Rehabilitation of distal radius fractures in occupational therapy (May 5, 2026)

Presented by: Ariana Belles

Clients often attend occupational therapy for rehabilitation of distal radius fractures. Guidelines for therapy (e.g., Mehta et al., 2024) frequently focus on a biomechanical model, instead of occupation-based models. While occupational therapy leaders have proposed that occupational therapists return to the use of occupation, many practitioners struggle to accomplish this in the clinic (Grice, 2015; Valdes et al., 2023). 

 This webinar focuses on a survey of recent articles that offer specific suggestions to assist clinicians in incorporating assessments and interventions that promote improved client function and showcase what occupational therapy is all about. The webinar will incorporate the current protocols for rehabilitation of distal radius fractures in non-operative and operative cases. This will include assessments that promote focus on occupation and function, preparatory interventions, orthotic types, and clinic interventions that address remediation, compensatory, and modification for wrist fractures.

After taking part in this webinar, participants will be able to: 

1. Become familiar with current rehabilitation protocols for non-operative and post-operative distal radius fractures.
2. Understand how to incorporate more occupation-based assessment and interventions into the rehabilitation of distal radius fractures based on recent literature.

Level  Intermediate (3-5 years of experience in this specific practice area)

Area of practice Hand Therapy, MSK/Ortho/Cardio-Resp 

Client age group Adults (20-64 years old)