2018 Wellness Expo

Page 34 2018 Wellness Expo LINCOLN DAILY NEWS Wednesday, February 21, 2018 C ould you benefit from hand therapy? Do you have arthritis or hand pain? What about numbness or tingling that is causing your hand to be weak? Have you fallen and fractured your wrist? Has your child dislocated a finger while playing sports? Talk to your doctor about a referral. The outpatient clinic at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital has recently added hand therapy to its list of outpatient therapy services. Emily Foster, OTR/L CHT, joined the rehabilitation team one year ago, and is an occupational therapist and certified hand therapist. She brings almost 17 years of experience to the program. Foster has worked for Memorial Health System for her entire career and has worked in a variety of settings including inpatient and outpatient therapy. Certified hand therapists are therapists with extensive experience treating patients with any type of injury to the hand or upper extremity that limits functional abilities or causes pain. Common problems that would benefit from hand therapy include tendon lacerations, wrist or other fractures of the arm, carpal or cubital tunnel syndrome, arthritis or following surgery to correct arthritic complications, or following any type of trauma to the hand or upper extremity that may be causing scar tissue, limited mobility, or swelling. Neurological conditions such as cardiovascular accidents can also benefit from therapy. After an evaluation and based on the patient’s deficits, treatments can range from range of motion exercises, strengthening, scar management, management of swelling, activities to address coordination, management of impaired sensation, education in home program, fabrication of custom orthotics as necessary, and education in necessary adaptions. All of these things are done in an effort to help make the patient as functional as possible. If you think you may benefit from hand therapy, talk to your doctor about a referral. Your primary doctor or even an orthopedic doctor or neurologist can write a prescription. The frequency of visits will depend on the patient and what is determined to be appropriate by the hand therapist after the initial evaluation. Usual frequency of visits is anywhere from one to three times per week with specific home program instructions to be done daily at home. Hand therapy is typically covered by most insurance plans including Medicare and Medicaid. Rarely, out of pocket expenses come up for things such as over the counter braces or other supplies that may be needed for home programming. The hand therapy and the occupational therapy departments are located at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital at 200 Stahlhut Drive in Lincoln. For more information, call 217-605- 5500. [ALMH/LDN] Hand Therapy available locally Emily Foster