On Saturday, April 21^st, the Minnesota Physical Therapy Association will be holding their annual conference. The event, named “Minnesota in Motion,” will be held at the Minneapolis Park Place DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel.

The one-day format will include the annual membership meeting, lunch, awards, exhibits and three separate sessions of educational courses, capped off with a “Celebration of Physical Therapy.” In addition, students from local PT programs will have a chance to share some of the research they’ve been conducting. Overall, the event promises to provide a great opportunity to learn, network and enjoy all things physical therapy.

As a Minnesota-based company, OPTP is looking forward to exhibiting at the local event and being part of the “hometown crowd.” Attendees who stop by our booth will get to see a variety of new and exclusive physical therapy products, including the following recently published books.

Pain Neuroscience Education: Teaching People About Pain
This clinician book provides an evidence-based perspective on how the body and brain work together to create pain, teaches how to convey this new view of pain to patients in a way that’s easily understood and demonstrates how to integrate pain neuroscience education into a practice. The revised second edition of Pain Neuroscience Education, which contains significant updates and new content, is written by physical therapists Adriaan Louw, Emilio Puentedura, Steve Schmidt and Kory Zimney.

Thrust Joint Manipulation Skills for the Spine
This new manual therapy textbook explains when and how to effectively perform thrust techniques for patients with musculoskeletal dysfunctions in the spine. Thrust Joint Manipulation Skills for the Spine is designed to familiarize the reader with the concept of focusing to engage the barrier as it relates to patient comfort, and provides clinical pearls to enhance skill acquisition and technique. Perhaps most unique to the book is its access to videos demonstrating 45 techniques, allowing viewers to watch and learn from the authors and master clinicians; Emilio Puentedura and William O’Grady

Additional Physical Therapy Products
In addition to these books, OPTP will have an assortment of posture and back pain products such as lumbar rolls and other McKenzie Method^® products, as well as hand therapy products like our Handii™ Healthy Hands. The versatile new Performance Wedges™ and Performance Block™, which offer endless exercise possibilities for increasing strength and range of motion, will also be on display. And of course, we’ll have products for myofascial release and massage therapy on hand as well, such as foam rollers and the new PRO Soft Release Ball, a soft density 5” diameter foam massage ball.

In Our Own Backyard
While our staff are accustomed to traveling far and wide for conferences and tradeshows — even internationally on occasion — it will be nice to stay close to home this time around. We’re looking forward to supporting the Minnesota Physical Therapy Association and encourage all those interested in attending to learn more and register at the annual conference website. We hope to see you there!