About the Specialty of Hand to Shoulder Therapy

Certified Hand Therapists (CHTs) are occupational or physical therapists with advanced

certification reflecting advanced study and experience in treating individuals with conditions affecting the hands or upper extremity, and there are only 6,905 Certified Hand Therapists (CHT) worldwide.

There is a minimum requirement of 3 years experience and 4,000 or more direct practice hours in hand therapy to qualify to take to the certified hand therapist examination.

"How can you accrue 4,000 practice hours if no one will hire you due to lack of experience?"

The Virtual Hand to Shoulder Fellowship, LLC, was established to address an educational gap due to limited programming, high cost of post-professional education, and demographic constraints by offering a comprehensive, accessible, affordable, and innovative education.

We are trained as generalists, but through mentorship, professional development coaching, and, most importantly, the needed comprehensive post-graduate-level education within the specialty of upper extremity and hand rehabilitation, clinicians demonstrate credibility and commitment to providing the highest level of evidence-based patient care.

Virtual Hand to Shoulder Fellowship Program

Mission

To advance expertise in examination, evaluation, diagnosis, prognosis, intervention, and management of patients with upper extremity and hand impairment and disability.

To develop leaders in the field who help bridge the gaps between practice patterns utilizing evidence-based practice and enhance interdisciplinary collaboration.

To prepare physical and occupational therapists to sit for the Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) examination.

Program Overview

One-year comprehensive curriculum
Delivered synchronously or asynchronously
Highly Structured
Personalized with mentorship
Designed to fill a knowledge gap
Designed to enable critical thinking
Designed to enable clinical excellence
Designed to enable future leaders

Three (4-month) trimesters:

Trimester I: Foundational Knowledge

Shoulder Anatomy & Biomechanics
Elbow Anatomy & Biomechanics
Wrist & Hand Anatomy & Biomechanics
Physiology of Healing
- soft tissue
- bone
- nerve
Intro to critical thinking:
- Evaluation Process
- Application: basic pathology & pathomechanics

Trimester II: Intermediate Level

Hand to Shoulder Pathology & Pathomechanics
- Clinical Exam
- Interventions & Procedures
- Rehabilitation & Return to Function
- Systems Screening/Referral/Red flag screen

Trimester III: Advanced Level

Hand to Shoulder Pathology & Pathomechanics
- Clinical Exam
- Interventions & Procedures
- Rehabilitation & Return to Function
- Systems Screening/Referral/Red flag screen

Additional Program Features:

Virtual Office Hours access for mentorship.
Assistantships & Scholarships
Access to content: recorded lectures, handouts,

quizzes, and journal article appraisals.

Exams at the end of each trimester
Interdisciplinary guest speakers
Journal article reviews
Opportunity to blog
Preparation to sit for the CHT exam
An optional live on-site weekend session for orthotic fabrication, differential diagnosis, joint mobilizations,

and more! (Additional fee)

Resume, interview, and job search coaching
Clinic building
Networking opportunities

ACCESSIBILITY ACCOMMODATIONS:

This program is delivered virtually using PowerPoint presentations and audio.
The sessions are recorded and accessible.
If you need special accommodations to improve the accessibility, please email Mirella Deisher at

CANCELLATION POLICY:

The program offers three payment bundles. The program can be discontinued at any time with written notice.
There will be no reimbursement, under any circumstances, for sessions that were attended or that you would have had access to in your enrolled bundle.
Notification of terminating the program via email is required.

CONTACT HOURS:

Virtual Hand to Shoulder Fellowship is an approved provider for AOTA.
Completion of the Annual Program awards 96 contact hours.
The Live weekend event is not included and separate registration is required. The live weekend provides an additional 14 contact hours.
Completing the program and passing competency measures, such as exams, is required to obtain a completion certificate and related CEUs.