hand therapists, and Hands On Therapy Services, an outpatient hand therapy clinic.