Upper Extremity and Hand Therapy- Module 3: Professionalism

Course Description:

This course is derived from the textbook by Cynthia Cooper “Fundamentals of Hand Therapy: Clinical Reasoning and Treatment Guidelines for Common Diagnoses of the Upper Extremity”. This illustrated text and reference emphasizes the fundamentals of hand therapy – for both specialists and non-specialists who encounter clients with hand issues. It provides a consistent format with tips and guidelines for hand therapy treatment. Coverage includes hand anatomy, key terms and concepts, and the evaluation process. A focus on professional issues includes clients with functional somatic syndromes and challenging behavior, client-therapist rapport, and the roles of therapy assistants. Providing many case studies, this text helps therapists think critically about clients' individual needs.

Module 3: Professionalism covers chapters 7 through 9.  

• Chapter 7: Clients with Functional Somatic Syndromes or Challenging Behavior
• Chapter 8: Fundamentals of Client-Therapist Rapport
• Chapter 9: Roles of Therapy Assistants in Hand Therapy
• Appendix to Part 2: Some Thoughts on Professionalism 

Methods of Instruction:

Online course available via internet 

Target Audience:

Physical Therapists, Physical Therapist Assistants, Occupational Therapists, and Occupational Therapist Assistants

Educational Level:

Intermediate 

Prerequisites:

None 

Course Goals and Objectives:

At the completion of this course, participants should be able to:

1. Recognize clients with functional somatic syndromes and challenging behaviors
2. Identify the importance of the therapeutic relationship
3. Recognize a successful therapeutic relationship
4. Identify Watson’s Theory of Human Caring
5. Recognize nonverbal aspects of communication
6. Identify how to terminate the therapeutic relationship
7. Identify the hand therapy experience matrix
8. Determine why professionalism is important in hand therapy
9. Identify skills related to professionalism and examples of professional and non-professional behavior

Criteria for Obtaining Continuing Education Credits:

A score of 70% or greater on the post-test