The expert

Ms Michelle Razo.

Consultant Hand Therapist, Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) and Registered Occupational Therapist. Has extensive clinical experience across Plastic Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Rheumatology and Neurology, gained in trauma centres and hospitals in the United States and London. Has an independent private clinical practice. Teaches hand therapy to clinicians internationally.

Ms Michelle Razo, Consultant Hand Therapist, Founder of Upper Hand Medico-Legal

Credentials and registrations

CHT
Hand Therapy Certification Commission · Cert 202205059
CUBS
Cardiff University Bond Solon Civil Expert Witness Certificate
HCPC
Registered Occupational Therapist · OT72737
NBCOT
Registered Occupational Therapist (USA) · Cert 294937
MOT
Master of Occupational Therapy · Texas Woman's University
BA
Kinesiology · St Edward's University, Austin, Texas
BAHT
British Association of Hand Therapists, member · 2739
BAOT / RCOT
British Association of Occupational Therapists, member

Clinical career

Built across three jurisdictions.

Belfast
Consultant Hand Therapist and Advanced Practitioner, Regional Plastic Surgery Service, South Eastern HSC Trust. Complex hand and upper limb caseload across inpatient and outpatient settings.
London
Senior Specialist Occupational Therapist, Plastic Surgery, Orthopaedics and Rheumatology, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust.
Texas
Occupational Therapist, Upper Limb and Hand Trauma, Orthopaedic Surgery, ICU, Neurology and Advanced Wound Care, University Medical Center, El Paso.

Expert witness training

The full Bond Solon programme.

Cardiff University Bond Solon Civil Expert Witness Certificate as the headline qualification, supported by the named courses below across England, Wales and Ireland.

CUBS
Cardiff University Bond Solon Civil Expert Witness Certificate
2025
Working as an Expert Witness in the Irish Legal System · Bond Solon
2023
Civil Law and Procedure (England and Wales), two-day course · Bond Solon
2022
Excellence in Report Writing (England and Wales) · Bond Solon
2022
Courtroom Skills (England and Wales) · Bond Solon
2022
Cross Examination (England and Wales) · Bond Solon
Cardiff University Bond Solon Certified Civil Expert Witness badge

Verified credential

Cardiff Bond Solon Civil Expert Witness Certificate

Verify on bondsolon.com ↗

Specialist clinical CPD

Current with surgical practice.

Active continuing professional development with the British Society for Surgery of the Hand (BSSH) keeps the practice's clinical reasoning aligned with surgical decision-making in instructed cases.

Jun 2025
Inflammatory and Degenerative Arthritis · BSSH Instructional Course
Feb 2025
Fractures and Joint Injuries · BSSH Instructional Course
Jun 2024
Soft Tissue Reconstruction, Burns and Infection · BSSH Instructional Course
Feb 2024
The Wrist · BSSH Instructional Course

Teaching faculty

International faculty in upper limb specialism.

Invited to teach on advanced hand and upper limb practice across four jurisdictions. Subject matter includes TFCC rehabilitation, X-ray interpretation in hand therapy, nerve entrapment, peripheral nerve assessment, and post-surgical rehabilitation.

2025 · Dubai
Invited Faculty, International Hand and Wrist Congress and Hand Therapy Symposium. Two presentations including the first public introduction of the Proximity Blindness framework in Hand Therapy.
Doha
Invited Faculty, Hamad Medical Corporation. Two advanced Hand Therapy courses: TFCC Rehabilitation and X-ray Interpretation.
Abu Dhabi
Invited Faculty, Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City. Advanced course on X-ray Interpretation, Post-surgical Rehabilitation and Trauma, hosted by the Occupational Therapy Department.
El Paso
Invited Faculty, University Medical Center of El Paso. Two advanced courses on TFCC Rehabilitation, Peripheral Nerve Assessment and Nerve Treatment. Approximately 70 attendees.

Published research

Peer-reviewed in Injury.

Co-author of clinical research on outpatient hand extensor tendon repair outcomes within Northern Ireland's Regional Plastic Surgery Service.

Oct 2025
Outcomes of outpatient hand extensor tendon injury repairs in Northern Ireland's regional plastic surgery service. Injury, Volume 56, Issue 10. DOI: 10.1016/j.injury.2025.112647

Selected media

In the record.

May 2026
More Than Just A Hand podcast, "Hand Therapy Consultancy in the UK". Interviewed by Hand Therapist Blair Agero.
Winter 2025
ASHT Times, the American Society of Hand Therapists' official quarterly publication, "Across Borders: Global Perspectives in Hand Therapy" feature.
Apr 2018
London Evening Standard, "Victim of Nice attack runs marathon for hospital that rebuilt his hand". Named as one of the Hand Therapists leading rehabilitation at Guy's and St Thomas' for a patient injured in the July 2016 Bastille Day attack.

Independent expert witness services

No institutional ties or conflicts of interest. Duty solely to the court, opinions on objective clinical assessment.

Instruct

By email.

Send the letter of instruction, records, imaging or existing expert evidence directly by email. Acknowledged within one working day.

How to instruct