Hand Therapy Helps You Return to Everyday Tasks

Imagine turning a doorknob or making a sandwich when pain prevents you from using your fingers, wrist, elbow or shoulder. It’s easy to forget how much we depend on the intricate system of muscles, bones and tendons that run from the fingers to the shoulders.

Losing function in arms, wrists or hands from repetitive stress, diseases or accidents may need specialized therapy to help you return to an active lifestyle and daily tasks. Fortunately, there's hope beyond surgery and medication. Occupational therapy (OT) offers a non-invasive, personalized approach to healing common hand conditions and restoring function. Hand therapists offer techniques, education and equipment to help you perform tasks with less pain and more independence.

“We help people learn to be independent. It’s exciting to see them get back to living life,” said Angela Polmateer, OTR, CHT, a Franciscan Health certified hand therapist at the Lafayette Family YMCA.

Key Takeaways: Hand Therapy

• Hand therapy helps restore strength, mobility and function after injury, surgery or chronic hand and wrist conditions.
• Certified hand therapists use personalized exercises, splinting and education to support safe, everyday movement.
• Early, guided hand therapy with an occupational therapist can reduce pain, improve recovery outcomes and help patients return to work and daily activities faster.

Hand Conditions That OT Can Help

Hand therapists can help treat pain in the hand, wrist or arm, with the goal of reducing pain or increasing mobility and functionality. As Katie Vaughn, an occupational therapist specializing in hand therapy at Franciscan Health Mooresville, explains, "It focuses on things you would want or need to do for your daily life."

Many conditions can affect the upper extremities, including:

Arthritis

"We see a lot of patients with arthritis, like in the thumb joint, the base of the thumb, or in the finger joints," says Vaughn, emphasizing the impact these conditions can have on daily life. “There's a lot of therapy exercises we can do to help strengthen around the joint, to help support instability, to help improve overall function.”

Fractures, amputations and wounds

"After surgery, we would go through an assessment process and then follow a protocol provided by your surgeons to help provide immediate care and effective treatment," explains Vaughn, outlining the role of OT in recovery after surgery.

Overuse injuries

Repetitive strain injuries, tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, tennis elbow and golfer's elbow are common examples of overuse injuries that hand therapy can help. 

"We see a lot of folks with carpal tunnel, especially with activities that require a lot of gripping or forceful grasping," says Vaughn, highlighting the prevalence of this condition and its impact on daily activities.

Congenital or acquired deformities

Vascular disorders like Raynaud's, and congenital deformities all fall under this category.

Other hand conditions

Other hand conditions that occupational therapy can help with include:

• Ganglion cysts
• Hand pain
• Trigger finger
• Stroke recovery
• Sports injuries
• Fine motor skill deficiencies

Tailored Hand Therapy Treatment Plans For Lasting Results

Occupational therapists tailor treatment plans to individual needs and goals, helping people regain the ability to participate in activities that matter most to them.

“Doctors often count on us to be their eyes and ears,” Polmateer said. “They know a patient won’t have to see multiple medical providers if they can get specialty treatment from a certified hand therapist, which often means a faster recovery.”

The treatment approach designed by occupational therapists varies depending on the specific condition and individual needs. For post-surgical cases, OT helps with wound healing, regaining motion, and building strength for functional use. Chronic conditions like arthritis or carpal tunnel syndrome benefit from education on pain management, body mechanics, and targeted exercises to address weakness and limited motion.

"We do a lot of education with those patients on good body mechanics to pain control” Vaughn said. “We also have the opportunity to assess do you have full motion in your grip or are you weak in some area of your arm, your shoulder, your hands? And we're able to facilitate exercises for home to help compensate for those chronic issues that you may present with."

Accessibility And Early Intervention

The good news is that accessing occupational therapy and hand therapists has become easier. In many cases, patients no longer require a physician's referral for occupational therapy and can self-refer through direct access, with most insurance plans covering this initial phase. This allows for early intervention, which can significantly improve healing outcomes and prevent further complications.

"Patients do not need a physician's referral," says Vaughn, emphasizing the accessibility of OT. "They can come in through direct access. That gives hand therapist up to 42 days to treat patients before we would either need a physician's order, or I would reach out to maybe a primary care doctor with approval from my patient to get a signed plan in place."

If you are experiencing hand pain, stiffness, or limited mobility, don't hesitate to explore the potential of occupational therapy. It could be the key to unlocking your hand's full potential and reclaiming your ability to perform the activities you love.

“I enjoy being able to take somebody with a broken bone or a trauma injury to something even chronic and getting them back functional, back to living their daily lives and able to partake in something as simple as getting themselves dressed to maybe going back to playing a sport again someday,” Vaughn said.