Instructional Concurrent Session 1

Hand therapists routinely see patients for whom care was delayed due to incomplete guidance, or a lack of awareness that hand therapy exists until late in the recovery window. This session reframes “advocacy” as a set of small, repeatable daily actions that collectively expand public awareness of hand therapy, improve care-seeking decisions, and strengthen referral pathways thereby bridging gaps through collaboration and an amplified professional voice.

Participants will learn a practical framework for “Beyond the Clinic” outreach that is feasible in busy clinical roles: (1) a plain-language explanation of what hand therapy is and when to seek it, (2) a simple hand-injury decision pathway that supports timely, appropriate care navigation, (3) community touchpoints that create visibility (libraries, schools, performing-arts groups, makerspaces, employer wellness), and (4) low-burden digital education strategies that improve the quality of patient-facing information and reduce common misconceptions. Evidence-informed communication approaches grounded in health literacy and patient education research will be integrated.

Active learning will focus on building an individualized, values-based micro-advocacy plan that can be implemented without requiring new budget, staff, or institutional marketing support.

In this session, a variety of complex pediatric elbow injuries will be discussed from the perspectives of the pediatric hand surgeon and therapist. Injuries, including fractures (radial neck, olecranon, epicondyle, supracondylar humerus), dislocations, and Monteggia fracture dislocations, will be highlighted with a combination of lecture and case study examples. We will review the anatomy of the elbow joint and discuss why it is often considered an unforgiving joint that “can’t take a joke.” Patterns of injury at the elbow will be explained using X-ray and/or CT scan examples to illustrate better the anatomical structures and their impact on range of motion and functional outcome. Our hand surgeon will review the surgical intervention. We will explain our rationale for duration and type of post op immobilization. Our hand therapist will share the therapeutic treatment plan, including components of the initial evaluation, orthosis fabrication if needed, and progression of therapy from range of motion to strengthening to return to activities. Throughout the talk, we will discuss potential complications, the importance of communication with the patient, family, and medical team, and what determines a successful outcome with this patient population. Our goal is to help bridge the gap between an often-difficult diagnosis and a positive result for all involved.

Speakers will provide foundational knowledge for learning depth of burn injury, learn about different types of skin grafts, evaluate and assess interventions for long term burn scar management of the upper extremity (shoulder to hand) which includes scar massage, use of compression garments, splinting/casting, positioning, use of inserts/silicone and understanding the cutaneous functional units that affect elasticity and movement of the upper limb.

Joint motion and soft-tissue integrity influence clients’ functional performance. Therapists are being asked to demonstrate the value of their services by achieving better outcomes with fewer resources. An increase in value will come from working smarter, with better clinical reasoning to understand conditions and select interventions. Therapists need to differentially diagnose client conditions and clinically reason at a high level to determine the most effective and safe interventions.

This presentation will give hand therapists the scientific background and evidence to make appropriate, effective treatment decisions in partnership with their clients. The soft-tissue stress-strain curve, and the various regions under the curve (Borst, 2020; Neumann, 2025) will be demonstrated using a variety of methods — visual aids, mechanical analogy demonstrations, and interactive demonstrations using the participants’ own bodies. Participants will apply their understanding of the stress-strain curve zones by analyzing various interventions aimed at tissue elongation. Participants will then differentiate among those interventions to select the most effective ones for various conditions, using case studies and interactive response systems (e.g., Socrative). In this way, the session objective "participants will use the zones of the stress-strain curve to inform clinical reasoning for occupational therapy intervention in clients with post-traumatic contractures" will be met.

Orthotic intervention is frequently used to address soft-tissue contractures and joint range of motion loss. The various types of orthoses used for mobilization will be classified (static progressive, serial static, dynamic, and casting motion to mobilize stiffness, and the strengths and weaknesses of each type related to mobilization intervention will be discussed, as well the appropriateness of each type in each stage of the healing process (Solomon, 2022). The evidence related to orthotic parameters will also be reviewed and discussed.

Task-specific focal hand dystonia in musicians represents a complex interaction of maladaptive neuroplasticity, altered sensorimotor integration, and high-demand motor learning. Despite its clinical relevance, many hand therapists lack structured approaches to assessment and treatment beyond general neurologic frameworks. This session presents a clinically grounded, task-specific model for evaluating and managing musician’s dystonia, integrating neuroplasticity principles, sensorimotor control, and functional performance analysis. The approach is anchored in direct observation of instrument-specific movement patterns, structured clinical testing, and targeted sensorimotor retraining. Participants will be introduced to a systematic assessment framework including detailed performance history, task-based movement analysis , sensory testing, and use of dystonia-specific outcome measures such as the Tubiana and Champagne Scale and Arm Dystonia Disability Scale. The session will then translate these findings into intervention strategies grounded in experience-dependent plasticity, including graded motor imagery, sensory motor retuning, constraint-based approaches, and task-specific retraining. Emphasis will be placed on identifying maladaptive motor synergies and designing targeted interventions that reduce abnormal movement while preserving function. Clinical cases across instrument types will illustrate application, including differential response to prior treatments (e.g., botulinum toxin, splinting) and progression of retraining strategies. Active learning will include video-based movement analysis and small-group problem-solving to design treatment strategies. This session addresses a critical gap in upper extremity rehabilitation by providing a structured, clinically actionable model for managing a rare but highly disabling condition, with broader applicability to other task-specific motor disorders.