Fri Sep 10 2010
In December 2007, Dan Smith of Zanesville, turned the navicular bone in his right wrist 90 degrees while lifting a 50-pound box.
Despite the tremendous pain, Smith kept working as a nurse in the Emergency Department at Southeastern Med with his hand wrapped for support. In March 2008, he underwent hand surgery in Columbus to fix the bone, but during surgery, his surgeon discovered more damage than he anticipated. In an effort to maintain range of motion, the surgeon performed a proximal row carpectomy, which involves removing three of the small bones from the wrist joint.
Nine weeks after the surgery, Smith could only move the thumb on his right hand, and his surgeon sympathetically informed Smith and his wife that he would be permanently disabled.
"The first thing I thought was I can't be disabled," Smith said. "I was determined to get back to work because I love what I do, so I took matters into my own hands and decided to stop at Southeastern Med to see if they could help me. My therapist, Rachel, estimated that she would have me back to work within five and a half months. Along with getting me back to work, she also helped me reclaim my life."
Smith received hand therapy from Rachel Milliner, OTR/L (Occupational Therapist Registered and Licensed) at Southeastern Med's Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Services. Hand therapy is a type of rehabilitation that provides long-term benefits for a more functional and less painful daily life.
"Dan thought he could only receive hand therapy in Columbus or another large city," Milliner said. "He wanted to know if I could help him here. I told him I see a lot of hand injuries and would do my best to help him regain the use of his hand. I could tell how important it was for him to return to nursing."
Occupational and hand therapy focuses on injuries and conditions that affect the upper extremities, including the shoulder, elbow, forearm, wrist, hand and fingers. Burns, fractures and sprains to the tendon, nerves and joints are some of the common reasons patients seek hand or occupational therapy. Southeastern Med's specialized therapists meet with patients to create a customized program focused on the patients' goals. Treatments include hands-on manipulation by the therapist, hydrotherapy, fluidotherapy, which combines the effects of heat and physical stimulation, ultrasound, therapeutic exercises and job simulation.
Milliner worked closely with Smith on job simulation to get him back to nursing without any problems performing his job requirements.
"Dan informed me at his initial evaluation how much he loved his job, and he wanted to focus his rehab on work-related tasks like performing CPR compressions and starting IVs," Milliner said. "I was able to find a patient mannequin from the medical center for him to practice CPR and other nursing skills so he could return to his job without any difficulty."
Milliner is currently working toward her certification as a hand therapist. To become a Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) one must have at least five years of clinical experience, 4,000 hours or more of direct practice in hand therapy, and pass a comprehensive test of advanced clinical skills and theory in upper quarter rehabilitation.
Occupational therapists at Southeastern Med's Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation work with patients of all ages and stages of life. The occupational therapy team helps individuals reclaim their lives or increase independence after an injury, illness or disease process. The talented therapists work with adults who have been diagnosed with hand and arm fractures, tendonitis and tendon repairs, joint replacements, crush injuries, stroke, nerve damage, rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, spinal cord injury, and so many more.
Outpatient occupational therapy services are also available to infants and children who are not meeting developmental milestones and/or who have a reduced quality of life because of an injury, illness, or disease process. Some of the more common diagnosis seen include autistic spectrum disorder, ADHD, developmental delays in fine and gross motor coordination, down syndrome or other chromosomal disorders/deletions/additions, cerebral palsy, fractures of the upper extremities, fetal alcohol syndrome, and more.
For information about Southeastern Med's occupational therapy services, call 439-8977.
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