If you have an injury or problem in your hand or arm, hand therapy can help to work out where the problem is coming from, and what to do to manage it.  

There are many reasons why your hand is not working normally. It can be problems with the bone, the muscle, or the tendon. It may be a long term problem such as arthritis or carpal tunnel syndrome, or it may be an injury from an accident to the hand such as a fracture or cut.

Hand therapy is also needed after surgery.

An occupational therapist can help people to manage their daily activities such as showering, dressing, preparing a meal and driving. If you have a hand injury it can be hard to do normal things like doing up buttons on a shirt, turning on taps or holding a knife and fork to eat.

In the hand therapy clinic, the occupational therapist will discuss these daily activities with you and suggest ways for you to do them while your hand is getting better.  

One of the occupational therapists working in the hand therapy clinic, Kirby says “a lot of people think that their finger or hand will fix itself, but this is not usually the case. It is important that if you are worried about your hand that you come and see us to assess the problem”.

What will the occupational therapist do when you come to the hand therapy clinic?

“There are two hand therapy clinics at Stawell Regional Health” Kirby said. 

“One is at the Health and Community Centre on Patrick Street, and the other at the Community Rehabilitation Centre at the hospital site.  It will depend on the type of problem you have where you will be seen.”

Your doctor can refer you to the hand therapy service or call 5358 8531.