Applying Pain Neuroscience in Hand Therapy

Course description:

Pain neuroscience education is recommended as an intervention for patients living with persistent pain, as well as for therapists to improve their management skills for persons living with pain. There is evidence supporting the effectiveness of pain neuroscience education (PNE) to reduce pain and disability and improve self-management skills. However, much of the current literature addresses conditions such as chronic low back pain, and little guidance on how the principles of PNE might be used in a hand rehabilitation context.

This course will equip hand therapists to use pain neuroscience education in their practice to improve patient knowledge about pain and change behaviors related to pain. We will review the core knowledge underlying pain neuroscience education, using examples that are relevant to the practice of hand therapy. Therapists will then learn how to incorporate PNE principles into common hand therapy interventions to a) reduce the risk of acute pain becoming chronic pain, and b) to improve how chronic pain is comprehensively addressed in their setting.

Course language:

English

About the course instructor:

Dr. Tara Packham, PhD, OT
Ontario, Canada
Tara Packham is an occupational therapist with over 25 years of experience in hand and upper limb rehabilitation, which birthed an interest in pain research. She calls herself a recycled alumnus of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada as she received three degrees, most recently a PhD from McMaster, and now is an assistant professor in the School of Rehabilitation Science. Her teaching and research program focus on optimizing measurement and moving evidence into practice to promote well-being, participation and recovery in musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. She also serves as Editor-in-Chief of Hand Therapy and community engagement officer for the CRPS Special Interest Group at the International Association for the Study of Pain.