Hand therapists and their ability to improve patients' lives are in the spotlight during a national awareness week.
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Hand Therapy Week runs from June 7 to 13 and Flex Out Physiotherapy's accredited hand therapists are among the professionals marking the week.
Jennie Graetz comes from a physiotherapy background and her colleagues Jye Savage and Amy Mangion trained as occupational therapitsts; together they treat everything from chronic pain conditions to acute injuries.
"You might not be able to hang the washing on the line or clean your teeth, or it might be a child that has trouble with either a fracture or a pediatric, neurological problem," she said.
"Hands are really important for most people, so restoring people's function with their hands is critical."
Mr Savage said referrals came from surgeons and GPs alike.
"A lot of people have never heard of hand therapy until they get an injury or go into post-operative care, and it's very much an evidence-based field," he said.
"Those sort of things can be relatively simple to treat, if treated well."
One of their patients, Tim Witherow, was on track to open the Beechworth-Wangaratta restaurant Vera at the Glenbosch Wine Estate when he was involved in a serious motor vehicle accident travelling home in January.
He was airlifted to the Alfred Hospital with extensive injuries to his right arm and face and underwent skin grafts and the insertion of hooks to hold together his fractured shoulder blade.
Through twice-weekly therapy at FlexOut, including splinting and exercises, he is back to full speed.
"He wasn't able to move his elbow basically at all and wasn't too sure what to do," Mr Savage said.
"He's happy - he's got full use now and no range of motion issues, which is great as we he was originally looking at surgical releases for it.
"It's a great outcome that he doesn't need that."
Ms Mangion said hand therapy was specialist and targeted, allowing the splintering of a finger instead of a hold hand, for example.
"What's special with hand therapy is that we make splints, customised for people," she said.
"I like the creative side of it, getting to meet people, getting to know some things that they're doing their hands, but then also having a bit of an art behind the science of what's wrong."
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