Occupational and hand therapy

Occupational therapy (OT) focuses on improving your ability to use your hands and arms if they’re affected by a health condition. At Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, teens and adults learn how to manage symptoms to do daily tasks more easily, safely, and comfortably.

Certified hand therapists

Rest assured that Community Hospital’s specialists have the expertise to treat the complicated, delicate structures of your hands and arms. Benefit from access to several skilled occupational therapists, including a professional with certification in hand therapy. This distinction requires at least five years and thousands of hours of practice providing rehabilitation for the wrist, fingers, elbow, and shoulder.

Benefits of OT and hand therapy

Occupational therapy can help you:

• Regain motor skills after an injury or chronic (long-term) health condition
• Return to work, school, or your favorite activities sooner or more safely
• Live more independently

Do I need occupational therapy?

Ask your doctor about rehabilitation if it’s hard for you to complete everyday tasks because of:

• Chronic pain resulting from arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, or another condition
• Injury, such as crushed fingers, deep cuts, burns, or torn tendons
• Neurological condition or injury, such as Parkinson’s disease or stroke
• Surgery
• Weakness or numbness in the hand or arm

Evaluation

Your care will start with an assessment of your abilities, concerns, and goals for rehabilitation. An occupational therapist may:

• Ask about your daily routine and environment at home, work, or school
• Perform a physical exam and discuss your overall health
• Examine how you perform simple exercises

Treatments and therapies

Based on the evaluation results, you and your therapist will work together to create a customized care plan, which may include:

• Activities that build strength, flexibility, and coordination
• Practicing the steps required for activities of daily living, like bathing and getting dressed
• Recommendations for adaptive equipment and tools, such as reachers, that make daily tasks easier
• Simulation of work-related activities to prepare you for a safe return to your job
• Splints and other orthotics that support an injured body part as it heals

Look forward to regular one-on-one appointments where you’ll discuss your progress, ask questions, and practice tasks in a safe, supervised environment. Follow your therapist’s recommendations for taking care of yourself at home so you can achieve the best long-term outcome.

Settings for OT and hand therapy

Rehabilitation may take place on an:

• Inpatient basis if you are a patient at Community Hospital
• In our William R. Lewis, MD, Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit, a special area of the hospital where you stay for about two weeks of daily therapy
• Outpatient basis, in which you come to one of our locations for care and return home after each appointment

If you receive inpatient rehabilitation, your care team will likely recommend following up with outpatient rehabilitation to help you recover as well as possible.