The Hand Therapist

23/08/2026

Are you a newly qualified Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist looking to start a career in Hand Therapy?

Or an experienced Hand Therapist looking to expand your clinical scope within the specialism, advancing your practice towards practising as a Consultant Hand Therapist or Certified Hand Therapist (CHT)?

A calm, supportive environment. Hand to shoulder. Orthopaedics, Plastics, Rheumatology, Neurology and Paediatrics. Mentoring and support to help you achieve your goals.

Maybe you have ideas for a pathway you would like to build or one day run your own private practice. Perhaps you want to move into research, teaching or service development. We would like to from you.

12/08/2026

Honoured and delighted to officially announce a new pathway for people living with thumb arthritis in Northern Ireland.

Working together with Mr Zaf Naqui, Consultant Hand and Wrist Surgeon, who has performed over 150 thumb CMC joint replacements, we have made access to specialist assessment and modern CMC joint replacement using the TOUCH® prosthesis easier for patients in Northern Ireland.

The Belfast–Manchester CMCJ pathway is Hand Therapy first.

Many people with thumb arthritis improve significantly with specialist non-operative treatment alone. That is where every assessment starts and for many people, that is where it ends.

Where imaging is needed, this can be arranged locally in Northern Ireland.

If surgery is the right option, it takes place with Mr Naqui in Manchester or Cheshire. After that, care comes home. Routine wound care, scar therapy, splinting and rehabilitation all take place in Belfast, avoiding repeated travel to Manchester.

This is a Consultant Hand Therapist-led arthritis clinic, and that shapes the whole pathway.

The aim is not to move people towards surgery. It is to make sure that people living with thumb arthritis in Northern Ireland understand their options, receive the right treatment at the right time, and can make an informed choice about their care.

Manchester

05/08/2026

An honour to teach alongside my dear friend with the final year Occupational Therapy interns at Cebu Doctors’ University.

Blair lectured on Distal Radius Fracture Management. I covered Proximity Blindness, Upper Limb + Hand Peripheral Nerve Entrapments and how the two intertwine.

A massive thank you to the Occupational Therapy Faculty Head, Mr Daryll Jay Amores, all the OT interns and their Dean Dr Ramiro for their warm welcome. Especially so with it being so steamy in the Philippines! Taglay ang taos-pusong pasasalamat 🙏🇦🇪🇬🇧🇺🇸🇵🇭

16/07/2026

Ms Michelle Razo, Belfast’s first and only Certified Hand Therapist (CHT), is privileged to be invited to the inaugural The Great Debate at BAHT Hand Therapy British Association of Hand Therapist’s 2026 conference in Bristol.

The Great Debate will include a panel of six experts from across the UK to discuss non-operative vs surgical management of hand trauma.

13/07/2026

Listen in to Part 2 of my conversation with Dubai Hand Therapist, Blair Agero 🖐

Dim sum 🥟, proximity blindness in Hand Therapy 🧐 and Razo's Kiss 💋

"More Than Just A Hand" is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and other platforms 🎤🔊

24/06/2026

The two bones of the forearm should kiss at the wrist. A TFCC injury makes them splay and that is when the wrist hurts to turn or load.

Razo’s Kiss, explained in 6 slides. Swipe until the end 👉

07/05/2026

04/05/2026

With much gratitude to my dear colleague 🙏 Listen in to my conversation with Dubai Hand Therapist, Blair Agero 🖐 "More Than Just A Hand" is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and other platforms 🎤🔊

27/04/2026

How to Use Therapy Putty: Exercises, Resistance Levels and Technique

Therapy putty is one of the most versatile tools in Hand Therapy for rebuilding grip strength and hand dexterity. But which resistance level is right for you? And how often should you be using it?

Our patient guide covers the six standard resistance grades, common exercises and when to progress. Whether you have been prescribed therapy putty after surgery or are using it as part of an ongoing programme, this guide will help you get the most from your exercises.

Read the full guide:

Therapy putty rebuilds hand strength and dexterity after injury or surgery. A patient guide to exercises, resistance levels and technique from Ms Razo CHT.

24/04/2026