Five years ago, Ms Michelle Razo opened the doors to a new kind of Hand Therapy practice in Belfast. With no surgical support or established referral network. No guarantee of what was to come. Just a conviction that specialist Hand Therapy in Northern Ireland justified a different approach, born from cultural influences and different ways of working.
What followed has been extraordinary and quietly transformative for the profession. Ms Razo has helped redesign what a private Hand Therapy clinic can look like. At a time when patient initiated follow-ups are increasing and hands-off approaches remain common in acute and sub-acute services, she has demonstrated that a private hand to shoulder specialist clinic does not need to rely on healthcare referrals alone. Complex trauma and the cases others find most difficult have become the hallmark of The Hand Therapist clinic.
It is a model she hopes will inspire other Hand Therapists across the UK and Northern Ireland to grow their own tailored clinics, shaped by the needs of their local and regional communities. There has never been a better time for Hand Therapy specialists to step forward, lead independently, reshape the profession and the standards it sets.
Built from the ground up to be different
When The Hand Therapist clinic opened its doors, the expectation was that most clients would be elective cases. Generally straightforward Hand Therapy presentations, such as trigger finger and carpal tunnel releases. Not to underplay the importance of these conditions, but they are the kind of post-surgical cases that fill waiting list initiatives and diaries. Yet such cases rarely challenge advanced specialists at the level they are truly capable of.
That is not what happened. Within a remarkably short time, The Hand Therapist clinic became something that simply did not exist in Northern Ireland before. A fully independent, advanced practice private Hand Therapy clinic. No divided priorities, revenue or appointment targets. The only goal is specialist care delivered at the highest level, entirely on the client’s terms, to achieve the best possible outcome.
Five years. A few landmarks worth recording
The story of The Hand Therapist is not just one of growth. It is one of progressive achievement, each milestone building on the last.
In the second year of trading, Ms Razo attained the Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) qualification. The highest internationally recognised credential in hand and upper limb rehabilitation, held by only a small number of therapists worldwide. It confirmed in formal terms what clinical results were already demonstrating.
In year three came the Cardiff University Bond Solon Expert Witness certificate, reflecting the scope of Ms Michelle Razo’s expertise beyond the treatment room. Along with Ms Razo’s breadth of international experience, it has recognised her as a leading Expert Witness for hand, wrist, upper limb and shoulder conditions in Northern Ireland as well as the United Kingdom.
And then there are the cases. Perhaps no single story captures the spirit of The Hand Therapist better than what began as a painful thumb amputation. The patient was lost to follow-up in primary care, arriving with a painful terminalisation and limited options. Ms Razo took a long-term view. She saw not just the immediate clinical problem but the potential for something more. What followed was a journey that ultimately led to a great toe-to-thumb transfer and the restoration of meaningful hand function. This is the kind of outcome that defines what specialist practice at this level can achieve.
It is also the type of case that was never supposed to come through the doors of a private Hand Therapy clinic. That it did, and that the outcome was what it was, says everything about what The Hand Therapist clinic has become.
Today, Ms Michelle Razo is the only Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) in Belfast. Her practice is currently the only fully independent Consultant Hand Therapist led clinic of its kind in Northern Ireland, offering advanced clinical practice built to handle precisely the cases others find most difficult.
Other Hand Therapists refer their most complex cases here. Clients also travel from across Northern Ireland and beyond. The clinic has become a beacon for complex trauma and the most difficult of hand, wrist, elbow and shoulder conditions.
A lasting contribution to Hand Therapy across Northern Ireland
Beyond the private practice, Ms Razo has played a meaningful role in influencing Hand Therapy across the region during these five years. A contribution worth acknowledging as part of this milestone.
She was instrumental in establishing the framework for Hand Therapy treatment guidelines within the Regional Plastic Surgery Service. Ms Razo also contributed to the development of virtual Hand Therapy services in Northern Ireland and played a central role collaboratively establishing Plastic Surgery Hand Therapy at Altnagelvin Area Hospital, bringing specialist upper limb care to the western areas of the province.
During this period, Ms Razo co-authored a research article that was published by a cohort from Northern Ireland’s Regional Plastic Surgery Unit. It is the first publication in approximately thirty years from a member of the Plastic Surgery Allied Health Professional (AHP) Team. A quiet landmark in its own right.
Internationally, Ms Razo has educated clinical teams in the United States and across the Middle East. Her experience, perspective and different ways of working have had a pivotal influence and positive impact on Hand Therapy that has travelled far beyond Belfast.
The Hand Therapy landscape in Northern Ireland looks very different today than it did five years ago. That is not coincidence.
Thank you
None of this would have been possible without the clients who took a chance on a new clinic, trusted Ms Razo with their most difficult problems and spread the word across the country.
Every referral, every recommendation and every person who shared their experience has made it possible for the next patient to find their way here. In a very real sense, each client who walks through the door makes it possible for another to do the same.
Ms Razo is deeply grateful to Julia Webster of North Down Physio and the team there for being so welcoming. Under her roof, the group has graciously accommodated and supported a specialist service tailored towards best in practice Hand Therapy.
Here is to the next five years. The Hand Therapy landscape in the United Kingdom is changing, Hand Therapy in Northern Ireland is not what it was and it will not be what it is today in five more.
The best is still to come.