Select Therapy

Happy Halloween from our Baxter Spice Girls! 🧂🎃

Here's a little Halloween spirit from our team! From costumes to spooky fun, we hope everyone has a chance to enjoy the season. 👻🍬🧛‍♂️🍭

Wishing our patients, families, and communities a safe and happy Halloween! 🧡🖤

👋Hand Therapy Spotlight👋!

🎯Dart‑Thrower’s Motion for Scapholunate injuries in fall sports 🍂

Lakes area fall sports athletes are hitting the field hard here soon! Unfortunately, so do their wrists and hands. Sometimes a hard fall onto the field can sprain or damage a major ligament in the wrist called the Scapholunate (SL) ligament. SL injuries (especially in football, volleyball, and soccer where falls on an outstretched hand are common) can be frustrating and difficult to understand. Hand therapists use one of the most powerful rehab tools for these injuries: dart‑thrower’s motion, a functional diagonal movement that protects the SL joint while restoring strength and coordination.

This motion helps athletes:
🖐️ Move through a safe arc that minimizes SL stress
⚡ Rebuild wrist stability for catching, blocking, and ball control
💪 Improve functional strength needed for sport‑specific tasks
🎯 Train coordinated movement patterns that translate directly to game performance

Hand therapy keeps athletes moving safely and returning stronger. Fall sports demand resilient wrists. Sometimes protected dart‑thrower’s motion orthoses (splints) and training is one of the best ways to get you there!

If you have wrist pain, ask your doctor for a referral to Sara Carlson, MS, OTR/L, CHT at our Select Therapy - Baxter clinic. Let's get you back in the game!

Phone: (218) 824-5027
Fax: (218) 824- 8011

🌟 Join us in welcoming our newest PT provider to the Select Therapy team🌟!

We’re excited to introduce Rachel Kiminski, DPT, who brings strong clinical skill, genuine compassion, and a patient‑centered approach that fits perfectly with our mission. She’s already jumping in with great energy! So many of our patients have already benefited from her expertise and kind, encouraging style.

We’re so thrilled to have her on board and can’t wait for everyone to meet her. Welcome to the team, Rachel! We’re lucky to have you!

Here's a little bit of background about Rachel:

Rachel graduated from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse with a bachelor's degree in Exercise and Sport Science. She went on to earn her Doctorate in Physical Therapy, also at the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse.

As a high school gymnast, Rachel experienced back pain and had a personal encounter with physical therapy. This experience sparked her interest in the field, and she went on to pursue a career as a physical therapist. Rachel is certified in dry needling and has professional interests in vestibular rehabilitation, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, spine care, balance and fall prevention, and post-operative rehabilitation.

In her free time, Rachel and her fiancé enjoy boating, walking their dogs, playing cribbage, and spending time with family and friends. She loves to run and has participated in two marathons and several half marathons with hopes to participate in more races in the future.

🌟 BIG NEWS, Pequot Lakes — Select Therapy is expanding! 🌟
And we’re bringing the energy, the expertise, and a brand‑new partnership we can’t wait to share.

We’re beyond excited to announce the UPCOMING opening of our newest clinic location in beautiful Pequot Lakes — teaming up with the amazing crew at Sazama Family Chiropractic to deliver even more accessible, high‑quality care to the Lakes Area.

📆 Opening July 6th, 2026
✨ Available Mondays & Wednesdays to start — with more to come!

📍 Find us inside Sazama Family Chiropractic at:
31170 Government Drive
Pequot Lakes, MN 56472

This collaboration brings together two powerhouse teams with one shared mission: helping you move better, feel better, and live your best life. With physical therapy and chiropractic care under one roof, your wellness journey just got a whole lot easier (and a whole lot more fun).

Whether you’re bouncing back from an injury, tackling chronic pain, or leveling up your movement goals, we’re here with personalized, patient‑centered care that puts you first.

✨ Pequot Lakes, we can’t WAIT to serve you!
Let’s make this newest chapter an incredible one.

📱 Call 218‑824‑5027 to schedule your first appointment and experience the Select Therapy difference!

🌟 Select Therapy is growing. Pequot Lakes, here we come! 🌟

Select Therapy is thrilled to announce the UPCOMING opening of our new clinic location in Pequot Lakes, proudly partnering with Sazama Family Chiropractic to bring even more accessible, high‑quality care to the Lakes Area community.

📆 Starting on July 6th, 2026 (beginning on Mondays and Wednesdays)

📍 We will be located inside Sazama Family Chiropractic at:
31170 Government Drive
Pequot Lakes, MN 56472

This partnership brings together two teams dedicated to helping you move better, feel better, and live better. By combining our strengths, we’re expanding access to exceptional physical therapy and chiropractic services — all under one roof.

Whether you’re recovering from injury, managing chronic pain, or working toward healthier movement, we’re excited to support your goals with personalized, patient‑centered care.

✨ We can’t wait to welcome you to our new Pequot Lakes location!

📱 Call 218-824-5027 today to schedule your first appointment and experience the Select Therapy difference!

🔥Trending in Hand Therapy: Preoperative Therapy for Elective Hand Surgery ✋

One of the hottest conversations in hand therapy right now is preoperative therapy (“prehab”) for elective hand surgeries. Here's a link to this data from the American Society for Hand Therapy:

https://asht.org/research/research-updates

📝Here's the short-story:

A recent survey of 38 hand therapists highlighted a major evidence gap:
➡️ Which surgeries actually benefit most from preoperative therapy?

Here’s what therapists reported:
✨ Trapeziectomy (base of the thumb surgery for arthritis) and Dupuytren’s Fasciectomy (removal of thickened tissue in the palm that makes the fingers stiff/locked in a bent position) were two procedures that were most likely to benefit from prehab. This was based on the perceived value of patient education, expectation‑setting, and preparing for the demands of postoperative rehab.
✨ Surgeries requiring more intensive postoperative therapy and patient compliance were also viewed as strong candidates for prehab.
✨ Trigger finger release and cubital tunnel release were rated as least likely to benefit from prehab.

Why does this matter?
Preoperative therapy may help patients:
✔️ Understand their rehab journey
✔️ Reduce anxiety and improve confidence
✔️ Learn early edema (swelling) and mobility strategies
✔️ Set realistic expectations for recovery
✔️ Engage more fully in postoperative therapy

Even though more research is needed, this study highlights a growing trend:
Hand therapists are increasingly advocating for proactive, education‑focused prehab to support better surgical outcomes.

If you’re a clinician, surgeon, or patient navigating elective hand surgery, this is a conversation worth watching!

Research Updates | American Society of Hand Therapists (ASHT) The ASHT Research Division offers research updates to increase awareness of emerging research in the field of hand and upper extremity therapy. Each month, the Research Division releases a brief summary of an original published research paper selected by members of the Research Division. 2026 Resear...