We are located in Reno, NV at the Plumgate Center at the intersection of Plumb and Arlington: 540 W. Plumb Lane, Suite 201
Pam was born in Toronto, Canada. Following her graduation from the University of Toronto in 1992 with a degree in Occupational Therapy, she moved to the United States to pursue her passion for hand therapy. Pam successfully completed the Houston Hand Therapy Fellowship in 1998 and became a Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) in 2001. In 2011, she and Christine partnered together and founded Nevada Hand Therapy. On weekends, Pam enjoys day hikes, skiing and camping with her family.
Christine completed her Bachelor’s degree at UCLA, graduating Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa in 1998. In college, she worked at Santa Monica Hand Therapy where she first gained exposure to the art and science of hand therapy. She went on to earn her Master’s in occupational therapy at Columbia University. Her love of upper extremity rehabilitation led her to complete a hand therapy internship at San Francisco General Hospital. After working at California Pacific Medical Center, Davies and Saint Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco, she became a Certified Hand Therapist in 2006 and moved to the Reno/Tahoe area. In her free time, Christine enjoys skiing, hiking, playing tennis, and spending time with her daughters and overgrown puppy Kingsley.
Brenda is originally from San Jose, California. She relocated to Reno to be closer to her family. She loves spending time with her family, while watching them off road cross county racing. She also enjoys camping and anything outdoors. In her spare time, Brenda loves walking and pampering her dog.
Kristin's bio coming soon!
Edel was born in the Philippines and was raised in Reno. In addition to working on insurance authorizations and verifications at Nevada Hand Therapy, Edel has been working towards getting her IT certification to be a programming analyst in the medical industry while putting together her portfolio to be a tattoo artist on the side. In her spare time, she enjoys rock climbing, hiking, aerial silks, and spending time with her dog Maple.
Jacob grew up in a small town in Western Nebraska and pursued his dreams of playing collegiate football at Wayne State College. He earned his Bachelor's of Science degree in Applied Human Sports Physiology. After suffering a devastating left shoulder injury playing football, he was introduced to occupational therapy and became passionate about hand therapy. Jacob went on purse a Doctorate in Occupational Therapy at Northern Arizona University and graduated in 2020. He gained 2 years of experience working at an outpatient hand therapy clinic in Scottsdate, AZ before relocating to Nevada. In his free time, Jacob enjoys spending time in the outdoors, paddleboarding, hiking, snowshoeing, skiing and camping. He and his wife are the proud parents of two beautiful cats, Basil and Rosemary.
Michelle Galanopoulos received her B.S. degree in Biology from Iowa State University in 1995 and her Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy in 1998 from Midwestern University. She became a CHT in 2004 after several years of work under a hand surgeon with University of Chicago Hospitals. Before joining Nevada Hand Therapy, Michelle worked as a hand therapist in Chicago, Dallas, and Sonoma. In her free time Michelle enjoys running, cycling, and cooking and has a degree in the culinary arts from the prestigious CIA!
Karmen was born and raised in Reno. She graduated from the University of Nevada Reno with a Bachelor's of Science in Biology. During her college years, she worked at Nevada Hand Therapy, where she developed her interest in occupational therapy and was introduced to the art of hand therapy. Karmen went on to earn her Master's of Science in Occupational Therapy from Washington University in St. Louis. As a graduate student, Karmen served as the Community Service Chairperson and was an active member of the Pi Theta Honor Society. She traveled to Guatemala with the program Hearts in Motion to provide occupational therapy services to individuals without access. After completing advanced hand therapy internships in Chicago and Portland, Karmen is excited to be back in Nevada. In her free time, Karmen enjoys spending time in the outdoors trail running, camping, backpacking, and skiing with her friends and family.
Laura graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno with her bachelors degree in Biology and then went on to earn her Masters Degree in Occupational Therapy at Midwestern University in Arizona. She successfully passed the certified hand therapy examination in 2018. As a third generation Nevadan, Laura takes advantage of all the local outdoor activities with her husband, children, and dogs. On her day off, you might find Laura with her family hiking, snowskiing, wakeboarding, camping, or fishing.
Zoe grew up in a small mountain town near Truckee, California. She attended Dominican University of California in San Rafael for both her undergraduate and graduate studies and obtained a Masters degree in Occupational Therapy. Zoe is currently taking steps towards becoming a certified hand therapist. In her free time, you will find Zoe jamming with her band or playing ice hockey.
Sarah grew up in Madison, Wisconsin. Yes, she owns a cheese head. She graduated with her Master's degree in Occupational Therapy in 2015 from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Sarah spent the first few years of her therapy career working at an outpatient hand therapy clinic where she gained exposure to orthopedic and neurological impairments of the upper extremity. Sarah worked as a traveling occupational therapist in areas across the country in various practice settings from pediatrics to skilled nursing. Her travels led her to Reno, where she fell in love with the beauty and closeness to everything outdoors. In her free time, Sarah enjoys backpacking, skiing, climbing, and mountain biking and is the proud mama to her pup Sawyer.
Denise attended the University of Louisiana, Monroe on a full water-skiing scholarship where she completed her Bachelor of Science degree in occupational therapy. She worked in various practice settings from pediatrics to hospital based acute care, until she decided to specialize in hand therapy. In addition to becoming a Certified Hand Therapist in 2000, Denise founded and developed the hand therapy program in Truckee at Tahoe Forest Hospital where she currently acts as the lead therapist. . Denise was the Coach of the US Disabled Water Ski team from 1999 to 2009 and has achieved a Level 2 Adaptive Snow Sports Instructor status. In her free time, Denise can be found snow skiing, running, shooting photography, and spending time with her husband and dog.
Amy graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Occupational Therapy from Xavier University in Cincinnati in 2000. Shortly after, she moved from Ohio to the mountains of Lake Tahoe and has worked full time for Barton Healthcare in South Lake Tahoe. She has been dedicated to hand therapy since the beginning of her career as a therapist and became a Certified Hand Therapist in 2017. In her spare time, she does per diem work for both Nevada Hand Therapy and Carson Valley Medical Center. She enjoys traveling, skiing, hiking and spending time with family and friends.
Victoria is an east coast transplant from Bergen County New Jersey. She graduated from East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor's degree in Athletic Training and went on to earn a Master's in Occupational Therapy from West Coast University in 2018. She completed an internship at Barton Memorial Hospital in South Lake Tahoe where she first gained exposure to the art of hand therapy. In addition to upper extremity rehabilitation, Victoria also has extensive experience working in pediatrics and in acute care settings. She is proud to call Tahoe her home and enjoys mountain biking, camping, skiing, and rock climbing in her free time.
Debbie was born in Reno and raised in California. She graduated from the University of California Santa Barbara with a degree in Ergonomics and went on to the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington to earn her degree in Occupational Therapy. She was one of the first therapists in the United States to sit and successfully pass the Hand Therapy Certification Exam in 1991. She was a Certified Hand Therapist for 25 years and has worked in upper extremity rehabilitation for more than 30 years. Outside of work, Debbie enjoys spending time with her family and her dogs. She is an avid reader and loves cooking and yoga.
