DEVELOPMENT OF HAND REHABILITATION IN MAINLAND CHINA

Hand rehabilitation has been a major area of practice for occupational therapists in Hong Kong when the profession first emerged in the early 1970s. It was a time when the economy of Hong Kong relied heavily on small industries and assembly work mainly for export to western countries. Due to lack of awareness of occupational health and safety, most of the workers were injured at work while operating on machines without protective guard. Occupational therapists were trained to handle a huge volume of workers with hand trauma with the goal of helping them maximize hand function so that they could return to the work force. Similar situation occurs in Mainland China nowadays, particularly in the Southern part of the Mainland where industries and factories are densely built to support the industrialization. This paper attempts to review the development of hand rehabilitation postsurgery and to discuss the current assets and challenges in meeting the needs of patients with hand injuries in Mainland China.